Rising Leaders – Aneesh Karatt-Vallatt talks to Jo Shorthouse on Maxion Therapeutics’ antibody revolution

Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt’s path to science was as serendipitous as it was transformative. “I was probably eight or 10 when I won a quiz competition and got the wrong prize, a book about an Indian physicist who discovered what happens to stars at the end of their lives. I was reading about black holes, white dwarfs and red giants before I even understood the basics of physics,” he recalled. That formative encounter sparked a lifelong fascination with scientific inquiry.

Originally from the southern Indian State of Kerala, Karatt-Vellatt bucked cultural expectations that funneled many of his peers into medicine or engineering. Instead, he pursued biotechnology, captivated by the potential of recombinant DNA technology.

This early intrigue propelled him through a master’s program at the University of Aberdeen, and then to a job at MedImmune in Cambridge. It was there, during a Christmas party, that he met John McCafferty, co-inventor of phage display technology and founder of Cambridge Antibody Technology. Karatt-Vellatt convinced McCafferty to take him on as a PhD student, setting the stage for the genesis of the platform that would later become Maxion Therapeutics.

The “Last Frontier” Of Antibody Therapy

The core of Maxion’s innovation lies in its proprietary KnotBody technology, a fusion of naturally evolved ion channel-targeting peptides called knottins with drug-like properties of antibodies. The early foundations of the KnotBody technology trace back to Karatt-Vellatt’s PhD work, which focused on engineering knottins. The concept of KnotBody technology later emerged from his frustration with challenges of turning knottins into effective drug candidates and the inability to target ion channels with classical monoclonal antibodies.

“We’re a company focused on making drugs against ion channels and GPCRs,” he explained. “Ion channels control some of the most critical functions in the body. When they malfunction, you get diseases like chronic pain, autoimmune disorders and cardiovascular conditions. Yet, no antibody drugs are approved or even in clinical trials for ion channels. That really bugs me, as an antibody engineer it’s unacceptable.”

Ion channels are notoriously difficult to drug with antibodies due to their complex structure and membrane-bound nature. “People haven’t failed because they weren’t smart. The challenge is technical,” he noted. So Karatt-Vellatt and McCafferty took an unconventional approach: “Why not take inspiration from nature?”

They turned to venom peptides from scorpions, spiders, and conus snails, which are potent, selective modulators of ion channels. These peptides, known as knottins, had evolved over millions of years to be exquisitely effective. “The concept was simple,” said Karatt-Vellatt. “Fuse a knottin with an antibody. The antibody brings the drug-like properties; the knottin brings the targeting capability. That’s KnotBody.”

An Idea Born From Scientific Frustration

Before founding Maxion, Karatt-Vellatt and McCafferty co-founded IONTAS, a contract research company focused on antibody engineering. The revenue from IONTAS was strategically reinvested into tackling the ion channel problem, a classic example of bootstrapping innovation.

At IONTAS, they succeeded in engineering the first KnotBodies, filing patents and generating proof-of-concept data. “It wasn’t easy to fuse two complex proteins,” Karatt-Vellatt said. “But we showed it could work.” That achievement prompted the sale of IONTAS and the birth of Maxion Therapeutics in 2020, allowing full focus on the KnotBody platform.

Today, Maxion is advancing a pipeline of first-in-class biologics targeting ion channels and GPCRs. Following a successful £13m pre-Series A from LifeArc, BGF and Monograph capital, Maxion recently closed a £72m Series A led by General Catalyst with additional participation from existing investors as well as British Patient Capital, Eli Lilly and Solasta Ventures.

“In a tough funding climate, we’re lucky,” Karatt-Vellatt admitted. “But we let the data speak. We met every milestone from the last round and came back with compelling new results. That, combined with a strong team, made the case.”

Tackling Major Unmet Needs

Maxion’s lead program targets Kv1.3, a voltage-gated potassium channel implicated in autoimmune diseases. “Our approach selectively targets pathogenic T cells at the core of the disease without affecting normal immune function,” he said. The program is currently in preclinical development, with a goal to reach clinical proof-of-concept by 2028.

“We’ve always wanted to address ion channels in these areas. The opioid crisis, for example, is a tragedy born out of inadequate pain therapeutics. We want to change that.”
Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt

The company is also developing pipeline programs in pain and cardiovascular disease. “We’ve always wanted to address ion channels in these areas. The opioid crisis, for example, is a tragedy born out of inadequate pain therapeutics. We want to change that,” Karatt-Vellatt emphasized.

Maxion’s disease-agnostic strategy reflects the broad applicability of its platform. “Right now, we’re showing that KnotBody can work across indications. But we will refine our focus as we go,” he noted.

High Bar, Open Hand

As CSO, Karatt-Vellatt sees his role as more than a scientific architect; he’s also a mentor and team builder. “I set the bar high, for myself and for others, but I give people the freedom to get there. I challenge them, I support them and I reward fairly,” he said.

He credits the company’s success to its people as much as its science. “We have a brilliant team, from John McCafferty to our CEO Arndt Schottelius, and our newly hired chief development officer, Stefan Härtle. We work well together. There’s mutual respect, and we enjoy the debates. The credit also goes to young scientists here who remind me of a younger me, ambitious and driven. Watching them grow into leaders is incredibly rewarding.”

A Journey Rooted In Curiosity

Karatt-Vellatt reflects fondly on the mentors who shaped him, especially McCafferty and Andy Porter, his course coordinator in Aberdeen. “John sets the bar so high you always stay grounded. Andy gave me an open door when I didn’t know you needed to book appointments in the UK,” he laughed.

“It’s a building phase. But I’m hoping to get some of my life back once the foundation is set.”
Aneesh Karatt-Vellatt

This humility is matched by curiosity. Outside the lab, he’s an avid follower of history and politics, a scuba diver when he can escape to the tropics and a passionate Arsenal football fan. Maxion has taken over most of his time, he admits: “It’s a building phase. But I’m hoping to get some of my life back once the foundation is set.”

Looking Ahead

In five years, Karatt-Vellatt envisions Maxion as “the leader in ion channel and GPCR drug development.” That means a robust clinical pipeline, pharma partnerships that validate their platform and continued internal innovation. “We’ll do partnerships, but only a few. We don’t want to give all the value away,” he said.

“There’s so much unmet need. Chronic pain, autoimmune disease, cardiovascular dysfunction, millions suffer because the current drugs just aren’t good enough,” he said. “If our work can bring even a bit of relief, that’s the ultimate reward.”