From the outset I believed the geko™ device had the potential to be a platform technology, rather than just a simple single-application technology. The device could be applied to complications related to swelling after surgery, the closure of hard-to-heal wounds and the prevention of life-threatening blood clots. The range of applications was a significant driver for Juno to invest. It clearly worked. The evidence and the data, even in the early days, wasn’t ambiguous. And it seemed a straightforward path to regulation and from there to get the product to market. This provided potential new avenues for use and resulted in an increased investment from Juno. Our interest in the company has expanded as the opportunity offered by the geko™ device has grown.
Applications for the geko™ device were relevant to a hospital environment where patients were immobile – such as those in intensive care or recovering from an operation – and were therefore at higher risk of blood clots, or in need of post-operative or trauma-based oedema management. The device could also be applied to wound healing in the community for patients either supported by medical staff or administering their own healthcare.
For Juno, the benefits of platform technologies are significant. It offers a portfolio approach. If you find it difficult to get traction with one application, you’ve got a lot of other opportunities to grow the potential uses for the device. For an investor that means there are multiple potential future investor or acquirers of the technology or the company.
Juno Capital has also invested in Destiny Pharma, a company with similar opportunities. The company is a drug-development business that has developed a portfolio of anti-infectives. These drugs work against MRSA but offer multiple other uses.
Our lead product is for ‘nasal decolonisation’. If you go to hospital for an operation and you catch a bacterial infection, there’s a very high probability you’ve caught the infection from yourself as many people carry staphylococcus aureus in their nostrils and the trauma of an operation and its impact on the body’s immune system can lead to an infection. If you can remove the bacteria before people go into theatre, it’s less likely patients will get an infection. Fewer infections means shorter stays and quicker recovery, which all reduce costs and improve efficiency within a healthcare system.
I do admit the challenge associated with platform technology – that of keeping sharp focus when faced with multiple opportunities. You need to focus on gathering evidence to ensure regulatory approval in one area before moving onto the next, rather than focussing on all clinical applications at once. Sky Medical had done a good job of prioritising the different applications methodically and with evidence and this helped prioritise the opportunities. Ultimately, offering companies the opportunity to licence the technology for one of the applications. Critical is establishing credibility and building a solid evidence base – both from a clinical and economic perspective.
MedTech – an investment for more rewarding returns [next page]
