SATT Nord and Zymoptiq have signed an exclusive license agreement for the exploitation of Reflex technology developed at the Institute of Electronics, Microelectronics and Nanotechnology (IEMN) in Lille.
Current measurements of enzyme activity are performed using conventional chemical methods (spectroscopy, etc.), but these measurements require a great deal of preparation, are tedious, and require qualified personnel and significant laboratory resources.
As part of research conducted at the IEMN and its scientific partners (INRA, etc.), Alexis Vlandas, a researcher at the CNRS, and his colleagues have developed a disruptive approach to measuring enzyme activity.
Cette technologie, qui s’appuie sur les techniques de micro et nanofabrication en salle blanche, est plus performante et démocratise la mesure d’activité enzymatique. En effet, les mesures deviennent rapides (<1h), plus sensibles,plus précises et avec ce à un très haut débit.
La simplicité de mise en oeuvre, le caractère très économe en substrat et en solution, et la réalisation de mesure directe et biomimétique sont également des caractéristiques très recherchées par les utilisateurs de cette technologie.
" SATT Nord supports this technology in various aspects of technology transfer. Since the invention of this technology was announced following several years of scientific research, SATT has believed in the technical and economic potential of this breakthrough innovation, which revolutionizes and greatly enhances the means of characterizing enzymes and responding to the challenges of enzymology. " Alexis Vlandas, co-founder of Zymoptiq
SATT Nord financed and supported the research teams in the technological maturation process, enabling two patents to be filed.
Following these excellent technical results, ZYMOPTIQ, a young Lille-based startup founded in early 2019 by Philippe Pebay (CEO), former business developer at SATT Nord in charge of the Reflex project, and Alexis Vlandas, signed an exclusive license to exploit these two patents.
ZYMOPTIQ, winner of the 2018 I-lab prize (a national competition to support the creation of innovative technology companies), now offers a turnkey device for enzyme measurement and dosing.
This device opens up broad prospects in enzyme engineering for screening, quality control, process improvement, and enzyme mix formulation activities, for which existing methods are very limited.
It can be applied to all fields involving enzyme-related issues (human and animal nutrition, agri-food, biorefining, biomass processing, medical diagnostics, etc.)..
These enzymatic measurements are already operational for a range of substrates of interest, and the Zymoptiq team is finalizing the development of the automated results acquisition chain and working to expand the range of substrates available for testing.
" This licensing agreement is an important asset for ZYMOPTIQ and is part of a long-term partnership between ZYMOPTIQ and SATT Nord. It will facilitate the implementation of a potential fundraising campaign and reinforce the technological maturation currently underway. This partnership establishes ZYMOPTIQ's reliability and credibility and will enable the rapid completion of ongoing technical developments to accelerate the commercial deployment of this technology." Philippe PEBAY, CEO of Zymoptiq