Imperial Innovations announces two new spin-outs, Ervitech and Indigix.

Imperial Innovations plc has announced the formation of two new companies.

Ervitech is developing proprietary technology to measure breathing rates using a small, wearable acoustic detector. Based on the work of founder scientists Esther Rodriquez Villegas of Imperial College and John Duncan of University College London, the device addresses the limitations of earlier acoustic breathing monitors by removing interference from background noise, speech and internal sounds such as heartbeats.

These advances allow Ervitech’s device to achieve similar accuracy to other techniques that use expensive and bulky monitoring equipment.

Meanwhile, Indigix is developing a novel platform technology to modify the immune response in a variety of major diseases. The company was launched to commercialise research by Sunil Shaunak, who previously founded the protein drug delivery specialist PolyTherics, another Imperial Innovations portfolio company.

Shaunak’s research was identified as potentially valuable during a review of Imperial College’s research into infectious diseases, conducted by Imperial Innovations’ Entrepreneur in Residence Robert Feldman. Potential applications for Indigix’s technology include the treatment of diarrhoeal diseases, inflammatory bowel disease and improved wound healing.