National push to tackle cardiovascular and diabetes burden backs Aussie start-ups

Fourteen biotech and medtech innovators will share in a $12 million funding injection aimed at fast-tracking life-changing solutions for people living with cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

With more than 1.3 million Australians affected by diabetes and another 1.3 million living with stroke, heart or vascular diseases, the investment is part of a coordinated national push to tackle these health challenges head-on.

The start-up funding is being delivered through the Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF), with recipients selected by MTPConnect under its Targeted Translation Research Accelerator (TTRA) initiative. The selected projects have also attracted over $17 million in additional backing from industry, further amplifying their potential impact.

“This funding will support exciting new treatment and management options for Australians with cardiovascular disease and diabetes,” said Mark Butler, Federal Minister for Health, Ageing and NDIS. “Our government is expanding the Australian-made medtech and biotech sector as part of our vision of a future made in Australia.”

Among the biggest recipients is Endo Axiom, a spin-off founded by three academics from the University of Sydney and Sydney Local Health District. The company secured $1.079 million for its oral insulin therapy for people with type 1 diabetes. A first-in-human trial is set to begin in the coming months.

On the medtech front, CathRx was awarded $1.1 million for its ElectroPulse pulsed field ablation (PFA) system to treat atrial fibrillation (AF). Early results from the company’s first in-human study has been promising in both paroxysmal and persistent AF patients.

MTPConnect CEO Stuart Dignam said, “We want to see these homegrown innovations scale in Australia first rather than offshore, and drive sovereign success which will power local job creation and improve health outcomes for Australians and others around the world.”

Medtech Projects Funded:

• CathRx – $1,100,000 for atrial fibrillation
• I D & E – $1,200,000 for ocular drug delivery
• Theia Medical – $1,000,000 for high-risk coronary artery disease
• Venstra Medical – $1,000,000 for cardiogenic shock
• Wavewise Analytics – $997,000 for stroke
• ZiP Diagnostics – $1,019,000 for preeclampsia in pregnancy

Therapeutic Projects Funded

• Anaxis Pharma – $333,000 for diabetic kidney disease
• Argenica Therapeutics – $1,000,000 for acute ischaemic stroke
• Aspecthera – $500,000 for diabetic retinopathy
• Atherid Therapeutics – $750,000 for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease
• Endo Axiom – $1,079,000 for type 1 diabetes
• Inosi Therapeutics – $968,000 for diabetic kidney disease
• Nanomedx – $750,000 for peripheral arterial disease
• ProGenis Pharmaceuticals – $370,000 for type 2 diabetes

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