DURHAM — Precision BioSciences Inc. has raised more than $88 million in a private equity offering, according to a filing Friday afternoon with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The money was raised from 40 investors, according to the filing.

It last raised money in May 2015, when it received $25.6 million from investors. That funding was led by venBio and joined by Fidelity Biosciences, Amgen Ventures, Baxter Ventures, Osage University Partners, and The Longevity Fund.

The Durham-based company is using genome editing to eliminate cancers, cure genetic diseases, and create safer, more productive food sources.

Earlier last week, it created a new name and brand identity, Elo Life System, for its food and agriculture business.

The CEO and cofounder of the company is Matthew Kane. He led the company since its inception in 2006 and serves on Precision’s board.

He has 15 years of experience in the life sciences industry and was formerly with Suros Surgical Systems, later acquired by Hologic.

He received his B.S. and M.S. from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, and an MBA from Duke University.

Derek Jantz is the chief scientific officer and also a cofounder. As a protein engineer, he was an early developer of zinc finger technology and has spent most of his research career designing proteins for genome editing applications.

He has a B.A. in biology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Ph.D. in biophysics from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Jantz co-founded Precision BioSciences in 2006 after co-inventing a novel method for modifying the DNA-recognition properties of homing endonucleases. Since that time, he has served as vice president of scientific development, chief scientific officer, and chairman of the board of directors.

Companies relying on a Reg D exemption do not have to register their offering of securities with the SEC, but they must file what’s known as a Form D electronically with the SEC after they first sell their securities.

This story is from the North Carolina Business News Wire, a service of the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Media and Journalism