MicroSintesis lands US$12.4M investment to scale up microbiome research and expand global reach

26 Jun 2019 --- Proprietary microbiome therapies company MicroSintesis has closed a minority investment deal worth Can$16.4 million (US$12.4 million) with Northern Private Capital (NPC), the investment vehicle of Clearwater Fine Foods Incorporated’s (CFFI) venture arm, CFFI Ventures. The funding will enable a scaled-up production of MicroSintesis’ existing products – probiotics for dogs and cats, as well as pigs and chickens.

Additionally, it will increase the company’s research capabilities and platform for delivering new products, and expand the company’s reach in global markets. There are also plans to investigate new delivery methods to create applications that address all microbiomes, including gut, skin, respiratory, and oral.

“We anticipate that the first phase of our global market expansion will be focused on livestock and companion animal markets in the EU and US in the late 2019 timeframe. We also plan to launch our first human product as early as 2020,” Hannah McIver, CEO of MicroSintesis, tells NutritionInsight.

“With the cost of fighting antibiotic resistance now reaching into the billions, we rapidly need a proven solution directed at preserving antibiotics for the future. By partnering with NPC, we now have the funding and the support to grow our company into a global business. Our current technology is just the beginning of what we believe will be a new era of microbiome products,” she continues.

To date, MicroSintesis products have been used in over two million animals, having launched its two commercial lines in 2018. Ygia is developed for cats and dogs and can be found in veterinary clinics throughout Canada, while Nuvio – which is for pigs and chickens – is sold in six provinces across the country.

“This is a very large, global market and we believe MicroSintesis has a technology platform capable of delivering multiple products in the coming years to capitalize on this significant and sizeable opportunity, first in the area of animal health and soon to follow in human health,” says Andrew Lapham, CEO of NPC.

The science behind MicroSintesis
MicroSintesis uses metabolites, which are produced by probiotics, to identify a set of signal molecules which belong to the microbiome’s own communication system and are responsible for regulating its bacteria population. Patented formulations of these molecules can turn unhealthy gut bacterial populations into healthy ones. This has been substantiated through 11 published papers, three clinical studies and more than 100 case studies, according to MicroSintesis. The company currently has a library of more than 50 probiotic production strains.

“Our collective understanding of the role of the microbiome in health is in its infancy. We know there are numerous areas where the health of the microbiome has a role. It impacts not only digestive health, but mental health, heart health and even possibly cancer recovery,” explains McIver. “However, the understanding of which bacteria they are and how they work is still largely a figurative black box. If we can find molecules like ours, which are being produced in large numbers within different probiotics, then it makes the search for new health solutions much easier. It will also likely make these health solutions much more effective.” 

Hannah McIver, CEO of MicroSintesisAs understanding about metabolites grows, the potential will build for the development of a new wave of clinically effective health products to treat or prevent big diseases, McIver predicts. “These products will likely range from supplements, through to a new class of microbiome drugs. We believe the evolution will be similar to the fish oil industry – as products became more purified, their efficacy increased.”

Microbiome investment continues to grow
As emerging research supports the importance of the microbiome for overall health, increasing amounts of funding are flowing into the space. Vendata Biosciences, which develops therapies for immune-mediated diseases through the use of microbiome-derived bacteria, raised US$45.5 million last month. The company will use the funding to advance its clinical studies to support its portfolio.

 Additionally, European venture capital firm Seventure Partners completed the second closing of its second fund dedicated on microbiome and health, nutrition and digital/connected health sectors. It aims for a final close of over €200 million (US$227m) in order to secure finance in innovative equity companies in the life sciences fields. The fund will be used for microbiome related applications, including drugs, nutritional solutions, diagnostics and biomarkers, as well as opportunistic investments in digital therapeutics, connected health, digital nutritional advice, personalized nutrition, precision medicine and food technologies.

 DuPont Nutrition & Health has combined with Industrial Biosciences Businesses to create a new US$6.2 billion business division called Nutrition & Biosciences (N&B). The company will be active in various fields, including the microbiome, through its Human Microbiome Venture. Microbes and molecules will be used to develop probiotics, prebiotics and postbiotics with diagnostic and digital solutions with a focus on mother/infant, gut, metabolic and brain. 

By Katherine Durrell