University spin-out secures £2m from investors
A University of Manchester spin-out company, that is working on a device that helps people who lose the ability to swallow, has raised £2m from private investors.
Phagenesis has developed technology that delivers electrical pulses to the throat that can help people suffering from dysphagia, a common condition that prevents or impairs the safe swallowing of food and drink. At least 50% of stroke victims are left with impaired swallowing.
The company now plans to use the cash to develop its products and seek regulatory approval.
Chief executive Daniel Green said: “To raise £2m in a few months in the current economic climate is a remarkable achievement and was made possible because the Phagenesis technology has accumulated substantial amounts of exciting data in human subjects. The investment will enable us to undertake design and clinical trials of a production device which we expect to be available globally.”
Apart from a severe reduction in quality of life, dysphagia often leads to the inhalation of liquids and the development of life-threatening pneumonia.
The company was founded by chief operating officer Dr Conor Mulrooney and Professor Shaheen Hamdy in 2007. Prof Hamdy, the inventor of the technology, is Professor of Gastroenterology at Salford Royal Hospital NHS Trust and was previously Fellow at the Sobell Department of Neurophysiology, University College London. Earlier this year the company appointed Henry Hyde-Thomson as chairman and Mr Green.
