EpilepsyGTx
This UCL Ventures spinout focuses on cutting-edge treatments for focal refractory epilepsy.
EpilepsyGTx is a late preclinical-stage biotech, developing cutting-edge gene therapies that will transform the management of focal refractory epilepsy (FRE).
The spinout's goal is to make patients with FRE seizure-free.
Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological diseases, affecting over 50 million people worldwide (WHO). Focal epilepsy is a group of disorders in which patients experience seizures that arise from a specific part of the brain, while refractory epilepsy occurs when seizures persist despite trials of at least two tolerated and appropriately chosen antiseizure treatments.
Approximately one in five patients with epilepsy has focal refractory epilepsy.
The mortality in people with refractory epilepsy is four times higher than in the general population. In the UK alone, approximately 1,000 epilepsy-related deaths are recorded each year. The hallmark symptom of FRE is recurrent and unpredictable seizures, which can cause injury and become life-threatening.
People with epilepsy often struggle with anxiety, depression, and the social stigma associated with their disease, and their professional life is severely restricted.
The EpilepsyGTx journey so far:
- 2024: EpilepsyGTx raised $10 million seed funding
- 2025: A $33 million Series A followed in 2025
Our people
Dr. Caitriona O'Rourke (Away from office)
Senior Business Manager
Dr O’Rourke joined us in 2018, having worked as a research associate within UCL on several diverse life science / pharmaceutical research projects covering the areas of tissue engineering, drug
delivery, regenerative medicine, biomaterials and stem cell biology.
Caitriona holds a PhD in tissue engineering from the Open University and a MSc in neuropharmacology from the National University of Galway, Ireland.
Chloë Howard
Digital Communications Manager
Chloë has worked as a strategic communications advisor at global PR and communications agencies for the last five years, supporting clients in the science and innovation, technology and energy
sectors.
She brings more than 10 years experience in CMS management, social media strategy and content creation, and a personal interest in web development and online visibility in search engines and LLMs.
Dr Christina Panaretou
Senior Business Analyst
Dr Panaretou is responsible for market analysis, technology and deal assessment and project valuations, including valuations for licence and spinout transactions.
Prior to joining UCL Ventures,
Christina was a business analyst at the Bloomsbury Bioseed Fund, a University Challenge Seed Fund that specialised in early-stage life science investments; there she was responsible for identifying and performing due diligence on investment opportunities and assisting in contract negotiations.
She holds a BSc in biochemistry from UCL and gained a PhD at the former London branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, focusing on cell biology and intracellular signalling. This was followed by postdoctoral research at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund (now CRUK).
Dr. Christine Madla Angeles
Business Manager
Dr Madla Angeles supports the translation of cutting-edge research into high-impact social ventures. She works across a diverse portfolio spanning women’s health technologies, digital education
platforms, sustainable solutions, and patient-centred innovations originating from world-leading UCL research, driving both commercial success and scalable societal impact.
Christine holds a PhD in Pharmaceutics from the UCL School of Pharmacy, where her research focused on sex differences in oral drug absorption from pharmaceutical formulations.
She is the founder of Sex in Science, an initiative dedicated to addressing the persistent sex and gender gap in healthcare research.
Christine has consulted for leading pharmaceutical companies on the integration of sex as a biological variable in preclinical and clinical trial design, helping to advance more equitable and effective healthcare outcomes.
Dr. Cosetta Bertoli
Business Manager
Dr. Bertoli is part of the BioPharm team and is a co-located and co-funded cancer specialist representing the joint interests of UCL Ventures and Cancer Research UK (50:50).
For UCL Ventures she
is primarily responsible for IP protection and commercialisation of technologies developed at UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. For Cancer Research UK she is a Search and Evaluation Manager, responsible for identifying and facilitating the translation of UCL-based research into clinically-meaningful products for the benefit of cancer patients.
Cosetta joined us from Cancer Research Horizons, where she was Translation Executive in the Search and Evaluation team in the London region, providing intellectual property and translational funding for CRUK-funded projects at Queen Mary University of London, Imperial College London and King's College London. Before that she was project leader in the CRUK Centre for Drug Development, working on early phase clinical trials in oncology.
She has a PhD in Biomedical Sciences and Technologies and extensive research experience in cellular and molecular biology both in the academic sector in Trieste (Italy) and at UCL, and in the private sector where she was leading a team carrying on preclinical work in drug development in oncology.
Dahlia Muana
People Services Generalist
Dahlia has over five years’ experience in human resources and people operations. Throughout her career, she has taken the lead on recruitment, onboarding, policy management, and staff development. Dahlia is incredibly passionate about improving people processes and creating an ideal employee experience. She holds an MSc in Human Resource Management and is CIPD qualified.
David Philips
Senior Business Manager
David is a molecular geneticist and virologist by background and has worked managing and licensing intellectual property for over 20 years.
He has twice worked for the University of Oxford’s
technology transfer office, where he was involved in technologies as diverse as novel anti-cancer agents and software for medical imaging and scanning. He has also spent considerable time in industry, working for multinationals such as GlaxoSmithKline and Mercury Pharma, through to small university-based start-up companies.
David is responsible for commercialisation opportunities arising from the Institute of Child Health at Great Ormond Street Hospital, the UCL Cancer Institute and the Institute of Cardiovascular Science.
Dennis Bonsu
Acting Post Deal & Data Compliance Manager
Dennis' main responsibilities are to monitor the ongoing financial obligations of complete agreements, and to ensure that all key information is recorded and actioned appropriately post deal. He
works closely with Business Managers and the Finance team.
Prior to UCL Ventures, which he joined in 2022, Dennis worked for a regulator, and has experience in the healthcare recruitment industry.
Dylan Oliver
Senior Lead IT Engineer
Dylan leads our IT function
Team
Professor Dimitri Kullman
Chief Scientific Officer; Scientific Founder
He is part of the Queen Square Institute of Neurology.
Professor Stephanie Schorge
Scientific Founder
Stephanie is the Sophia Jex-Blake Professor of Neuroscience at UCL and the Head of the Research Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology (NPP). She has been at UCL since 1999.
Prof Matthew Walker (UCL Institute of Neurology)
Prof Gabriele Liagnani (UCL Institute of Neurology)
Dr. Caitriona O'Rourke (Away from office)
Senior Business Manager
Dr O’Rourke joined us in 2018, having worked as a research associate within UCL on several diverse life science / pharmaceutical research projects covering the areas of tissue engineering, drug
delivery, regenerative medicine, biomaterials and stem cell biology.
Caitriona holds a PhD in tissue engineering from the Open University and a MSc in neuropharmacology from the National University of Galway, Ireland.