Doylestown-based Advent Therapeutics has been working on vitamin A therapy aimed at preventing chronic lung disease in premature infants, a condition with few modern treatments, writes Holly Quinn for Technical.ly.
The company focuses particularly on bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a chronic lung disease affecting extremely premature infants.
One form of the treatment would be administered through an IV line, while another, still under development, would provide vitamin A directly to the lungs via inhalation.
“These are very preterm infants,” said cofounder and CEO David Lopez. “They’re very fragile.”
The company’s research has largely been supported through competitive federal grants and state-backed programs as the team works to address one of the most persistent challenges faced by premature infants.
Since being founded in 2017, Advent has secured over $6 million from the National Institutes of Health Small Business Innovation Research program, along with early matching funds from Ben Franklin Technology Partners to help launch the company.
“This company is 100% owned by its founders and its stakeholders,” said Lopez. “NIH doesn’t take equity.”
To date, the company, based at the Pennsylvania Biotechnology Center, has largely operated without outside investors, with founders and collaborators providing both time and resources to advance the research.
Read more about Doylestown’s Advent Therapeutics and their therapies designed to help prevent chronic lung disease in premature infants in Technical.ly.
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