Academic Origins Driving Impact in Epigenetic Diagnostics
Non-destructive analysis offers simultaneous genomic, epigenomic and fragmentomic information from a single sample
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As precision oncology continues to evolve, the integration of molecular insights beyond the genome is becoming increasingly indispensable. While genomic analysis has transformed our understanding of cancer biology and informed the development of targeted therapies, it is becoming clear that genomics alone cannot fully account for the complexity of tumor heterogeneity, progression and treatment resistance. Epigenetic analysis – interrogating modifications such as DNA methylation, chromatin accessibility and histone modifications – offers complementary layers of information that reflect dynamic regulatory changes in gene expression without altering the underlying DNA sequence. These insights are particularly valuable in refining diagnostic classifications, predicting therapeutic responses and uncovering biomarkers for early detection.
Translating academic innovation in areas such as this into widely accessible tools is a critical step in advancing biomedical research and clinical practice. Spinout companies play a pivotal role in this process, enabling technologies developed in academic settings to be refined, scaled and disseminated to the broader scientific and clinical communities. By bridging the gap between discovery and deployment, these ventures help to ensure that cutting-edge methods – such as novel epigenetic analysis platforms – do not remain confined to specialist laboratories, but instead contribute to broader scientific progress and patient impact. However, this pathway is rarely straightforward. Academic founders must navigate unfamiliar terrain, including intellectual property management, regulatory strategy, funding acquisition, team building and the transition from exploratory science to product development. Without the right infrastructure and support, many promising technologies struggle to reach their full potential. This is where industry partnerships can become essential, providing commercial insight, operational expertise and access to networks that can accelerate development and adoption.
We spoke to Dr. Rob Neely, associate professor in biophysical chemistry at the University of Birmingham and chief scientific officer and co-founder of Tagomics, a spin-out from the University, and Dr. Mark Garner, director of Agilent Technologies’ Translational Research Market at the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2025. Agilent Technologies is partnering with Tagomics to enable scientists to get the most out of a single sample. In our interview, Neely and Garner discussed how Tagomics’ platform addresses issues with current epigenomic analysis, the challenges and rewards of taking a concept from academia to market and the important part that industry partners can play in accelerating discovery and innovation to deliver real-world impact for patients.
Can you tell us about the technology you’ve developed and how it works?
Rob Neely, PhD (RN):
Tagomics has developed a platform for epigenomic analysis that is unique in its targeting of unmodified DNA. The platform is enzymatic, so it is non-damaging and highly efficient, allowing the unbiased enrichment and analysis of unmodified genomic DNA.
This is important because these unmodified regions of the genome are typically the active genomic regions where genes are switched “on” and includes regulatory elements like promoters and enhancers. The unmethylated epigenome (unmethylated CpG sites) is also a small fraction of the whole epigenome, making Tagomics’ platform cost-effective and scalable.
There are around 28 million sites in our genome that can be targeted for methylation, which is a key epigenetic process. Methylation is used to switch genes on and off and is a critical process in aging, health and disease. Our unique epigenomic workflow uses nature’s solution to targeting unmethylated DNA: a DNA methyltransferase enzyme. We have engineered this enzyme to enable DNA tagging, rather than DNA methylation. This allows us to place tags – chemical handles for enrichment – on unmethylated regions of the genome. We then sequence the tagged DNA to create a unique epigenomic profile of the unmethylated (active) regions of the genome.
We’re using this platform to detect minute changes to the DNA that is circulating in blood. This has several applications, but we’re currently focusing on the early detection of cancers and monitoring of organ health.
For early cancer detection, we recently launched Interlace, our platform for multiomic analysis. Interlace is built around our pioneering epigenomic workflow, which, because of its non-destructive nature, enables simultaneous genomic, epigenomic and fragmentomic information to be derived from a single sample. This means we can combine the ability of our epigenomic platform to detect disease early with established genetic panels that enable selection of a personalized therapy. We’ve partnered with Agilent Technologies to showcase the combination of Interlace with their SureSelect™ library prep kits and SureSelect Cancer CGP assay™, a comprehensive genomic profiling panel.
Mark Garner, PhD (MG):
By integrating Tagomics’ innovative epigenomic platform with Agilent’s SureSelect technology, we’re enabling researchers to unlock a more comprehensive view of the genome from a single sample. This synergy empowers earlier and more precise detection of disease, which is essential for advancing personalized medicine.
KS:
What made you look at pursuing this idea and why is it an important development? What does it mean for scientists?
RN:
My research group at the University of Birmingham has been working with these DNA methyltransferase enzymes since I moved to Birmingham in 2014. The chemistry for enriching unmodified DNA is so simple to implement, and so robust, that I was confident that we could produce a tool that could be widely adopted and that would give a unique perspective on the epigenome. I developed this technology as a tool for scientists, who I knew were struggling to get reliable results using the approaches that were available at the time.
I believe in the paradigm that new technologies will drive new scientific discoveries and that’s why I’m so excited about the technology we’ve developed.
We’re seeing something similar in the epigenomics field now to when we saw the emergence of next-generation sequencing, with a suite of technologies for epigenomic profiling that can be matched to applications. We have several established platforms that use base conversion to detect DNA methylation but are expensive to implement for (epi)genome-wide profiling at scale. The long-read sequencing technologies allow direct read-out of methylation but are challenging to implement where DNA availability is limited (e.g., for the analysis of cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood). Additionally, existing enrichment-based approaches struggle with regions of the genome that are only partially methylated and lose some of this vital information.
Our enzymatic chemistry is genome-wide, all of the time. We deliver scalable, genome-wide methylation profiles with an unbiased enzymatic enrichment. Tagomics has wrapped that platform into the library preparation workflow for short-read sequencing, enabling extremely efficient handling of the DNA from sample input to sequencer. With Interlace, we’re now enabling scientists to derive more information from a sample than was previously possible. The ultimate aim is to translate this promise into better outcomes for patients.
KS:
What applications could this technology have?
RN:
We’re applying this platform where we believe we can make the most impact with an efficient, scalable and genome-wide epigenomic profiling technology. We are focused on the analysis of cfDNA, where our chemistry performs particularly well relative to the alternative approaches. cfDNA is present in our blood and typically comes from cells that have died. This means that with a blood test, we can understand the health and wellbeing of the organs in your body if we can efficiently isolate and profile (determine the tissue of origin for) this DNA.
In organ health, we’re developing a new kind of blood-based test that will help pharmaceutical companies understand how to stratify their patient cohorts better for clinical trials, and to detect the early signs of drug-induced toxicity. We can do this by sensitively identifying where the DNA in blood comes from. We hope this will help improve outcomes for patients on clinical trials and, eventually, when these compounds make it to the clinic will support the optimal treatment for individuals.
This also leads us to applications in the early detection of cancers. The dream is to develop a multi-cancer test that is capable of detecting disease before a patient becomes symptomatic. Existing technologies have limited benefit as screening tools because they are not sensitive enough. We’ve a unique platform that allows a scalable test that pulls more information from a single sample input than other platforms. This will translate to improved test sensitivity.
We’re actively partnering to deliver our platform for the early detection of cancers and are working on a number of internal studies with partners to show application of the platform.
MG:
Improving sensitivity in early detection is one of the most pressing challenges in oncology. By combining our genomic profiling tools with Tagomics’ novel epigenomic chemistry, we’re helping to close that gap – bringing us closer to routine, non-invasive cancer screening.
KS:
Your technology was spun out from academic research. What have been some of the greatest challenges in doing so?
RN:
The greatest challenge of spinning-out for me has been the leap of faith required to channel the majority of my academic research into Tagomics. It’s a decision that I perceived as simultaneously a huge risk to my academic career, the greatest opportunity of my life and the only real route to putting the technology my group and I developed into the hands of a clinician and seeing someone’s life changed as a result. That has been my North Star throughout the process, and it has helped guide my thinking and decision making since Jack Kennefick, CEO, and I spun-out Tagomics.
The process of building Tagomics has been extremely challenging, but I’ve benefitted from the relationships I’ve built and grown from the experiences I’ve had during that process. For example, I’ve learned to play nicely with others. Where my knowledge underpins the company, Jack’s energy has willed Tagomics into existence. We make a great team because we see the world very differently (but that took some time to understand!). We’ve also had incredible support from the biotech community around Cambridge and beyond that, from individuals like Dr. Kirk Malloy, our chair, who has supported us with an energy and lived experience that is irreplaceable.
KS:
What role has industry partnering played in your development journey so far, and how important do you think relationships like these are in taking discoveries from the research lab to creating a useful technology or tool for others?
RN:
Partnering is central to Tagomics’ mission. We see huge opportunities for the platform we’ve developed and will partner to deliver it. Our partnership with Agilent Technologies is a good example of this, where we integrated Agilent’s SureSelect library preparation and SureSelect Cancer CGP assay with our workflow, resulting in our Interlace platform. We anticipate this finding application as a tool for personalized medicine, where the epigenomic readout enables early detection of disease and the genetic readout delivers information on patient-specific mutations that can underpin the selection of an appropriate therapy.
MG:
Collaborations like this are vital to translating scientific breakthroughs into real-world clinical tools. At Agilent Technologies, we believe that strong partnerships with innovators like Tagomics accelerate the path from discovery to impact – bringing powerful diagnostic capabilities closer to the patients who need them.
KS:
Where are you hoping to go next with this?
RN:
