Our Innovation Analysts recently looked into emerging technologies and up-and-coming startups working on solutions for the pharma sector. As there is a large number of startups working on a wide variety of solutions, we want to share our insights with you. This time, we are taking a look at 5 promising nanotechnology startups.
Heat Map: 5 Top Nanotechnology Startups
Using our StartUs Insights Platform, covering 1.116.000+ startups & emerging companies, we looked at innovation in the field of pharma. For this research, we identified 188 relevant solutions and picked 5 to showcase below. These companies were chosen based on a data-driven startup scouting approach, taking into account factors such as location, founding year, and technology among others. Depending on your specific criteria, the top picks might look entirely different.
The Global Startup Heat Map below highlights 5 startups & emerging companies developing nanotechnology solutions. Moreover, the Heat Map reveals regions that observe a high startup activity and illustrates the geographic distribution of all 188 companies we analyzed for this specific topic.
RS Research – Nanomedicine
Nanomedicine involves the use of nanoscale materials for diagnosis, drug delivery, or actuation. Interfacing nanomaterials with biological molecules add functionalities that make them relevant for applications in pharma. These include customized drug release, precision medicine, and high drug loading.
Turkish pharma startup RS Research develops next-generation solutions for nanomedicine. Sagitta, the startup’s proprietary platform, uses polymer-drug conjugates to deliver a high drug payload to target tumors. The platform combines nanoparticles with targeting moieties such as antibodies and peptides. Sagitta is also capable of carrying multiple therapeutic modalities for synergistic therapies.
Nanoform – Drug Particle Engineering
Nanoparticles are small enough to pass through biological barriers, including subcellular compartments. Due to this characteristic, startups are exploring nanoparticles as drug delivery systems for a wide range of diseases. They are also amenable to conjugation with biomolecules that enable them to target precise locations in cells and tissues.
Finnish startup Nanoform offers a solution for drug particle engineering. The startup’s patented Controlled Expansion of Supercritical Solutions (CESS) technology enables the easy synthesis of nanoparticles with active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). The nano forming process allows precise control of the shape of the drug particles. The nanoscale size of the particles also translates into the greater active surface area for better dissolution.
ARIZ – Precision Medicine
Since nanotechnology-based solutions target precise locations, they ensure that a high dose of payload reaches the site of interest. Additionally, by limiting exposures to other areas, they do not lead to any adverse side-effects. This is one of the reasons why precision medicine startups are innovating in nanotechnology to offer personalized therapeutic interventions for cancers, neurodegenerative disorders, and other diseases.
The US-based startup ARIZ combines biological technologies and nanotech to develop solutions for precision medicine. The startup designs small interfering ribonucleic acids (siRNA) that target cancer cells but do not harm healthy cells. The solution binds polyethylene glycol (PEG) to nanoparticles to protect the drug and deliver it at precise locations in cancerous tissues.
Cello Therapeutics – Cancer Drug Delivery
Nanotechnology-based applications in cancer include both, the development of drug delivery solutions and nanosensor devices for detecting cancers. Targeted delivery of either therapeutic or imaging payloads helps advance the treatment of cancers. Polymer-based vectors, dendrimers, and nanoscale cantilevers are some nanoscale solutions that pharma startups are working on to help the oncology sector.
The US-based startup Cello Therapeutics develops nanoparticles for cancer drug delivery. The nanoparticles have a biomimetic cell membrane coating that enhances the bioavailability of the encapsulated payloads. Moreover, this allows the startup to create delivery platforms with enhanced functionalities. The startup’s pipeline includes immunotherapy and chemotherapy drugs for the treatment of multiple cancers.
Nanostics – Nanotechnology-Based Diagnostics
Nanotechnology offers solutions such as nanowires and quantum dots for the diagnosis of cancers, infectious diseases, and many other ailments. Startups are engineering nanoparticles that are sensitive to a range of disease biomarkers. Advancements in pharma make it possible to include more than one modality on the same structure. This allows for the development of biosensors that are able to sense multiple analytes simultaneously.
Canadian startup Nanostics offers a range of solutions in nanotechnology-based diagnostics. Their solution uses micro-flow cytometry to characterize and quantify millions of extracellular vesicles (EV). The startup uses machine learning to analyze the EV fingerprint to predict disease in a rapid and precise manner.
What About The Other 183 Solutions?
While we believe data is key to creating insights it can be easy to be overwhelmed by it. Our ambition is to create a comprehensive overview and provide actionable innovation intelligence so you can achieve your goals faster. The 5 nanotechnology startups showcased above are promising examples out of 188 we analyzed for this article. To identify the most relevant solutions based on your specific criteria, get in touch.
