TISSIUM, a privately-owned life science company developing fullysynthetic, biomorphic programmable polymers, announced today it has been awarded 2.2M€ in financing that will accelerate its development of a drug-eluting tissue adhesive to address the unmet needs of Chronic Rhinosinusitis (CRS) patients. The funding comes from the Investments for the Future program (Programme d’Investissements d’Avenir or PIA) under the innovation competition, “iNov,” operated by Bpifrance, which awards select projects with particularly strong technology and growth potential for the French economy.
TISSIUM is being recognized in the Surgery of the Future category with its project, “Innovative DrugEluting Adhesive for Surgery (IDEAS).” The project leverages TISSIUM’s unique adhesive drug delivery platform and seeks to address the shortcomings of CRS surgery, one of the most prevalent chronic illnesses in the US and EU, affecting about 10% of the population. TISSIUM’s advanced drug-eluting polymer will provide a high dose of anti-inflammatory agents to the inflamed nasal and sinus mucosa in order to maximize therapeutic effect and minimize systemic toxicity. The polymer will be able to remain at the targeted location and deliver the steroid, specifically to the inflamed local tissues over an extended period. This allows the duration of exposure and the kinetics of release to be regulated for maximal efficacy. Once developed, the technology has the potential to expand into other ENT indications, and be used to deliver bioactive molecules such as anti-microbial agents to prevent infection post-surgery and as a local anesthetic to minimize the need of opioid treatment post-surgery.
Currently, CRS treatment is not optimal. Approximately 60% of patients are not responsive to medical treatment. Furthermore, surgical procedures do not directly address the underlying inflammation, and more than 65% of patients end up with returning symptoms. Direct costs for CRS are over USD $12bn per year in the US alone.
In the IDEAS project, TISSIUM is creating technology that can deliver targeted high-doses of antiinflammatory agents for prolonged periods of time, while minimizing the risk for patients. By overcoming the current challenges of CRS treatment, this technology has the potential to improve the outcomes of surgical procedures, or even enable the treatment of CRS patients in an office setting, minimizing the need for surgical interventions, while improving patient outcomes.
Christophe Bancel, CEO of TISSIUM, said, “The support we are receiving for this project is a testament to our vision for the broad application of TISSIUM’s biomorphic programmable polymersthat we have in development. This funding will help us rapidly advance our technology to improve the outcomes of surgical procedures and minimize the overall costs for patients.”
About TISSIUM:
TISSIUM is a privately-owned life sciences company based in Paris, France that is dedicated to the rapid development and commercialization of a unique biopolymer platform to address various unmet clinical needs.
The company’s platform is based on a proprietary polymer family with unique properties including the ability to conform to, and integrate with, surrounding tissue to enable natural healing. Furthermore, the modular design of the polymers enables customization to match tissue-specific requirements for different therapeutic areas. The company also develops delivery and activation devices for enhanced performance and usability of its family of polymers.
The Company’s technology is based on world-class research and intellectual property from the laboratories of Professor Robert Langer (MIT) and Professor Jeffrey M. Karp (Brigham and Women’s Hospital), who co-founded the company in 2013.
About the Investments for the Future program:
The Investments for the Future program (PIA), piloted by the General Secretariate for Investment (SGPI), is endowed with 57 billion euros. It was established by the government to fund innovative and promising investments in France to increase French economic growth and employment potential. Since the launch of the PIA, the State has co-financed more than 6,000 projects to prepare the future.
For more information visit: https://www.gouvernement.fr/le-programme-d-investissements-d-avenir
About Bpifrance:
Bpifrance is the French national investment bank: it finances businesses – at every stage of their development – through loans, guarantees, equity investments and export insurances. Bpifrance also provides extra financial services (training, consultancy, etc.) to help entrepreneurs meet their challenges (innovation, export, etc.). For more information, please visit: www.bpifrance.fr
