Precise Health, a biotech start-up based at the Energypolis Campus in Sion, has just won phase 2 of the national Venture Kick competition. The CHF 40,000 prize will enable the company to further develop its technology, which is revolutionizing the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.
“Our start-up is working on bacteriophage therapies. Our platform uses data science and machine learning to rapidly select the best match between phages (viruses that naturally destroy bacteria) and time-sensitive infections,” explains José Luis Bila, co-founder of Precise Health. For infections for which there are no phage therapies, the start-up aims to create new phages, thus broadening therapeutic options. “Our initial aim is to validate the process of matching phages to bacteria for bacterial sepsis. Animal studies are currently in preparation”.
Bacteriophages harvested in Valais
The start-up selects some of these bacteriophages from wastewater collected at wastewater treatment plants in Valais. “This environment provides a diverse pool of bacteriophages, which we can isolate and analyze for their potential to effectively target antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections”, notes José Luis Bila.
The funds raised through the Venture Kick program are therefore very timely. They will be used primarily to conduct market research, which will help refine the start-up’s value proposition. They will also support the next market launch. In addition, part of the funds will be used to hire a bioinformatics intern, which will strengthen the company’s technical capabilities.
Antimicrobial resistance is on the rise due to the excessive and abusive use of antibiotics, leading to therapeutic failures and increased healthcare risks. It is responsible for 1.27 million deaths a year, and represents an additional economic burden that could reach $1,000 billion by 2030. Precise Health’s technology therefore addresses a real public health problem.
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