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News

We invest in Poltreg – a company that commercializes an innovative method of diabetes treatment

12/20/2015
INNOventure has invested in the Gdansk-based Poltreg company, which develops and commercializes the patented TREG method for the treatment of type 1 diabetes. The company was established in July 2015 and its aim is to provide breakthrough therapy treatment to as many patients with type 1 diabetes as possible. This is the second investment of our fund in a biotech company.

The treatment method developed by specialists from the Medical University of Gdańsk can benefit children suffering from type 1 diabetes, which requires a supply of insulin from the outside. An individual vaccine containing TREG lymphocytes is prepared for each patient. The procedure  is completely safe and free from side effects, as confirmed by our studies.
– The therapy process starts with diagnosing a patient with type 1 diabetes. He goes to the hospital where he is qualified for the program. Next, 250 milliliters of blood are taken, from which the regulatory T-cells are isolated. After being multiplied they become the “TREG vaccine” administered to the same patient. Everything is done in a special clean laboratory headed by prof. dr hab. med. Piotr Trzonkowski in cooperation with dr hab. med. Natalia Marek-Trzonkowska – explains prof. Małgorzata Myśliwiec, co-creator of the method.
According to the CEO of Poltreg Katarzyna Michalak-Magda, this medicine can be used today in patients with recently diagnosed diabetes or in the period of prediabetes, in which currently there are no other effective treatment methods. Importantly – regulatory T-cells come from the patient’s own blood, they are not subjected to any genetic manipulation, only their number – naturally low or characterized by lower activity in patients with type 1 diabetes – is multiplied in laboratory conditions. The potential of the method is very high, that is why a special purpose vehicle for the commercialization of the method was established together with the Gdańsk Medical University.

– The World Health Organization estimates that by 2030, 366 million people will develop diabetes, including about 10-15 percent of type 1 diabetes. This is a serious civilization problem, which is why we became interested in the innovative treatment method developed at the Medical University of Gdańsk – says Marcin Bielówka, president of INNOventure. – Innovations are not only new IT solutions or technological tools, but also new methods of treatment that save health and life.
The Poltreg company through the investment of the INNOventure fund can implement the development strategy of making the method available to patients:
– We hope that the popular in the media “Polish vaccine for diabetes” will be produced from in Gdańsk starting the beginning of the next year. The investment process has already begun – sums up the chairman of the Supervisory Board of Poltreg and the originator of commercialization, Wojciech Kąkol.
Poltreg is a company established as a spin-off from the Medical University of Gdańsk in order to develop and commercialize the patented TREG method and is the only authorized entity to implement the results of research in the area of ​​T-regulatory lymphocytes and the use of the method for their multiplication.