Feb 20, 2019
Melbourne, Australia
Inosi Therapeutics, a company based on research at Monash University, has launched with an investment from IP Group and BioCurate. The company has been founded to develop therapies to address fibrosis, a condition associated with many chronic diseases where tissue damage leads to scarring and a loss of organ function. Inosi recognises the importance of close and early engagement between academic researchers and industry partners to ensure new therapy development programs are informed and aligned with addressing unmet patient and market needs. Inosi’s technology is based on collaborative research from a team at Monash University led by Assoc Professor Siew Chai, Dr Tracey Gaspari, Professor Robert Widdop from Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute and Professor Philip Thompson from the Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, with Monash Innovation leading the deal. The drug development program originated from a collaboration with University of Melbourne affiliates, St Vincent’s Institute of Medical Research and the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health and since progressed with the fibrosis group at Monash. “Fibrosis is closely associated with tissue injury and scarring that occurs with chronic diseases and is responsible for a large proportion of healthcare costs and mortality in developed countries, which is only projected to increase as the population ages” said Assoc Professor Siew Chai. “There is a huge unmet need for therapies that can prevent or reverse fibrosis to modify disease progression, and we are excited to be advancing our work one step further towards improving the lives of patients” commented Professor Robert Widdop. “BioCurate is delighted to be investing alongside IP Group. This is a great example of new approaches and models that are translating research at Australia’s leading universities into products with the potential to improve lives” said Dr C. Glenn Begley, CEO of BioCurate. Michael Molinari, Managing Director of IP Group Australia, said “Inosi Therapeutics is a great example of the quality technology from university research that IP Group specialises in backing. We’re delighted to have made this investment and look forward to working with BioCurate and the team to develop these therapies towards the clinic.” “This is Monash’s first investment with IP Group, and combined with investment from our strategic partner BioCurate, this is a tremendous boost to the program, providing funding and expertise to rapidly translate our research outcomes into much needed new treatments” said Dr Alastair Hick, Senior Director Monash Innovation. About IP Group IP Group is a leading intellectual property commercialisation company focused on evolving great ideas from its partner universities into world-changing businesses. The Group pioneered a unique approach to developing these ideas and the resulting businesses by providing access to business building expertise, capital, scientific insight and the supporting infrastructure. In Australia and New Zealand, IP Group works in close partnership with the Go8 Universities and the University of Auckland to identify ground breaking technologies, rooted in hard science, which have the most promising commercial potential. IP Group, which is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the symbol IPO, has a strong track record of success and its portfolio comprises holdings in early-stage to mature businesses across life sciences and technology. Twitter: @IPGroupplc Discover more at https://www.ipgroupanz.com About BioCurate BioCurate Pty Ltd was formed jointly in June 2016 by The University of Melbourne and Monash University, with support from the Victorian State Government to accelerate early phases of new drug development. BioCurate is seeking to address the key challenges in early stage drug development and to increase the number, quality and rate of translation of new drug discoveries into medically sound projects that are attractive for investment via commercial or public-good routes. The Company’s vision is to be a recognised global leader in the translation of basic medical research into human therapeutics. For more information, please visit http://www.biocurate.com Twitter: @biocurate LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/biocurate/
About Monash University Monash University is Australia’s largest and most international university. Its extensive educational offering, delivered across 10 faculties, includes undergraduate, postgraduate and research courses. Monash is a research-intensive university, known for some significant and lasting discoveries that have delivered impact beyond the academic community. The university is home to a range of world-leading facilities and technologies, giving it wideranging capabilities across many fields, sectors and industries. Monash works with a variety of industry, government and community groups, allowing its researchers to share their discoveries with the world. Monash is a truly global institution, with four Australian campuses, a campus in Malaysia, a joint graduate school in China, a learning centre in Italy, a research centre in India and over 100 international partners. Discover more at monash.edu.au
About the University of Melbourne Established in 1853, the University of Melbourne is Australia’s leading research and teaching university. It is a founding member of the Group of Eight – Australia’s leading researchintensive universities – and consistently ranked among the leading universities in the world for research and teaching, with international rankings as number 1 in Australia and number 32 in the world (Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2017-2018). In Australia, The University’s research expenditure is second only to that of CSIRO. With over 100 research centres and institutes, over 8,000 staff and over 60,000 students we bring together expertise from across the University and connect with thought leaders around the world to tackle society’s complex problems in innovative ways. The University is deeply committed to fostering health and wellbeing and delivering impact from its medical research. Discover more at https://www.unimelb.edu.au/