Looking to take advantage of the cool reception private biotechs are receiving from the public markets, a leading European VC is targeting investments of up to €70m per deal in firms with undervalued late-stage assets.

Cambridge Innovation Capital partner Robert Tansley tells Scrip that the UK has "a really strong history of innovation in biological sciences and Cambridge has been at the forefront” but this has not equated to a substantial number of biotech companies “where we have lagged significantly behind the US."

The Swiss giant has gained access to next-generation AAV capsids that could reach cells in the brain, something that has not been possible with technologies used to date.

Some investors are shying away from early-stage gene therapy companies, but Richard Francis, CEO of kidney disease specialist Purespring, told Scrip that the pharmaceutical industry's appetite for the field has not waned and the best-equipped companies will flourish.