Thomas Neumann
Company Background
Nortis is dedicated to developing a new generation of in vitro systems that are based on small segments of tissues and organs grown from human-derived cells in disposable, chip-like devices. Such human “body-on-a-chip” systems represent urgently awaited alternatives to laboratory animals and are expected to become the gold standard for the testing of drugs, vaccines, toxic compounds, cosmetics, and warfare countermeasures.
The Nortis project started in 2005 as a division within VisionGate, a bio-imaging company. In 2011, Nortis, Inc., was officially spun-off and subsequently moved into its new facilities at a biotech incubator on the University of Washington campus. As of January 2012, the Nortis team consists of 10 full- and part-time employees and consultants.
Technology Overview
Nortis is developing products that will overcome a crucial bottleneck in the development of therapeutic drugs and vaccines. Due to the lack of reliable in vitro assays, drug development depends heavily on animal testing for predicting efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetics in humans. This is problematic for several reasons. Testing in animals is expensive and fraught with ethical concerns. Most importantly, the results obtained with animals often don’t translate to humans.
Nortis has pioneered proprietary techniques for the in vitro creation of human tissues and organs in disposable chip-like devices. These organ microenvironments are designed as disposable modules, to be used as single assays or integrated in fluidic circuits that connect several different organ modules in various configurations as needed for the testing of drug/vaccine efficacy, toxicity, and pharmacokinetics. Nortis established proof-of-principle for their technology through a completed SBIR Phase I grant. Nortis anticipates their first products to enter the market within two to three years.
Market Potential
Market analysis for the first two Nortis assays, a model of the blood-brain-barrier assay and an angiogenesis assay, were prepared by Foresight Science & Technology, a leading technology commercialization and transfer firm. The combined yearly revenue potential for the two assays was predicted to exceed $400 million. The market potential of the other tissue/organ assays has not yet been evaluated, but is expected to have the same magnitude.
Competitive Advantage
Nortis’ tissue and organ models differ significantly from other body-on-a-chip approaches. The competitive advantage of Nortis’ technology arises from the integration of living vasculature, which can be directly perfused to mimic blood flow. This unique feature allows for the study of vascular growth and function in real time, reducing the need for expensive and laborious animal testing. Vasculature is a structural and functional key element of almost every tissue. Thus, Nortis’ assays are poised to produce test results that better replicate in vivo conditions and predict clinical outcome. Notably, the Nortis system is ideally suited for administering test compounds either through the vessel lumen or through the surrounding microenvironment. This is especially important for the testing of drugs, toxins, and vaccines. Nortis’ assays are modular and can be set up in flexible configurations with anticipated widespread adoption in various research areas, including high-throughput drug screening.
Financial Overview
The development of Nortis’s first commercial assays were supported by three NCI SBIR Phase I grants. The company aims to raise an additional $1 million in private investment this year to support R&D efforts until SBIR Phase II grants are secured in 2013.
Intellectual Property
Nortis owns two issued U.S. patents, and two U.S. applications that were filed on this technology to cover additional features and techniques. International patent applications in important global markets are currently undergoing the examination process. Nortis is the sole owner of all related IP.
Commercialization Strategy
Nortis plans to introduce the first assays and basic perfusion platforms into the scientific research market during the second half of 2014 — ideally by partnering with a company with established sales structures in this area. Nortis anticipates that the success in the scientific research market will translate to adoption in the area of commercial drug development.
Pipeline Products
The first line of products will include a blood-brain-barrier assay, an angiogenesis assay, a metastasis assay, as well as a perfusion platform in which the assay modules can be inserted.
Management Team
Thomas Neumann, M.D., is President and CEO of Nortis. His career path includes clinical work, academic appointments, and leadership positions in industry, where he has gained extensive experience in directing multidisciplinary teams. He and Dr. Nelson are the founders of Nortis.
Alan Nelson, Ph.D., Chairman, held multiple prestigious academic positions. He is a dynamic serial entrepreneur. His first biomedical company, Neopath, won landmark FDA approval in 1995, had an initial public offering (IPO) in 1996 and was sold to Becton Dickinson in 2000.
