Public Funding for Ferryx Limited

There is a lack of satisfactory treatments for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), an excruciating, debilitating condition which affects 1 in 123 people in the UK (\\\>0.5 million) and 6.8 million worldwide. Currently available treatments have significant negative side effects, affecting quality of life of patients and reducing compliance, leading to exacerbation of symptoms. Probiotics are popular supplements due to their perception as safe, natural treatments, but currently marketed products cannot function during active disease. Live biotherapeutic products (LBPs) are an emerging class of therapeutics based on probiotics which can prevent, treat or cure a disease or condition. Ferryx develops LBPs which are functional during active inflammation, an area where conventional probiotics fail. During active inflammation or stress, gut iron levels increase. Most resident gut bacteria can grow under high iron conditions, but conventional probiotics cannot; they are rapidly outcompeted and cannot have a beneficial effect. Ferryx selects LBPs which thrive under both healthy and high iron conditions and thus function during active disease. Our lead product is FX856, a type of bacteria called _Streptococcus thermophilus_. This is the first LBP to be developed which has been specifically chosen for its ability to survive and thrive during active inflammation or stress. Our ultimate goal is to develop FX856 as a prescription medicine for the treatment of IBD. Our preclinical work has shown that this product has anti-inflammatory properties and potential to induce healing in the gut. FX856 has an excellent safety profile and has been designated Generally Regarded as Safe (GRAS) by the FDA, meaning we are able to start clinical trials in patients with IBD rather than healthy volunteers. Before we start a clinical trial, we need to understand more about how FX856 interacts with the gastrointestinal tract, such as how it interacts with mucus and the cells that line the gut, how it affects the immune system, and how does it change the composition of the microbiome? To do this, we will use an _in vitro_ gut model to allow us to evaluate these parameters. Data generated during this feasibility study will demonstrate pharmacological activity of FX856 which justifies commercial development. This data will allow rapid development of FX856 by informing a subsequent grant application to evaluate impact of different doses of FX856 on gut microbiota activity and composition in a simulated actively inflamed gut using faecal matter from IBD patients prior to a clinical trial.

The production of chicken to produce meat is responsible for the production of the greenhouse gas methane and the environmental pollutant ammonia. These are produced by the birds as they are reared and also by the litter that they live on. The bacteria that produce these chemicals live in the chicken's intestine. Any intervention that would reduce these bacteria also has to not have a negative impact on the profitability of farming poultry or on animal health and welfare. The ideal solution would improve these, improve the profitability of framing while reducing environmental impact. Our company has two strains of bacteria that have individually shown these properties in small scale trials and could be formulated into a feed supplement for chickens. We aim to try these in larger scale trials alone and together to see if we can produce a product that increases the profitability of farming poultry while having all of the above positive impacts. We will compare these to the effects of current market-leading products that have positive effects on profitability and health, but no environmental impacts with the aim to be at least as good in terms of economic and welfare improvements while also moving the poultry industry towards net zero.