The First International Biomedical Entrepreneurship Competition Has Announced Its Top 6 Winners

The first International Biomedical Entrepreneurship Competition was launched Spring 2022. Hosted by the Boston Chinese Investment Club (BCIC) and nine partners co-hosted The competition aimed to support as well as accelerate the transformation of biomedical innovation ideas and technologies, and help entrepreneurs launch, grow and scale their businesses. 

This Competition is co-hosted by Shanghai Zhangjiang Boston Enterprise Park, Yael Capital, Mass Avenue Capital, Q Bay, Sino-American Pharmaceutical Professionals Association (SAPA)-DC, Yale Entrepreneur Association (YEA), and The Hopkins Club for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. 

K2 Venture, Frees Fund, Eisai Innovation Inc and Nest. Bio also serve as judges in the final competition.

After several rounds of preliminary competition, six out of 50+ teams entered the Final Contest on April 22, during which the top three teams were chosen by the panel of judges. 

Top 1：Amytrx Therapeutics

 Amytrx is a biotechnology company founded by Dr. Hawiger, Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Louise B. McGavock Chair in Medicine at VU. Amytrx has completed its second round of financing and has achieved a pre-money valuation of $36 million. Its product, AMTX-100, is a fully human 28 amino acid peptide therapeutic for immune-mediated diseases. The product has successfully completed Phase 1/2a in atopic dermatitis and has obtained US FDA clearance to start Phase 2b.

Top 2：ARIZ Precision Medicine

ARIZ Precision Medicine is a biotech that raised $685,000 in a pre-A seed financing round. The company is founded by Brad Niles (CEO), who has over 20 years’ experience in cancer research, and has worked the last five years in product development. ARIZ Precision Medicine is developing potentially curative drugs targeting a family of epigenetic regulators known as the PRDMs, specifically targeting the gene and protein responsible for cancer initiation while at the same time sparing healthy cells. The current lung cancer patients only about half have known drivers, their goal is to fill that space with patients with not known driver mutation, by pairing siRNA based and a nanoparticle drug delivery technology.

Top 3：Paracyte Bio

Paracyte Bio is a biotechnology company founded by James DiCarlo MD, PhD (Resident Physician, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School). Paracyte Bio aims to develop novel compounds and strategies to treat autoimmune disease by targeting parasitic immunomodulatory compounds. They generate intelligent libraries of potential immune interacting parasitic proteins, identifying novel immunomodulators via high throughput screening.

Top 4：Aikili Biosystems

Aikili is a seed stage medical diagnosis (precision oncology) company founded by Hannah Peterson, PhD (Massachusetts General Hospital) and Laura Kelley, MBA, MPH (Harvard Business School). Aikili serially profiles the tumor microenvironment in near-real-time by quantifying the types and abundance of cancer and immune cells harvested from minimally invasive, fine needle aspirate samples of <1,000 cells. Aikili technology is underpinned by novel, bio-orthogonal chemistry to which they have exclusive rights from Massachusetts General Hospital. 

Top 5：Biostage

Biostage is a clinical-stage biotechnology company that uses the patient’s own stem cells, grown in a porous plastic tubular scaffold, to regenerate the esophagus after it has been removed by surgery due to cancer, trauma or birth defects. Biostage was founded in 2008 by David Green, who is President and Director of the Harvard Business School Health Industry Alumni Association. Then called Harvard Apparatus Regenerative Technology, Biostage spun off from its parent company HBIO in 2013. 

Top 6：XSmart

 As vast quantities of digital data are collected from clinical practice, medical data analysis creates new data-driven diagnostic and treatment solutions. However, they are not easily available yet. XSmart Analysis aims to disrupt the medical-big-data discipline by providing a cloud-based platform specifically designed for medical data analysis, with all functionalities integrated into a set of one-click solutions.

The investors and judges also praised the following startups：

BosEagle Surgical Inc

A robotic surgical device company dedicated to addressing the unmet clinical needs of minimally-invasive endoscopic surgery such as Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy (PCNL), a type of kidney stone removal surgery.

Apodiform

Developed an automatic minimally invasive surgical robot, which comes equipped with a camera that could provide real-time images. AI technology is adopted to accurately locate lesions and assist with surgical navigation.

NeoRad Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd

Lead product, SimpliCT™, a laser guide for image guided interventions, has been sold to over 50 hospitals and clinics both in CT, PET-CT and advanced 3D Angio-labs (DSA), for non-vascular interventions such as biopsies, ablations, drainages, infiltrations etc.

Jiuxin Medicine

Porous microsphere bone adhesive – 30 seconds to complete the reduction of comminuted fracture, improve the doctor’s efficiency, accelerate fracture repair, reduce the number of surgeries.

Alding Biotechnology Co., LTD.

Innovative drug platform for fungal secondary metabolites. The team has built a domestic first-class platform for microbial resource production and drug discovery, as well as a national microbial resource storage center with a complete system. At present, they have an overall GMP production workshop and a complete biological laboratory.

Defu Biotechnology

Developed a microalgae-based sustainable production system that is negative economy, fresh-feeding, antibody-free, as well as low-carbon livestock production system.

Hengzhi Electrophysiology

Offers anti-motion interference flexible electronic skin arrhythmia detection ECG, combined with flexible materials, flexible packaging, 3D printing, anti-motion interference sensor.

Hoya Beauty

It focuses on the R&D and production of plastic surgery and beauty medical devices, covering passive medical devices and active medical devices. The company has launched “Yan Layer water-light therapy”, in which Yan Layer water-light meter is the first domestic water-light meter approved to be listed in China.

Limax Biosciences

Creating multifaceted solutions that enhance vascular remodeling and help tissue heal from the inside to out. The company has developed a fully degradable hydrogel-based material that has strong adhesion to hard-to-attach surfaces (such as ruptured cardiovascular vessels) and can withstand high pressure, making it a good hemostatic tool.  

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GeneOnline