NextVivo organoids are miniature 3D tissue models that can uniquely retain all key cell types of human organs, including immune cells. The company's platform, based on technology licensed from Stanford University, has potential applications to generate cell and antibody therapies by leveraging the immune system's natural defense mechanisms and the preclinical and clinical testing of drug candidates across a range of diseases, including cancer, infection, and autoimmune disorders, the company said.

The company's technology overcomes barriers that have prevented other organoids from growing physiologically relevant models of disease by limiting the represented cell types, NextVivo said. Its organoids provide 3D holistic models that recapitulate the spatial organization and functional interactions among healthy, disease, and immune cells, opening the door to new ways of conducting drug development in fully human systems, the company noted.

NextVivo was co-founded by Dr. Mark Davis, PhD, and Dr. Calvin Kuo, PhD, of Stanford University and Adam Margolin, PhD, former chair and professor of the department of genetics and genomic sciences at Mount Sinai.

Financing was led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from Alexandria Venture Investments, Wilson Sonsini, and individual investors.