Over the years, more advances in technology have seen cures to many diseases that were once thought to be incurable. With more focused precision, health technology is taking new and innovative turns in solving health challenges ravaging the world.
With the latest advances in next-generation sequencing, bioinformatics, and precision medicine, IndyGeneUS AI an innovative cell and gene therapy company that’s focused on contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) based in Washington, DC is set to raise the bar in the world of biotechnology.
Founded in 2020 by Yusuf Henriques, IndyGeneUS AI, service-disabled veteran-owned and operated small business (SDVOSB) that is driving precision medicine by leveraging data mining and artificial intelligence to expedite the development and manufacturing of quality targeted therapies, bringing them to market faster.
According to its website, its mission is to accelerate the discovery, development, and manufacturing of advanced therapeutics to address health disparities that African diaspora populations face in accessing high-quality, equitable health care.
while stating its vision as to be the #1 CDMO and the global leader in advanced targeted therapy development. Our team of scientific and manufacturing experts will strategically utilize our large-scale manufacturing and comprehensive analytical programs to drive precision therapeutic development.
IndyGeneUs AI’s integrated and comprehensive service offerings provide a one-stop solution to get Advanced Therapies to market faster with exceptional quality.
The biotechnology company utilizes a client-driven model paired with a patient-centric culture to deliver high-quality and reliable processes, analytical development, viral vector manufacturing, GMP testing, cell therapy bioprocessing, plasmid production, and cell banking services throughout the entirety of a product’s life cycle.
Speaking on a brief background about the startup, the founder said that IndyGeneUS AI was created to identify novel gene targets by using next-gen sequencing to identify cell and gene therapeutics for rare disease conditions like retinitis pigmentosa and other disorders.
He mentioned that there is a historic lack of diversity in biomedical research, including leading-edge genetic investigations like genome-wide association studies (GWAS).
According to him, Only 3% of genetic data collected worldwide is from people of African ancestry. However, almost 20% of the world’s population is of African descent.
“Underrepresentation in research impacts how the results of precision medicine clinical studies can be applied. These populations will essentially be excluded from the benefits of the advances these studies yield.”
On how the solution works, Yusuf mentioned that its proprietary technology can detect novel signature sequences, biomarkers, and polygenic risk scores by integrating “multi-omics” data, electronic healthcare record (EHR) data, and text from scientific literature.
On IndyGeneUS AI’s milestones, the founder mentioned that the platform had received its first investment of $1.5M from a South African-based Venture Capital Firm.
Stating further he mentioned being named one of the Johnson & Johnson Innovation – Veterans Lead QuickFire Challenge awardees and bagging a cash prize of $175K to continue building out our block-chain precision care model.
IndyGeneUS AI is a Founder Institute (FI) South Africa portfolio company, and according to the founder, FI has been very impactful for its work brought to Cape Town, South Africa.
“We were awarded funding during our pre-seed round from an organization we became affiliated with byway of FI. So, we are very grateful for the experience.”, he added.
Continuing further, the founder added that the startup is well-positioned to open two labs within a month of one another to process whole genome sequencing (WGS). The lab locations are in Cape Town, South Africa (April 2022) and Washington, DC (May 2022).
“We have an amazing team that makes all of our work possible. We have an impressive group of life science professionals, technologists, and communication specialists who make the work of IndyGeneUS AI a reality.
The majority of our team are Howard University alum or other respected institutions of higher learning. It is our goal to eventually return to these institutions to raise up the next generation of geneticists, life scientists, bio-tech specialists, etc.”, Yusuf concluded.
Featured Image: Yusuf Henriques, Founder, IndyGeneUS AI
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