[Pictured: Alan Fletcher from PerkinElmer presenting the prize to CEO of MIP Diagnostics, Dr Adrian Kinkaid.]
A technology developed at the University of Leicester, and the prime focus of Leicester spinout company MIP Diagnostics, has been recognised as ‘most commercially viable’ at Europe’s flagship Drug Discovery event.
The annual ELRIG Drug Discovery conference, held at the Telford International Centre in September, is the largest Drug Discovery conference in Europe and featured a ‘Dragons’ Den’ competition. The coveted trophy is awarded to the product or service considered to be the most commercially viable and with the best prospects for generating significant revenues.
The ‘Dragons’: Alan Fletcher, VP Reagents & New Markets at PerkinElmer; Ann Kramer, CEO of the Electrospinning Company; and Gary Allenby, CSO at Aurelia Bioscience – believed that the nanoMIP technology was “potentially disruptive” in the affinity reagent field due to the speed of delivery and robustness of the nanoMIPs (molecular imprinted polymers), sometimes called ‘plastic antibodies’.
The MIP technology is the result of extensive research led by Sergey Piletsky, Professor in Bioanalytical Chemistry at Leicester.
Commenting on the accolade, Dr Adrian Kinkaid, CEO of MIP Diagnostics Ltd, said:
“This is a great endorsement of this cutting-edge technology. The Dragons clearly recognised the potential of the product and its possible application in a variety of sectors, from drug discovery applications to monitoring food contaminants or protecting the population from the growing danger of so-called ‘legal highs’.”
Dr Kinkaid was recently appointed CEO of the company following an investment of £182,000 by Mercia Fund Management.