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Series C Funding Arrives at Allylix

San Diego biotech Allylix Inc., which has developed a technology for using genetically engineered yeast to manufacture specialty chemicals for the food and flavor industry, said Feb. 10 that it has raised $6 million in venture funding.

The Series C round of financing was led by Indianapolis-based Midpoint Food & Ag Fund, along with new investor Avrio Ventures of Canada and existing investor Tate & Lyle Ventures of Britain.

The company said it will use the money to commercialize its first three products for the food and fragrance industry. It said it plans to introduce nootkatone first. Nootkatone is a long-lasting citrus flavor used in grapefruit drinks and fragrances. Currently, it is made through extraction from grapefruit peels. The company says it has come up with a low-cost alternative that relies on proprietary yeast strains that have been engineered to produce the compound.

Allylix, led by former Dow Chemical Co. executive Carolyn Fritz, was founded by Joseph Chappell at the University of Kentucky and Joseph Noel of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

The company said it expects to close a second Series C round by the end of April.

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