Microbiome Domain – A journey and perspective from India

 

Our journey in the microbiome domain started in 2015. We had launched our company, Leucine Rich Bio pvt ltd. in the Silicon Valley of India, Bengaluru in the late half of 2014. We integrated our expertise in genomics, systems biology, molecular biology, information technology and bioinformatics to build a robust system that could address the challenges of the microbiome domain. We curated tons of research papers to build our own databases (Microbyte and Nutribyte) which contained information on the various aspects of the microbiota, their link to diseases, nutrients in food etc. Next challenge was to develop algorithms and matrices that would take the raw data from next generation sequencing machines as input and provide an actionable output in the form of a report utilizing the data from our in-house databases. That’s how South Asia’s first microbiome test, BugSpeaks was launched in mid-2018. Also, in early 2021, we launched India’s first gut microbiome data-based nutraceutical line, Rychbiome. It gives us immense pride that we could become this region’s first microbiome company and in doing so also helped spread awareness on this very important aspect.

So, what have been our challenges? Well, microbiome domain is very complicated and it required a great mix of expertise from various quarters to pull this off. Running a deep science based startup in India has its challenges. Although in the last few years the startup ecosystem has evolved yet it has still miles to go for it to become mature like in the West. Then there was lack of awareness as this domain was new. Interestingly, people in general, in India know a lot about the importance of gut health as our ancient scriptures like Ayurveda emphasized on keeping the gut healthy. Most people in India eat a variety of fermented foods as part of their routine diet thereby taking care of their gut! however, the fact that one can now profile one’s gut microflora and based on that could take certain actionable steps to improve their health and wellness was very new to them. We also found a lack of interest from majority of the investment community in India. This may be again because this field was new and there were no yardsticks to compare us with. But I feel now things are changing and I hope investors in India can see the potential of this domain and how it can change the way healthcare functions!

So, what are the advantages that we have? First, India is very diverse. The gene pool, the food habits, the climate, everything adds tremendous value to the microbiome data. Secondly, India is rich source of skilled and talented workforce. We are already an IT major and we have tremendous skilled force in the biotechnology and life-science domains as well. Such combination is hard to find by and expensive in other parts of the world. 

Where do we see the microbiome space going? We feel this domain can revolutionize the healthcare paradigm. Currently it is more commonly associated with the wellness category but it has the potential to provide diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic solutions in gastroenterology, oncology, mental health and women health!

We feel India is in the cusp of providing major breakthroughs in various fields and microbiome domain is no different provided the government and investor community support this space!

 This opinion piece was published in Express Healthcare -

https://www.expresshealthcare.in/blogs/guest-blogs-healthcare/microbiome-domain-a-journey-and-perspective-from-india/431244/

 

 

A shot in the arm for the Indian Drug discovery/Innovation ecosystem

The recent announcement of collaboration in the field of type 2 diabetes between Boehringer Ingelheim and Connexios LifeSciences, a Bangalore based drug discovery company is good news for the entire Indian ‘innovation’ ecosystem especially in the field of life sciences.

First, to the credit of the investors of Connexios (Nadathur Holdings and Investments), they invested in an idea and held on to it for a decade or so knowing well the pitfalls of such a ‘high risk high gain’ business model and at a time when such type of investments were unheard of in India . In India, unlike the West, we do not see many University spin offs working to bring breakthrough concepts/technology from the ‘bench to the bedside’ so in that aspect Connexios Life Sciences took a bold step to focus on System/Network biology approach to find novel targets and newer ‘first in class’ molecules. Another aspect that is interesting in this is that the company focused all its energies and expertise on type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome. Drug discovery is a costly and long drawn affair so focusing on one disease model was a good decision which led to concentrated efforts by the team. This also means that the company has more than one option in terms of novel targets and new small molecules to focus on the disease. So if one program fails, there would be a back up of other targets and small molecule entities (SMEs) giving credibility to the company.

The success of Connexios therefore gives a huge fillip to the ‘research based’ organizations. In India, very few companies focus on impactful research especially in the life science/biotech arena. As India is known as ‘the pharmacy of the world’, hence, most of the pharma companies devote their research activities on the development of generics (formulation, synthesis etc.) with very little emphasis on discovery of newer molecules or targets. This leaves a huge gap in the Indian innovation ecosystem. The news of the collaboration between Connexios and BI should also provide impetus to investors to believe in this type of Business model with more conviction than before. 

There is no denying fact, that India can become a major Innovation hub as it has a huge ‘talent’ pool of high skilled scientists who work at a fraction of cost as compared to the their western counterparts. The time has come to give more credit to our scientists and a better conducive research atmosphere with more investments in this sector so that we have more successful Connexios type stories in the future!

The mantra is……………..Innovation!

I believe there would be a general agreement on the fact that companies in today’s world need to innovate to survive. However, the conundrum is how much of the company’s revenue (small/medium enterprises) or initial funds (as for start-ups) be focused on the research activity? 

Let us take examples of two types of business models (we would only consider biotech/life science industry). First is the ‘service’ model where the companies provide technological services for fee. These might range from providing protein purification services to next generation sequencing. The companies rely on their expertise and promote their cause by trying to give the best services. Since many of the companies utilize an already known technology they focus on giving their clients the best technological support and in due course would expect good ‘word of mouth’ publicity for the company to promote its services. The better companies which survive for the longest duration however are also focused on improving the ‘in –use’ technologies to sharpen their service portfolio. This is crucial as the subtle improvements can bring in new clients and can also cater better to the existing client base. One general question can be since these companies utilize instruments or reagents from established players (Illumina, Agilent etc.) why should the service provider invest money to innovate? Surely the instrument manufacturers are doing their bit and the service providers can acquire the technology from them! So why not completely focus on marketing and spend little on ‘in-house’ research? Well, research does not always mean big ticket breakthroughs! Even subtle changes for example, in the protocol of a particular assay can bring in great benefits both in terms of economic advantage as well as technological advancement. Second is that newer methods can provide a valuable feedback to the instrument manufacturers and therefore the possibility of partnership increases. This gives a huge fillip to the ‘brand value’ of the service provider. Hence one cannot completely shut innovation even in service based business models. 

                                   Image courtesy - The creative Scientist

Let us now look at the ‘product’ based business model (again in the realms of life science industry). I guess there is no denying the fact that for product based life science organizations ranging from companies delivering ‘bioinformatics suite’ to companies selling enzymes, innovation has to take the primary seat. Newer and better products are the keys to survival!

But having known these facts how many SMEs (Small medium enterprises) really focus on innovation? Many companies think that money spent on R&D is not worth it especially in the life science sector as there is a long incubation period and higher failure rates. But then investing in research is like buying insurance. Not only the companies need to invest but invest in the right idea and people to continue surviving in this fast paced era!

The hub and spoke model – from aviation to pharma

Every idea has its place under the sun. Two industries, pharmaceuticals and aviation which are known to be ‘high risk – high gain’ business are strikingly employing similar practices in order to maximize productivity and profits.

Everyone would agree that both aviation and pharmaceutical businesses require ‘deep pockets’ to start and sustain. Both have long periods of gestation but if run properly then returns can be huge eg. Pfizer, Merck, Emirates etc. 

Let us look at the paradigm shift being brought about by the major aviation companies and pharma giants to improve sustainability of their respective businesses.  In aviation, big players like Etihad, Emirates, Singapore airlines utilize their home base airports of Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Singapore respectively as hubs which then is used to improve/increase traffic. Traffic is brought in from various airports around the world and the hubs provide seamless connectivity options to their respective customers – a typical hub and spoke model!

Similar kind of approach is now being utilized by the pharma giants to increase their R&D productivity. R&D is the base on which any pharma company stands. But with increasing drought of blockbuster drugs coming out from the stable of Merck, Pfizer et al., it has become imperative for them to look for other ‘innovative’ means. The answer- ‘reduce expenditure on internal R&D efforts and create smaller hubs to scout for interesting research done in smaller companies/universities’. The companies feel this would help them to maximize R&D productivity and will be better focused on bringing in a stream of new deals. This is another version of ‘hub and spoke model’. 

There are critics of this approach but with increasing cost burden, lack of nimbleness in the big pharma set up it is probably important to decentralize and open up.