Iceni Glycoscience has been featured in a new Royal Society of Chemistry report, What Works For Innovation: Supporting R&D and Innovation In Deep-Tech Chemistry SMEs. The report describes us as a “fantastic example of chemistry contributing to Government Healthcare Mission 2 – enabling early diagnosis and treatment.
The report said:
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of viral and bacterial surveillance, and Iceni Glycoscience’s novel technology could be critical in the response to future disease outbreaks.
Spun out of the University of East Anglia and the John Innes Centre in 2014, this innovative company is developing diagnostic technologies and treatments for infectious diseases using proprietary technology based on carbohydrate chemistry.
Iceni Glycoscience’s technology exploits the presence of carbohydrates found on the surface of cells within our bodies where the initial binding stage of a virus occurs, enabling early detection and discrimination between different diseases in a single test. Existing tests rely on detecting genetic material or surface proteins and can be rendered ineffective when a virus mutates. However, by using carbohydrate-based techniques, Iceni Glycoscience has developed rapid “mutation proof” tests which can identify and distinguish between diseases, including COVID-19 and influenza.
Recent developments have recognised the importance of carbohydrates in human and animal disease, including cancer, and highlighted opportunities for developing novel treatments. In addition to diagnostics, Iceni Glycoscience is also developing carbohydrate-based therapeutics such as novel vaccines which can be used as an alternative to antibiotics.
Iceni Glycoscience’s technology demonstrates the importance of innovation and is a fantastic example of how chemistry contributes to Government Healthcare mission 2 – enabling early diagnosis and treatments.
You can read the full report at: https://rsc.li/3aF6J0k
