Indian Scientific Innovation Company Limited served as co-investor in the funding round.
Venture Catalysts, India’s first and largest integrated incubator and accelerator, has recently led the seed funding round worth USD 1.2 Mn at Ykrita Life Sciences (YLS) Pvt. Ltd., a team of interdisciplinary scientists and clinicians leveraging cutting-edge tech to develop a remedy for acute liver failure. Indian Scientific Innovation Company Limited served as co-investor in the funding round.
Liver failure affects about 5-10% of the global population (approximately 400-800 million people) every year, with nearly 5% of these patients suffering from acute liver failure (approximately 20-40 million people). The most successful of the existing treatment options available to the patients with this disease is liver transplant surgery. However, less than 10% of the affected individuals are able to access it either on account of the non-availability of a donor or due to the high costs of the surgery. Those who do undergo the surgery need life-long medication to recuperate.
It is to address and resolve this pain point that YLS, headed by Dr. Mahesh Gopasetty along with Dr Akshay Datey and Dr Taru Verma is developing a first of its kind bio-medical device: Bio-engineered Artificial Ectopic Liver (BAEL). The innovative product is aimed at helping clinicians to treat patients suffering from liver failure while eliminating the need for an organ transplant, hospitalization, and exorbitant expenditure on the treatment.
Dr. Mahesh Gopasetty, Founder at YLS commented, “Being an innovative concept that has been indigenously developed, it is important that this project gets all the necessary support in terms of funding to ensure it delivers the product that will ultimately help millions of patients in the country who do not have access to treatment when they suffer from acute liver failure conditions.”
Dr. Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, Founder and President at Venture Catalysts added, “We are always on the look out for biotech innovators who combine advanced technology with the latest developments in the medical science to solve pressing pain points plaguing the healthcare landscape. The inaccessibility of treatment of acute liver failure for a big chunk of the population is one such need-gap that needed addressing. We are pleased to support the team behind Ykrita Life Sciences that is committed to democratizing access to the treatment by making it more affordable and accessible through its cutting-edge bio-medical product BAEL. With a strong team of interdisciplinary experts and an innovative and high-potential solution under its belt, the company is equipped to disrupt the global market centred on liver disorder whose value, by existing estimations, is pegged at a whopping USD 60 billion. We will assist the startup at every step of its growth journey to help it achieve its vision of enabling every last patient suffering from liver failure to access the treatment affordably, without fail. We wish them continued success.”
BAEL has passed the in-Vitro phase of development and is currently in the in-Vivo phase of development. As part of this stage in its developmental journey, the machine will have to pass the animal testing phase, followed by clinical trials. YLS reserves the right to pick any of the multiple options of monetizing its IP, including licensing, contract manufacturing, and in-house manufacturing.
Source: Business World
