Biocitech, the Parisian technology park devoted to life sciences, announces today (27 September) that the SARCOB project being undertaken by one of its residents, Biophytis, has been selected for a EUR 1.5 million subsidy following the 12th tender issued by France’s Single Interministerial Fund.
The purpose of the SARCOB project, sponsored by Medicen, one of France’s competitivity clusters, is to develop products for preventing and treating sarcopenic obesity. This condition is affecting growing numbers of elderly people and is characterized by an accelerated loss of muscular mass and force, leading to a very crippling decline in mobility. The prevalence of obesity among the over-50s in Europe is around 16 per cent for men and 18 per cent for women (according to the SHARE Wave Two Study, 2008). In the US, the prevalence of obesity is estimated at 37 per cent in people over 60 for 2010 (source: Journal of American Geriatrics Society, 2004).
The SARCOB project is led by Biophytis, a start-up specialized in nutrition that has been located at Biocitech since 2009. Also participating in the project is another start-up, Metabrain Research, which provides preclinical research services, as well as internationally renowned interdisciplinary university research teams from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris (the Institute of Myology, the Institute of Cardiometabolism and Nutrition, and the Biosipe Laboratory), AgroParisTech and the National Agronomic Research Institute (INRA) in Clermont-Ferrand.
These organizations are pooling their complementary expertise in the areas of muscular ageing, obesity and nutrition to develop innovative solutions based on natural substances of nutritional interest for preventing and treating sarcopenic obesity.
“We are delighted to have obtained this funding for a project that is aimed at both preventing and treating an old person’s pathology, an area where there are many unmet needs,” said the founder of Biophytis, Stanislas Veillet. “In addition to the high-quality premises and services provided by Biocitech, the fact of being installed at this site helps us in developing our relations with the industrial and financial partners involved in this project.”
Biophytis is a biotech start-up specialized in nutrition. It is developing nutraceutical compounds for human health applications that it licenses to internationally known brand names. Biophytis handles the positioning, clinical development and regulatory authorization of these products. Its R&D pipeline encompasses the areas of metabolism and aging.
“With its focus on health and nutrition, Biophytis is emblematic of the Biocitech technology park’s development towards new approaches in human therapeutics,” said the president of Biocitech, Jean-François Boussard. “Biocitech and its residents have created a local network that encourages company development. We are pleased to see that it facilitates the conclusion of agreements and funding deals with top-drawer public and private institutions.”
About Biocitech
Biocitech is a privately-owned technology park for life sciences that affords a world-class industrial and service environment for biotechnology, biopharmaceutical and fine chemical companies.
Located on the outskirts of Paris, only 20 minutes from the city center and Charles de Gaulle airport, Biocitech provides secure premises of a high technological standard that is ideal for research and development. As well as office and laboratory space, it offers a comprehensive range of technical and scientific services that enable entrepreneurs to concentrate their resources on their core activities. It has received regulatory approval for conformity to environmental protection standards.
Companies already established at Biocitech represent a wide variety of complementary disciplines affording considerable synergies, and many are collaborating along the whole drug development chain.
Along with other organizations in the Ile-de-France region around Paris, Biocitech plays a key role in the Medicen Paris Region network, a healthcare and new therapy cluster designated by the French government as internationally competitive and hence qualified for special privileges.
For further information, go to: http://www.biocitech.com
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