AATec Medical GmbH, a Munich-based biotechnology company has started its operational activities and is developing a multi-product platform based on alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT). The company starts with a seed financing of EUR 2.7 million, supported by private investors, industry experts and family offices.
The funding will be used to scale AATec's technology, expand the team, and prepare for clinical development of its first product candidate, ATL-105, an innovative formulation for the inhaled treatment of respiratory diseases, for launch in 2024.
Alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT) is an immunomodulator with broad anti-inflammatory and antiviral therapeutic effects. Human serine protease inhibitor (SERPIN) is responsible for protecting tissues from damage by proteases. Currently, AAT products are only used for substitution therapy in AAT deficiency disease, a severe genetic defect. These AAT products are made exclusively from human blood plasma, making them a scarce and expensive resource.
AATec has developed an industrial production of recombinant AAT with high yield and successfully validated the therapeutic concept in several preclinical models for inflammatory lung diseases and viral respiratory infections. The broad data available will enable early initiation of clinical development; the company is targeting initiation of the first clinical trial in the first half of 2024.
The seed funding of EUR 2.7 million, is supported by private investors, industry experts and family offices. AATec will initially focus on developing the AAT product platform for the treatment of inflammatory respiratory diseases, including Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS), viral respiratory infections and allergic asthma. The long-term R&D strategy includes other application areas such as transplantation, AAT deficiency and systemic inflammatory diseases.
The company's technology is backed by a patent portfolio and is based on research conducted by co-founders Dr. Manfred Stangl, Head of Kidney and Pancreas Transplantation at the University of Munich Hospital and Chief Scientific Officer of AATec, and Dr. Michael Strassmair, Head of the Department of Hand Surgery at Manus Sana Hospital in Starnberg/Munich and Chief Medical Officer of AATec.