Public Funding for Alphabiomics Ltd

**Introduction:** AlphaBiomics is working on a new health test called AlphaGutScan. This test lets people safely collect a simple stool (poo) sample at home and send it to the company. We will then check your gut health by looking at what's in your stool. The test uses a very detailed way of looking at the bacteria that live in your gut. It also uses smart computer programmes to make sure the test results and recommendations are very accurate. **Project Goal:** The main goal is to make AlphaGutScan easy to use, ensuring it's something that can really help people understand and look after their health better. To achieve this, AlphaBiomics is working with Tone Product Design. Together, we're focusing on making the whole process user-friendly, from collecting the sample to understanding the test results. **Project Team:** AlphaBiomics and Tone Product Design are experts in studying microorganisms, computer learning, and designing products that people love to use. Both groups know how to run projects really well and will keep a close eye on everything to make sure we finish on time and do a great job. **How We Do It:** We're using a design method called the 'Double Diamond' which helps us focus first on learning what test users really need and then on creating the right solutions. Here's what we're doing: _Discover:_ We employ research to find out what user need and what problems they might have. _Define:_ We use the information from our talks to clearly define what our product should do for the users. We'll make some early versions of the test kit and the report layout, then ask how people actually use them. This helps us to make improvements. The best designs will be chosen based on what we learn. **Why It Matters:** Support from Innovate UK helps speed up our project, making it more trustworthy and attractive to investors. Without this support, AlphaGutScan won't deliver fully on its promise. AlphaGutScan is not just a product; it's a step towards helping people take better care of their health before they even get sick, easing the load on healthcare services like the NHS. **Conclusion:** By focusing on what people really need and how they feel about using technology, AlphaGutScan aims to be more than just a health test. It's designed to be easy, trustworthy and useful, which could lead to better health for everyone who uses it.

**HEALTHCARE CHALLENGE:** Immune-mediated diseases are lifelong illnesses characterized by an abnormal reaction of the body's immune system, known as inflammation. Examples are Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC). People who experience severe disease whose activity cannot be controlled with the usual medication are typically treated with a biologic drug to stop inflammation. This type of medicine is made of materials also found in living organisms. Typically, individuals with the same disease are initially treated with the same type of biologic drug. However, individual patients respond very differently to the same biologic drug. Some may benefit, whereas others do not, or have unwanted side effects. The continued need for hospital visits and uncertainty of treatment success has been especially difficult for these immuno-compromised patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. **ALPHABIOMICS' SOLUTION:** The gut microbiome (the large and complex community of typically harmless bacteria in our intestines) has an important influence over biologic drug response. AlphaBiomics is developing a non-invasive at-home test for CD and UC patients that predicts a person's likely response to biologic drugs as a group. This test, called RxSelex(tm), measures important gut microbiome components found in a patient's stool. Once this diagnostic test is ready for use, it will be sold to the NHS. **FAST PROJECT AIM:** The NHS is currently undergoing major changes in how health and care services are planned, obtained, paid for, and delivered. New Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) have been established to aggregate providers and commissioners of NHS services across a geographical area with local authorities and other local partners to collectively plan health and care services to meet the needs of regional population. NHS reorganisation into ICSs is changing adoption and ordering pathways including for diagnostic tests like RxSelex(tm). The aim of this project is to develop a clear roadmap for NHS adoption and dissemination of RxSelex(tm) that fits the novel ICS structure. **FAST WORK PLAN:** AlphaBiomics will engage the expert consultancy Hardian Health to deliver this roadmap. Hardian will review publicly available information regarding adoption and purchasing of diagnostic tests. They will also estimate the number of IBD patients in the UK who will benefit from RxSelex(tm). Hardian will then interview experts to confirm or update their findings and then summarise the results in a roadmap.