St. Louis Inno is publishing profiles of its 2024 Startups to Watch this week. See the entire list of honorees below.
McClintock LLC/Antiger Therapeutics Inc.
What it does: McClintock uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to help agriculture firms with plant breeding. The agriculture technology startup says its technology can help agriculture firms bolster their breeding operations through the use of analytics and predictive modeling.
Antiger Therapeutics Inc., founded in 2022, is a biotechnology company working to develop precision immunotherapies for transplant recipients who reject their transplant. It is also targeting therapies for autoimmune diseases, including Type 1 diabetes and celiac disease.
Both companies are led by Hongjie Guo.
The latest: McClintock in 2023 announced its first publicly disclosed deal with a customer. The “strategic collaboration” with San Francisco-based biotechnology company Amfora will use McClintock's techonology to assist in producing ultra-high protein soybean varieties.
Antiger has advanced research and development, receiving nearly $300,000 in grant funding from the National Institutes of Health for its transplant treatment. It has also sought grants for its development efforts around Type 1 diabetes and celiac disease. The company has filed a patent for its technology, Guo said.
Why you should watch it: Antiger says its focus on precision medicine has the potential to provide an effective treatment for diseases that affect millions of Americans. Nearly 2 million Americans have type 1 diabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control Prevention. Celiac disease affects roughly 2 million Americans, per Johns Hopkins Medicine.
McClintock believes its technology can bring artificial intelligence into agriculture to improve yield and crop quality. It has been launched by a trio of former employees at Creve Coeur food technology firm Benson Hill (NYSE: BHIL). Its team includes Guo, who formerly worked as a scientist at Benson Hill; Tom Brutnell, who co-founded Benson Hill and Avi Kaler, who also previously worked for Benson Hill.
What’s next: Antiger will continue with its research and development efforts, with hopes of securing funding to advance its work on developing treatments for autoimmune diseases. The company, with what it says are promising research results so far, plans to seek out pre-seed financing from investors.
McClintock is currently in discussions with companies globally to use its technology. Guo said she is looking for a company that could potentially acquire McClintock, allowing her to focus more time on Antiger.
More about Antiger Therapeutics
Year founded: 2022
Founders: Hongjie Guo and Chang Liu, an associate professor of pathology and immunology at Washington University School of Medicine
Employees: 3
Capital raised: Antiger has received $272,503 in grant funding from the National Institutes of Health
More about McClintock
Year founded: 2022
Founders: Hongjie Guo
Employees: 3
Capital raised: $250,000
Investors: Angel investors. The company did not disclose the identities of its investors.
