LipoCoat, a biotech spin-off of the University of Twente’s prestigious nanotechnology lab MESA+, received 1.5 million euros extra funding this week from various investors. The money was deposited by Dutch private investors, the High Tech Fund from Enschede and the Rabobank Innovation Fund. With this investment LipoCoat will be able to bring new solutions to the market for infection control in healthcare faster, something of which the importance in these times of the coronavirus is all too obvious.
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INCREASE THE SAFETY OF MEDICAL DEVICES
LipoCoat is a specialist in developing new solutions for infection control in healthcare. Especially in the use of medical devices. The company currently has seven research projects under way, mainly for multinationals that want to increase the safety of their medical devices. LipoCoat’s unique biological and non-toxic coatings protect against infections. Investors’ money will be used to accelerate the introduction of products to the market. The High Tech Fund has committed €600,000 to equip LipoCoat’s new laboratory. The spin-off started in 2016 in the lab on the campus of the University of Twente, but has now completely outgrown its scope. At the end of April 2020, LipoCoat will open its own lab on the Kennispark Twente.
CONTACT LENSES AS THE FIRST APPLICATION
Launching innovations for medical devices and care takes a lot of time. “That’s why LipoCoat focuses on product-market combinations where faster rollouts are possible, including the contact lens market,” says Jasper van Weerd, CEO and founder of LipoCoat. The first contact lenses with the LipoCoat coating are in the process of medical approval, with the expectation to launch the product this fall. In a few years, LipoCoat expects the first coated catheters to become available on the market. Catheter infections cause a lot of suffering and patient discomfort worldwide. In addition, such infections cost healthcare tens of billions of euros annually.
DRUG DEVELOPMENT
LipoCoat also develops a coating that can be used for screening and testing new medicines. This often happens in cell culture systems. Such systems are often sensitive to contamination. In particular, the contamination of the drug candidates in these cell culture systems makes testing and analysis unreliable. The LipoCoat coating prevents this loss and increases the efficiency of drug screening and testing, saves and leads to better results. The solution is offered as a kit and is scheduled for launch in the summer of 2020.
IMPROVE QUALITY AND SAFETY OF CARE
LipoCoat’s mission is to improve the quality and safety of care. A very current mission in the current time image. In 2020 the first products will go to the market. At the same time, the LipoCoat team continues to innovate within the catheter domain. In order to make the next growth leap, haverwege 2021 is planning a B-investment round of € 5 million. With this round, the company wants to further expand the revenue streams, increase the development and production capacity and expand the international footprint to the American and Chinese markets.
