Fund
BioScience Managers Ventures Fund I
Immunosis Pty Ltd is a start-up diagnostics company developing innovative genetic technologies for the early detection of Primary Immune Deficiency (PID).
PID is a life-threatening disease caused by mutations in the genes coding for a properly working immune system and impacts 1:500 people (Jeffery Model Foundation). Patients with this disease are unable to mount an effective immune response and consequently suffer from severe and repeated infections.
There are at least 344 known gene defects, and 354 distinct disorders with a wide range of clinical presentations. A substantial issue for these patients is the long time it takes for an accurate diagnosis, reported to be 9 years for the most common form of the disease based on a recent study of major Melbourne hospitals. Once diagnosed, there are safe and effective medicines available to treat these patients.
In collaboration with leading clinical and laboratory researchers at the Royal Melbourne Hospital, Royal Children’s Hospital and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, Immunosis has developed a proprietary diagnostic test to detect patients with PID based on genetic information. Immunosis aims significantly accelerate the time to diagnosis and commercialise the test in global markets.