Tozaro raises £6M to scale next‑generation gene therapy
Bedfordshire-based biotech company Tozaro has secured a £6 million investment from specialist investor Mercia, providing fresh capital to accelerate the development and scaling of its emerging gene therapy platform. The funding underscores growing investor confidence in UK life sciences and in new approaches to treating serious genetic disorders.
Backing a new UK gene therapy platform
Tozaro, headquartered in Bedfordshire, is developing a proprietary platform designed to make gene therapy more efficient, targeted and commercially scalable. The company is working on technologies that aim to improve the delivery of genetic material into cells, a central challenge that has limited the wider adoption of advanced therapies.
The £6 million round, led by Mercia, will be used to expand laboratory capacity, grow the scientific team and advance preclinical programmes towards clinical readiness. The investment is expected to help Tozaro refine its platform, generate additional proof-of-concept data and strengthen intellectual property around its delivery systems and manufacturing processes.
Focus on rare diseases and scalable manufacturing
According to the company, its platform is being designed with a dual focus: addressing high‑unmet‑need rare diseases while also tackling the cost and complexity of biomanufacturing. By optimising vectors and production methods, Tozaro aims to reduce the cost per dose of advanced therapies and make treatments more accessible to health systems.
The new funding from Mercia will support partnerships with academic and clinical centres and enable the company to pursue regulatory discussions at an earlier stage. Industry observers see the deal as part of a broader wave of UK investment into cell and gene therapies, an area viewed as strategically important for the country’s life sciences sector.
Strengthening the UK life sciences ecosystem
The investment in Tozaro highlights continued appetite from growth investors such as Mercia for platform technologies rather than single-asset drug plays. By building a flexible gene therapy toolkit, the company aims to support multiple future programmes and collaborations, positioning Bedfordshire as a growing hub for advanced therapeutics innovation.