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< Back Novel partnership for iBodies has been facilitated by i&i Prague and IOCB Tech managers The Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry (IMC) of the Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS) in cooperation with the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS (IOCB Prague) are moving ahead together in intensive research of synthetic antibody mimetics called iBodies®. They have just commenced cooperation with the International Cannabis and Cannabinoids Institute (ICCI). In the future, newly prepared iBodies® should serve in clinical diagnostics, e.g. histological staining of tissues. The partnership has been facilitated by our colleague Jiri Moos, who supports iBodies project management and business development. Congratulations! For the full press release, click here . Previous Next

< Back Nanofibers from Technical University of Liberec brings new hope in fight against Covid-19 Technical University of Liberec has a long and renowned history of research of nanomaterials and nonwoven cloth for various applications. The nanofibrous materials not only have unique filtration and acoustic properties, but they also have a huge potential in bio-medical purposes. Lately they´ve developed a new device which can produce advanced nanofibres using the method of AC electrospinning. The amount of produced nanofibers can be used for almost 6000 face masks per day. Moreover, it seems that efficacy of such face mask can be similar to FFP2 respirators. During current Covid-19 crisis where every possible safety device counts, this technology may be a new hope for all the first responders. ​ Method itself was modified for the purpose directly on the TUL as a result of work of some of the biggest experts in the field. Although capacities of this temporary „manufacture“ can´t meet present demand, it shows a great dedication and willingness of briliant Czech researchers and Academia in times of need. ​ https://youtu.be/I2UaQxR5AOM​ i&i Prague is very proud to be one the companies which support this technology, it´s production and distribution and we will search for more opportunities to scale up even more. ​ https://www.rouskystulkou.org/ Previous Next

< Back Jiří Moos CEO, Board of Directors Jiří Moos is our Executive Director, having joined i&i Prague from DiaSorin where he was the Marketing Manager. He is also a member of the TACR GAMA Commercialization Board at the Institute of Molecular Genetics in Prague, and an external member of the Supervisory Board at the Institute of Biotechnology AS CR. Between 2008 and 2016, he acted as a Senior Sales Manager for Sigma-Aldrich (since 2015 a part of Merck KgaA), Czech Republic and Slovakia, and as a Coordinator of regional Sigma-Aldrich Applied Business Unit activities, also covering Hungary and Poland. For six years, he worked for Immunotech a.s., a Beckman-Coulter company located in Prague, first as a Product Manager in the Clinical Chemistry team and later as the Life Science Product Specialist team leader. Jiří also has extensive experience as a Scientific Researcher at the Centre of Assisted Reproduction, General Teaching Hospital in Prague, and as a Research Fellow at the Institute of Molecular Genetics, AS CR in Prague. Jiří Moos completed his Master´s degree in Biology and Chemistry at Charles University in Prague. He received a Ph.D. (CSc.) in Biology from the Institute of Molecular Genetics, AS CR in Prague, followed by almost 3 years of postdoctoral fellowship in the field of Biology of Reproduction at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Jiří has also completed the Miller Heiman course of Business and Strategic Selling. If you are interested in cooperation, Jiří will probably be the person you will be meeting quite often. Maybe you are already on his radar because he is the one actively searching for new technologies and early-stage opportunities. He has been in the world of science for almost three decades and has made an extensive network of contacts both in Academia and Industry.

< Back LAM-X: the spin-off accelerated by i&i Prague in Media One of the first project i&i Prague participated in is Dracen Pharmaceuticals. Dracen itself started as an international science team at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry (IOCB Prague) and Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, USA). The scientific team prepared and tested new substances for cancer treatment that are effective through stopping the metabolism of glutamine. Founding of LAM-X, a.s. , the newest company accelerated by i&i Prague and Charles University Innovations Prague, s.r.o. was met with both interest and positive feedback from Czech national media. Company was established on 20th January 2020 and since then 17 articles in the best and most read Czech media were published about it. ​ The LAM-X platform technology can be used in the fight against infections that are caused by surface–transmitted pathogens found in hospitals, sanitation facilities, food and water production factories. The lead product is a nanomembrane that generates singlet oxygen upon activation by visible light. This membrane can have a wide usage as preventive wound dressing which can help reduce amount of antibiotic resistence. The clinical study on patients suffering from ulcers proved the efficacy of the LAM-X membrane. ​ The list of media, where LAM-X was mentioned, is rather wide (dispclaimer: articles are mostly in Czech): Věda a Výzkum Česká věda do světa Lidové noviny iRozhlas Česká rozhlas Charles University in Prague Charles University in Prague – the Tarantula Blesk Muzeum CUNI Týden.cz ČtiDoma.cz iDnes.cz TV iDnes České Novinky MF Dnes ​ We are very proud that this technology was met with such and interest and we believe it will once again inform public about quality of Czech Science. More about LAM-X technology and their products on: https://lam-x.tech/ or https://www.linkedin.com/company/lam-x/about/ Previous Next

The Prague.bio international conference will bring together the best of science and business in Prague. Promising ideas will receive money for their development. Prague, 25 April 2023. The first edition of the Prague.bio international conference will offer a unique meeting of representatives from science and business who will exchange their experiences in the development of new drugs, diagnostics, medical technologies and other areas of biotechnology. The event is supported by the Czech government and will feature renowned experts from the world of BioTech. The Prague.bio international conference is intended for academics, investors and industry representatives from all over Central Europe. Experienced investors, representatives of leading pharmaceutical as well as diagnostic companies and technology transfer offices will meet promising startups, scientists and students to help them with advice and insights in commercializing their scientific ideas. For industry representatives and investors, the conference will provide an interesting space for exchanging ideas and establishing further cooperation. ​ "Science and business are often two completely different worlds. But they need each other and have something to offer each other. Scientific projects are often a source of unique commercial ideas and an interesting investment opportunity, while successful commercialisation of scientific knowledge brings significant financial resources back into research," explains Prof. Martin Fusek, Director of IOCB Tech, one of the organisers of the conference. According to him, the Prague.bio conference should contribute to the creation of a permanent network of partners whose goal will be to build a more effective transfer of biotechnology not only in the Czech Republic but also in the entire Central European area. The transfer is also supported by the government "Who does not transfer is not a good economist. The transfer of scientific research knowledge into practice is one of the priorities of our government and I am pleased that a conference is being prepared to help this even on an international scale," explains Helena Langšádlová, Minister for Science, Research and Innovation of the Czech Republic, whose department is co-organizing the event. Moreover, according to the Minister, technology transfer is an important topic not only for science but also for the national economy. It can generate billions of Czech crowns in revenue annually. ​ The Prague conference is based on the experience of similar events abroad. However, it is unique in Central Europe. "At the moment, we can reveal that the Prague.bio conference will not lack lectures by representatives of major pharmaceutical companies, we are also preparing an interesting panel discussion with foreign investors and several pitch sessions that will provide an opportunity to present promising projects in the field of biotechnology," adds Jaromír Zahrádka, CEO of the i&i Biotech Fund and founder of the i&i Prague bio-innovation centre, another of the conference organisers. ​ The conference will take place on 26 September at Liechtenstein Palace in Prague. Registration is now open for those interested in attending. The relevant form, including payment options, can be found at www.prague.bio . The fee for early registration is 200 Euros, or 150 Euros for students and researchers. Interesting scientific research ideas can also apply for the event and register at the above-mentioned website. The registered projects will be evaluated by an expert committee and the best ones will compete for investor support at the conference. Contact Martin Kovalčík, 777 472 863, kovalcik@iniprague.com Martin Opatrný, 602 252 405, opatrny@prclinic.eu About IOCB Tech The Technology Transfer Office IOCB Tech, s.r.o. is a fully owned subsidiary of the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry (IOCB). The main responsibilities of IOCB Tech include the identification of commercially interesting projects at IOCB, analysis of their market potential and patentability, protection of intellectual property, support for the development of the projects in the form of project management, search for commercial partners and negotiation of contractual terms for signing license agreements. IOCB Tech has been involved in the process of negotiating and concluding more than a dozen key license agreements with major pharmaceutical partners such as Gilead Sciences, Merck, Novo Nordisk and SHINE Medical Technologies. In 2017, the company established a subsidiary, i&i Prague, which focuses on funding promising early-stage projects at the Institute and other research and academic institutions. For more information visit www.iocbtech.cz . About i&i Prague The i&i Prague Bio-Innovation Center focuses on the transfer of new technologies into practice. The company was established at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS and is mainly dedicated to innovations in the field of drug development, diagnostics and medical devices originating from academic institutions. It supports the creation of spin-off companies and the sale of licenses. So far, the company has participated in the creation of or otherwise supported 15 spin-off companies from five countries, has an equity stake in nine of them and has invested over 70 million crowns. In total, the spin-offs in i&i Prague's portfolio have raised more than CZK 1.8 billion from other investors. In addition to direct financial investments, i&i Prague also assists more than 15 research institutions and universities in the Czech Republic and abroad in the commercialization of innovative technologies. In 2021, i&i Prague started up the i&i Bio investment fund. About i&i Biotech Fund (i&i Bio) i&i Bio is a Luxembourg-based venture capital firm that invests in innovative European Life Sciences companies focused on drug discoveries, medical devices, diagnostics, and digital health. The Fund was created thanks to the cooperation of the biotech incubator i&i Prague and the European Investment Fund (see below). With over €47M under management, i&i Bio plans to invest in about 20 early-stage companies. i&i Bio is led by an experienced team of professionals with backgrounds in private equity, healthcare and venture capital supporting entrepreneurs on their journey to global success. Thanks to close cooperation with the fund’s main sponsor, the biotech academic incubator i&i Prague, i&i Bio is supporting and advancing transformative Central European technology companies. For more information visit www.inibio.eu . About EIF i&i Bio is supported by an investment from the EIF, with the support of: lnnovFin Equity, with the financial backing of the European Union under Horizon 2020 Financial Instruments and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) set up under the Investment Plan for Europe. The purpose of EFSI is to help support financing and implementing productive investments in the European Union and to ensure increased access to financing; and the Pan-European Guarantee Fund (EGF), implemented by the EIF with the financial support of the Participating Member States. The objective of EGF is to respond to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring that companies in the Participating Member States have sufficient short-term liquidity available to weather the crisis and are able to continue their growth and development in the medium to long-term.

New startup in our portfolio: Sophomer's technology will make immunoassays faster, easier and cheaper The originators of SophoMer in their chemical laboratory. Prague, February 7, 2023. The academic startup Sophomer today announced the signing of a licensing agreement to commercialize a technology that can replace the traditionally used bovine serum albumin (BSA) in immunoassays. The newly licensed technology has been developed in collaboration between the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry of the CAS (IMC), Elisa Development and the bio-innovation center i&i Prague. The signing of the license agreement also officially accelerated the activities of the startup. Sophomer has also joined the portfolio of i&i Prague. BSA is one of the oldest industrially derived proteins. In immunoassays it is primarily used as a blocker, which makes the measurements more accurate by suppressing unwanted signals. It is derived from bovine serum, which poses a number of problems. These include the risk of pathogen transmission, which means that this material must be tested rigorously and expensively and its use is subject to certification to confirm its safety. ​ "Logically, there is no such risk with our technology, as our product is fully synthetic. This eliminates other problems, whether it is the variability in reproduction of production, the relatively high price, which increases with the requirement for higher purity, or the complex disposal of the material. The ethical aspect of the whole matter is also not negligible," says Jan Plicka of Elisa Development and a leading expert in the development of diagnostic devices. ​ Sophomer's technology will find application wherever immunoassays is a basic working tool. It has the potential to greatly assist in biochemical laboratories, in the development of In Vitro Diagnostic (IVD) devices, in the monitoring of environmental contaminations, in food laboratories for the determination of allergen content, or in immunoassays in veterinary laboratories. "Our ambitions continue to grow as our research progresses, but the main idea remains the same: to make the work of our fellow developers and researchers faster, easier and, to a large extent, cheaper. We want them to be able to focus without distraction on their own ideas and the challenges that their demanding, extremely important and at the same time low-visibility work brings to the public," adds Martin Burkhard, CEO of Sophomer. ​ A great example of technology transfer The creation of the start-up Sophomer is a prime example of technology transfer and the linking of science and industry. "At the beginning of the story there was a need for diagnostic test manufacturers, which we were able to identify thanks to our network of contacts. We then searched academia for a technology suitable to address this need. We found a suitable technology at the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry and, after successful validation tests, we assembled a joint development team," says Jiří Moos from the i&i Prague Bio-Innovation Center, which has been behind the project from the very beginning. Among other things, i&i Prague also participated in the creation of a startup that has been included in the portfolio of this bio-innovation center. "We are currently helping to find customers for the developed polymer Sophomer F10, while continuing to co-develop other products. We are also well on our way to arranging the first investment that will help kick-start the company's activities," adds Jiří Moos. Synthesis of a polymer product at a defined temperature in a bath. A team of scientists at the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry began developing the technology that led to the establishment of Sophomer about two years ago. "I am very pleased that we have managed to bring our joint efforts to the successful signing of a licensing agreement. We have thus taken an important step towards ensuring that the quality work of our scientists finds its application in real life. This builds on our previous successful transfers of basic research results into practice. I believe that this technology from the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry will significantly simplify the performance of immunoassays," adds Jiří Kotek, Director of the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry of the CAS. ​ Contact Martin Kovalčík, 777 472 863, kovalcik@iniprague.com The signing of a licensing agreement from the right: Jiří Moos, Martin Burkhard, Jiří Kotek, Jan Plicka and Alexandr Krajhanzl The signing of a licensing agreement Jiří Kotek, Director of the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry of the CAS The signing of a licensing agreement Alexandr Krajhanzl, i&i Prague The signing of a licensing agreement from the right: Jiří Moos, Martin Burkhard, Jiří Kotek, Jan Plicka and Alexandr Krajhanzl 1/6 About Sophomer Sophomer Ltd. is an academic startup founded by a group of people who come from both industry and academia. Their vision is to bring together two seemingly unrelated fields: immunoassays and polymer chemistry to help anyone who uses immunochemical assays in their work. One of the startup's first and widely applicable products is SophoMer(TM), a polymer that can replace the widely used bovine serum albumin in immunochemical assays, currently a component without which the development of immunological analytics is seemingly unimaginable. Read more here: www.sophomer.com . About Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry of the CAS, v. v. i. (IMC) The Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry of the CAS, v. v. i. (IMC) is the largest research institution in the field of polymer and polymer materials research in the Czech Republic. In this field, it is also among the most important academic research centres in the world. IMC has a knowledge potential of more than 120 scientists in the key fields of macromolecular chemistry, physical chemistry and polymer physics, as well as in related fields such as biochemistry or biomedical or materials engineering. Although the institute is primarily focused on basic research, it also works closely with the application sphere, as evidenced by a number of applied basic research results. Read more here: www.imc.cas.cz/eng . About i&i Prague The i&i Prague Bio-Innovation Center focuses on the transfer of new technologies into practice. The company was established at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS and is mainly dedicated to innovations in the field of drug development, diagnostics and medical devices originating from academic institutions. It supports the creation of spin-off companies and the sale of licenses. So far, the company has participated in the creation of or otherwise supported 15 spin-off companies from five countries, has an equity stake in nine of them and has invested over 70 million crowns. In total, the spin-offs in i&i Prague's portfolio have raised more than CZK 1.8 billion from other investors. In addition to direct financial investments, i&i Prague also assists more than 15 research institutions and universities in the Czech Republic and abroad in the commercialization of innovative technologies. In 2021, i&i Prague started up the i&i Bio investment fund. About Elisa Development Elisa Development, in cooperation with the Food Research Institute Prague, has previously developed and marketed several ELISA format immunoassay kits for the quantitative detection of food allergens in food and food raw materials. During this development, the company's staff has repeatedly faced the problem of variable quality of BSA, which is very often used as a blocker of non-specific interactions. These problems were the impetus for the idea of replacing BSA derived from bovine serum with a synthetic polymer, which led to the approach to i&i Prague and subsequently to the collaboration with the Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry.

i&i Prague supports the innovative start-up PEP-Therapy in their extension of the Series-A financing, totalling €5.4 million to progress the clinical development of the lead candidate PEP-010 PEP-Therapy, a biotechnology company developing cell penetrating peptides as targeted therapies for the treatment of cancers, announced today that it raised an additional €2.6 million ($3 million) in an extension of its Series A financing round, bringing the total raised in this round to €5.4 million ($6.4 million). This new funding comprises €1.6 million in equity from Anaxago, i&i Prague and BADGE as well as a €1 million loan from Bpifrance. This increased financial support highlights the potential of PEP-010, as well as PEP-Therapy’s Cell Penetrating & Interfering Peptide (CP&IP) technology platform, which was first developed at Sorbonne University and Institut Curie. PEP-010 is the first of a new class of therapeutic peptides based on PEP-Therapy’s innovative Cell Penetrating & Interfering Peptide (CP&IP) technology. These innovative molecules penetrate cells and specifically block relevant intracellular protein-protein interactions, leading to the inhibition of key pathological mechanisms, without altering physiological mechanisms. ​ PEP-Therapy will use the funds to finance the Phase I a/b clinical trial of PEP-010, PEP-Therapy’s lead candidate, for the treatment of advanced solid tumors. The first part of the Series A, which closed in April 2021, will finance the Phase Ia dose escalation part of the study, with the additional funds being used for the development of PEP-010 until the end of the expansion cohorts, Phase Ib. ​ PEP-Therapy expects to generate promising clinical data from this study, particularly in two indications: metastatic triple negative breast cancer and platinum resistant ovarian cancer. Patients with these two types of solid tumors have a poor prognosis and limited therapeutic alternatives. ​ Antoine Prestat, CEO and co-founder of PEP-Therapy, said: “We are delighted to have completed this financing round via an attractive balance of dilutive and non-dilutive funds from new high quality and diversified investors who will bring expertise and new insights to support our development.” ​ Jaromír Zahrádka, PhD, CEO of i&i, commented: “PEP-Therapy has developed an extensive knowledge of targeted peptides and the promising preclinical data the company has generated show great potential. We are looking forward to seeing the confirmation of the positive results seen in preclinical data in the upcoming Phase I study.” ​ Gaston Vasseur, Investment Manager at Anaxago, added “This extended financing highlights PEPTherapy’s capacity to attract highly specialized as well as diversified investors. The Company has managed to rapidly secure the funding for the Phase I trial with PEP-010, a very important milestone for the company. We are happy to contribute to this financing round in conjunction with a number of experienced life science investors.” ​ In addition, PEP-Therapy and its clinical partners, Institut Curie and Gustave Roussy, previously received a €2.9 million grant from the French state innovation fund – Fonds Unique Interministériel (FUI) – to finance nonclinical and early clinical development of PEP-010. About Anaxago Founded in 2012, Anaxago Venture Capital is a digital VC firm specialised in Healthtech & Biotech, Proptech, Fintech and Impact investing. Anaxago Venture Capital has financed more than 45 companies since its creation. ​ About BADGE Business Angels des Grandes Ecoles (BADGE), created in 2004, is a leading French Business Angels association with more than 280 members, and having participated in 21 fundraisings in 2020 of a combined value of over €5.3 million. Its members are recognized leaders in all sectors of the industry and are willing to finance and support young innovative companies with high growth potential. BADG aims to: Identify and review promising innovative projects Conduct fund-raising for the most promising ones Support the entrepreneurs with individualized business advice and key contacts Provide training and methodological support to its members BADGE has thus financed more than 185 young companies since its creation.

LAM-X, a.s. won the 2020 EIT Health #MedTech Bootcamp final #Pitch Event i&i Prague supported start-up, LAM-X, a.s. , become a winner of the 2020 EIT Health #MedTech Bootcamp final #Pitch Event! After 5 intense, dense and focused full-time weeks in front of zoom, where the teams refined their business model, widened their network and worked on regulations and pitch skills, the 10 teams presented their projects to a curious, knowledgable jury: Jörg Trinkwalter, Olaf Weiner, Samuel Schuler and Stefan Fasbender – and LAM-X a.s. was evaluated as the most advanced! ​ Congratulations!

i&i Prague Bio-Innovation Center We are the first choice partner and the leading institution for the best early-phase biotech innovations and smart money investments. Read more We are i&i Prague , a bio-innovation center located right in the heart of Europe. Our objective is to identify the potential of new inventions in Drug Discovery, Diagnostics, MedTech and other Life Science fields . We do this by scouting for innovative projects and investing in the most promising ones. Then we will help with product development and, ultimately, market entry. ​ We can help you with Investment With our investment, we try to help innovative ideas in their transition from research projects to functional companies. Read more Partnering We are creating a unique network of partners that brings a long-term exchange of innovative ideas and original experiences. Read more Incubation We are your new team member, leading your journey from groundbreaking invention to market-storming product. Read more Education We offer exciting educational activities that introduce important topics connecting the worlds of science and business. Read more Excellence & Knowledge We are the center of excellence and a knowledge base. Commercalization Partner We facilitate discussions between spin-offs and industry. Complex Support We are the center of complex support for the best of all projects. Our role Our portfolio We focus on unique ideas that have the potential to succeed on a global scale. We are dedicated to innovations in Drug Discovery, Diagnostics, MedTech and other Life Science fields that originate from academic institutions. Read more i&i Biotech Fund I In 2021, we established the i&i Biotech Fund I (i&i Bio) in cooperation with the European Investment Fund. i&i Bio is the venture capital firm that invests in innovative European Life Sciences companies focused on Drug Discovery, Diagnostics, MedTech and other Life Science fields. Read more Highlights Dec 23, 2022 We are looking for new Antonin Holy and new drugs and diagnostics that can have a global impact and success "i&i Bio invests in technology transfer with a strong focus on healthcare. We look for unique technologies that come from Czech and foreign science. We always try to find something new and unique, something that could bring great benefit to patients and also to our investors," says Jaromír Zahrádka for Fintag.cz. The podcast is in the Czech language. Read more Sep 28, 2022 Smart bandages not only capture pathogens, but also destroy them in no time. All they need is ordinary light. Hospital-acquired infections are a problem that current technologies are not able to deal with effectively. However, this could change in the future; the Czech spin-off LAM-X a.s. is working on the development of a nanomaterial that not only passively prevents pathogens from entering open wounds, but can also actively destroy them... Read more Sep 13, 2022 CasInvent Pharma Raises €1.3 Million from KHAN-I and i&i Biotech Fund CasInvent Pharma, an early-stage drug discovery company developing small-molecule compounds with anticancer properties, has raised an investment round of €1.3 million provided by KHAN-I and i&i Bio. With this funding, CasInvent will be strengthening its portfolio of CK inhibitors and progressing its lead compound to... Read more Read more i&i Prague in numbers 15 We have created or otherwise supported 15 spin-off companies from 5 countries . 9 We have an equity stake in 9 spin-offs . We have already announced our first exit. 1.8 Overall, the spin-offs in our portfolio have raised more than CZK 1.8 billion from other investors. 10 We have participatedin the sale of more than 10 licenses with a value exceeding CZK 5 million. Where you can meet us Our partners To play, press and hold the enter key. To stop, release the enter key. Read more

i&i Bio, the newly estabilished investment fund powered by i&i Prague and EIF It is our pleasure to announce the start of operations of i&i Biotech Fund (i&i Bio ) in September 2021. This is a great success of i&i Prague team and it brings a new quality and a unique opportunity for early-phase deep-tech spin-offs in Czechia and rest of the Europe. i&i Bio focuses on unique technologies in the fields of Medtech, Diagnostics and Drug discovery. i&i Bio manages more than 45 million EUR and the fund is prepared to invest an average of 2 million EUR (more than 50 million CZK) in a specific project, but in exceptional cases the amount may grow to as much as 4.5 million EUR for a single project. The fund will be joined by further investors in near future including CUIP , the daughter company of the Charles University in Prague. Further details and press release could be found here ! About i&i Bio i&i Bio is a Luxembourg-based venture capital firm that invests in innovative European Life Sciences companies focused on drug discoveries, medical devices, diagnostics, and digital health. The Fund was created thanks to the cooperation of the biotech incubator i&i Prague and the European Investment Fund (see below). With over €45M under management, i&i Bio plans to invest in about 20 early-stage companies. i&i Bio is led by an experienced team of professionals with backgrounds in private equity, healthcare and venture capital supporting entrepreneurs on their journey to global success. Thanks to the close cooperation with the fund’s sponsor, the biotech academic incubator i&i Prague, i&i Bio is supporting and advancing transformative Central European technology companies. For more information visit www.inibio.eu . About European Investment Fund i&i Bio is supported by an investment from the EIF, with the support of: lnnovFin Equity, with the financial backing of the European Union under Horizon 2020 Financial Instruments and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) set up under the Investment Plan for Europe. The purpose of EFSI is to help support financing and implementing productive investments in the European Union and to ensure increased access to financing; and the Pan-European Guarantee Fund (EGF), implemented by the EIF with the financial support of the Participating Member States. The objective of EGF is to respond to the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring that companies in the Participating Member States have sufficient short-term liquidity available to weather the crisis and are able to continue their growth and development in the medium to long-term.

< Back Jiří Růžička Project Manager Jiri Ruzicka is a Project manager at i&i Prague. He is responsible for the analysis of projects, mainly from the scientific and technological aspect. Before joining our company Jiri worked as a Research Associate at the Institute of Experimental Medicine (IEM, part of the Czech Academy of Sciences), as well as within the international research center of IEM, University of Cambridge, and University of Leeds, called Neurorecon. He holds BSc. and MSc. Degrees from the Faculty of Science, Charles University. He has done his Ph.D. at IEM, AS CR, and the 2nd Faculty of Medicine of Charles University. During his postdoc as a member of the Neurorecon team he spent several months at Imperial College London and had close collaboration with the University of Cambridge, including several short research stays. He has 14+ years’ experience in the fields of neuroscience and regenerative medicine with a broad focus on brain/spinal cord injuries, neurodegenerative diseases, and aging. He has been dealing with enzymatic, gene, or cell therapies, biomaterial applications, and genetic models of neurodegenerative disorders.

< Back DIANA Biotechnologies, a novel startup in the i&i Prague´s academic incubator A new startup, DIANA Biotechnologies , has been founded at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences (IOCB Prague). This unique technology created by postgraduate student Václav Navrátil has the potential to significantly improve disease diagnostics and accelerate the development of new drugs. The startup has earned the trust of investors, who are putting more than 3 million EUR into the project. A PhD graduate, Václav Navrátil has developed together with his colleagues a technology known as DIANA, or DNA-linked Inhibitor Antibody Assay. The unique method allows for ultrasensitive quantification of enzymes and other proteins in a solution, e.g. human blood, urine, or saliva. In practice, it should help doctors diagnose certain diseases (cancer and various infectious diseases, for instance) at an earlier stage than is possible with existing methods. Moreover, it enables screening of large numbers of chemical substances for enzyme inhibitors and the identification of suitable compounds for further development as drug candidates. ​ DIANA Biotechnologies is being set up with the support from the academic incubator of biotechnologies i&i Prague as well as from investors at bpd partners, who plan to provide over 3 million EUR in the next few years. ​ The DIANA technology was developed at IOCB Prague. The institute is known for its efforts to systematically advance the results of basic research applicable in practice and facilitate their transition to the world of business, which is overseen by the institute’s subsidiary IOCB Tech (formerly IOCB TTO). ​ The quality and potential of the DIANA project is reflected in the prestigious Werner von Siemens Award for the most significant result in the field of development and innovation, which was recently awarded to Navrátil and his team. ​ The full press release can be found here . Previous Next