Aequor, Inc. HEALTHCARE APPLICATIONS
Aequor aims to be first-in-market with a new bacterial control that addresses the unmet needs of biofilm and biofouling. Aequor’s Founder discovered novel marine microbes that produce molecules responsible for one of Nature’s most elusive chemical mechanisms: the inhibition of bacteria and foulers’ ability to attach to surfaces and colonize, without triggering a resistance response or harming any plant or animal life.
THE PROBLEMS: (1) Bacteria attach to inert, organic and nano surfaces and surround themselves with a glue-like protective matrix called “biofilm.” Biofilm is the root cause of “microfouling” (surface contamination, corrosion, scale, slime), and “macrofouling” (attachment of barnacles, mussels, algae to surfaces in contact with water). According to the CDC, bacterial biofilm is also associated with 90% of all hospital-acquired infections. Alarmingly, every pathogen on the CDC’s list of potential pandemics (cholera, E.coli, Salmonella, plague), bioterrorist threats (anthrax), and resistant strains (MRSA) are biofilm-formers. (2) The human immune system and biocides (antiseptics, antimicrobials, disinfectants, antibiotics, etc.) cannot penetrate biofilm at non-lethal doses. The only way to remove biofilm is sterilization and physical scraping. For example, dental plaque is a biofilm. It is impervious to brushing and antiseptic washes. It needs to be repeatedly scraped off. Since human tissues cannot be scraped, bacteria proliferate under the impenetrable biofilm. Biocides/antibiotics have been dangerously overused, causing cumulative and persistent harm the environment and health, and triggering the emergence of resistant bacterial strains. (3) Regulatory restrictions on the use of biocides/antibiotics are impacting the revenues of thousands of companies along the biocide/Pharma industry value chain, from chemical manufactures to end-use product formulators. There areno non-toxic alternatives that work against biofilm.
PROOF-OF-CONCEPT: Aequor’s portfolio of novel, “green,” non-toxic active agents solves all three problems. Aequor’s primary molecule removes micro and macrofouling, and inhibits biofilm formation by a broad range of Gram-negative and Gram-positive medically-relevant bacteria and fungi by >95%. Lonza validated that it removes existing biofilm by 99.99%, and statedthat “nothing else known can do this at non-lethal doses.” Lonza immediately asked for a worldwide, exclusive license on all end-use applications, from cosmetics to marine paints, water treatments to therapeutics.
THE MARKET: The global spend on biocides tops $600 billion. These biocides are incorporated in agro-industrial, consumer, and healthcare end-use products (sprays, washes, paints, coatings, and surface materials) to control bacterial contamination and fouling. The demand for biocides is projected to boom with population growth and need for clean water, food and personal hygiene, need to lower fuel consumption and noxious emissions, and need to reduce healthcare costs and find new cures.
COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE: The major biocide vendors (AkzoNobel, BASF, Dow, DuPont, Lonza, Mason, Somay, Stepan, etc.) and end-use product formulators (International Paint, Nalco, J&J, Pfizer, Merck, etc.) dominate the antibacterial and antibiotic markets. All tell Aequor that they seek sustainable substitutes for their toxic raw materials and costly, less effective alternatives (e.g., silver, copper). Aequor’s future competition may include technologies in R&D, such as nano-surfaces, hydrogels, genetically altered bacteria, and new antibiotics. However none to date have proven broad or prolonged efficacyagainst biofilm or biofouling. Some have already been abandoned.
VALUE PROPOSITION: Aequor’s proprietary agents provide a sustainable bacterial and fouling control that disrupts the biocide industry. They can be used alone to replace toxic, ineffective biocides, or as “bio-boosters” to enhance the performance of biocides and antibiotics at lowerconcentrations, extending critical time between antibacterial treatments, saving time, manpower, and money for end-users – as well as saving lives.
CORE MANAGEMENT: Founder, President and Research Director Cynthia Burzell [B.A., Mount Holyoke College (MHC), M.Sc. and Ph.D. Microbiology, St. George's University (SGU) School of Medicine] and recipient of TechAmerica's 2009 Abacus Award for Researcher of the Year,is among a handful of experts on biofilms. Co-Founder and CEO Marilyn Bruno (B.A., MHC; M.A. and Ph.D., NYU; J.D, NY Law School) had over 35 years’ experience in business, finance, and law (won 1985 Woman Entrepreneur of the Year and served 14 years in the U.S. Foreign Service). Management is supported by 12 seasoned advisors with skill sets in the chemical industry, regulatory affairs, and target markets, including Toshiyasu Nagae, former President of Union Carbide/Dow Chemical - Japan. Aequor’s corporate and IP strategies are managed by K&L Gates, LLP.
COMPANY TRACTION: Aequor is currently valued at $5M, having sold $700K equity to family, friends, and angels, and procured $120K services-for-equity. The source microbes are in Aequor’s exclusive control in culture collections around the world. Aequoris protecting its discoveries under patents pending (methods of extraction, methods of use, and composition of matter of the natural molecule), trademarks for 15 Classes of Use, copyrights, and trade secrets. Aequor will allow patents and peer-reviewed articles to publish when additional IP is filed. R&D has been outsourced to world-class chemists (including Ikhlas Khan, Assistant Director of the U.S. National Center for Natural Products Research, John Warner, co-founder of the Green Chemistry movement, and Jozsef Gulyas, synthetic chemist at the Salk Institute for Biological Sciences). Aequor will choose one of several identified chemical manufacturersto scale-up production and distribute the active agents worldwide. Aequor is winning awards, including MIT’s Building Global Innovators (only U.S. Company chosen), finalist in Climate-KIC (EU’s main climate initiative), and an invited member in DOD and EU healthcare Consortia, COP21, BIO Working groups, etc.
BUSINESS MODEL: Aequor will sell the primary chemical directly to identified major buyer. The sale of licenses is contemplated to market leaders in narrowly-defined target markets and territories in order to generate high up-fronts and accelerate early market penetration. Additional non-dilutive revenues are projected from the sale of data sets to end-users incorporating the primary molecule in EPA-registered end-use products, commissions on sales to U.S. Government agencies as a Woman-Owned Small Business, and offering biofilm testing services at Aequor’s lab.
GO-TO-MARKET STRATEGY: Aequor segmented the market by regulatory barrier. Early target markets are regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) -- where approval can be achieved in 6 months for $100K. This beachhead sector is valued at $50 billion, and includes active agents used in preservatives, dispersants, water pre-treatments and closed circuit systems and industrial/non-critical clinical sanitizers. Aequor will subsequently file for EPA/FIFRA approval (est. 2 years @ $2 million) in order to sell into the $250 billion industrial sectors, and FDA approval (est. 5 years@ $$$$) in order to sell into the $300 billion healthcare sectors (sanitizers and coatings for critical clinical surfaces, in-dwelling medical devices, and therapeutics).
GO-TO-MARKET STATUS: Aequor executed 14 confidential agreements with market leaders in key sectors for proof-of-concept testing. Aequor can disclose that one of these companies was Cubist Pharmaceuticals, which agreed to conduct all pre-clinical trials in exchange for a first-right-of-negotiation for a license in defined FDA-regulated healthcare sectors. Cubist, which had only one new antibiotic in FDA clinical trials, was acquired by Merck for $9.9 billion in December 2014. The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) offered Aequor use of its labs and staff to do pre-clinical testing under a special collaboration for high-priority R&D. Testing will begin when Aequor has scaled-up production of sufficient quantities of the primary active agent. Other government agencies offering collaborations include: the International Space Station (approved experiment to test the efficacy of Aequor’s primary molecule inside the ISS and, via airlock, in outer space); NASA/ Jet Propulsion Laband the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) to address unmet needs of national security.
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