Technology

Posted on May 2, 2018 by staff

£500k investment in ‘life-saving’ dialysis tech

Technology

A spin-out company which hopes to save the lives of thousands of dialysis patients has received backing to grow and further develop its technology.

Mercia Fund Managers has provided Invizius with £500,000 in the first investment deal since its partnership with the University of Edinburgh was announced in November 2017.

The business stems from years of research by biologist Dr Andy Herbert and his team, who believe they have found a way to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease among patients undergoing long-term dialysis.

Invizius is led by CEO Richard Boyd, who previously founded VueKlar Cardiovascular, with Dr Herbert as CTO.

“We are very pleased to welcome Mercia as an investor,” Boyd said. “Their ability to back and help develop life science businesses from the point of spinout through to commercialisation makes them an ideal partner for Invizius.”

Invizius’ H-Guard product is a powerful anti-inflammatory used as a ‘primer’ to coat the filter surface which, when mixed with the patient’s blood, makes the surface seem less foreign to the patient’s immune system.

While the first product is aimed at kidney dialysis, the technology could also potentially be used with other devices or procedures such as catheters, stents, organ transplants and vascular grafts.

Dr Nicola Broughton, head of universities at Mercia, added: “Invizius builds on the world-class research carried out at the University of Edinburgh and is an excellent choice for our first investment under our partnership with the University.

“This technology could revolutionise kidney dialysis and, with three million patients worldwide, has the potential to save countless lives.

“The funding will take the company one step closer to bringing it to market.”