University of Florida startup Entrinsic Health Solutions Inc. (EHS), an innovative health sciences company, has entered into a partnership that provides for a worldwide commercial license and supply agreement for enterade®, an amino acid-based, glucose-free, electrolyte solution designed for oncology and gastrointestinal (GI) disease patients.
“We are excited about this partnership,” stated Dr. Sadasivan Vidyasagar, the principal inventor of the UF research team that developed the technology. “This was a collaborative effort. It took three teams: the scientific team, the UF Tech Licensing team, and the business team that Entrinsic gathered to move this technology forward.”
EHS and Nestlé Health Sciences (NHSc), a global leader pioneering science-based nutritional health solutions, announced its partnership is based upon EHS’s enterade® beverage. enterade® uses a patented combination of proprietary amino acid blends to help patients with GI issues related to cancer or chronic GI disease. NHSc has the right to take over the global commercialization of enterade® following the results of a clinical study of enterade® in neuroendocrine tumor (NET) patients.
“The research behind enterade® is a game-changer,” Dr. Vidyasagar said “because it extends far beyond a beneficial beverage for those suffering from dehydration.”
“What differentiates our research from others is that we’ve selected amino acids based on functional alterations associated with diseases rather than going after specific diseases,” Dr. Vidyasagar said. “Our research can produce a pipeline of products to correct functional alterations associated with various disease conditions such as GI complications associated with cancer care, cancer treatment, skin care, cystic fibrosis and asthma.”
Working with UF Innovate | Tech Licensing, EHS has exclusively licensed many technologies from Dr. Vidyasagar’s group on a worldwide basis. The company’s intellectual property includes a portfolio of issued and pending US and foreign patents.
“Dr. Vidyasagar is at the forefront of pioneering a novel platform to develop powerful new compositions addressing unmet medical needs by leveraging the diversity and synergy of amino acids to maintain or restore health across a network of pathways,” said Stephen Gatto, Chief Executive Officer of EHS.
“I believe that Dr. Vidyasagar’s work will unlock an area of science that has been vastly understudied yet has the potential to deliver some of the most revolutionary insights on a scale similar to immunotherapy,” Mr. Gatto stated further, “Without the help of UF Innovate | Tech Licensing, and the culture of entrepreneurism it has created, none of this would have been possible. Their help in securing key features of the license and continued support of Dr. Vidyasagar’s work were the twin catalyst for success. We look forward to several upcoming developments.”
About UF Innovate | Tech Licensing
UF Innovate | Tech Licensing works with innovators, entrepreneurs, investors and industry partners to maximize the potential of University of Florida innovations through commercialization for the global good. Founded in 1985, Tech Licensing receives more than 300 invention disclosures, executes more than 100 commercial transactions and launches nearly 20 companies each year. In 2017, the Milken Institute ranked the University of Florida third in the nation for its tech commercialization efforts.
With the benefit of UF Innovate’s two business incubators and its Ventures organization, Tech Licensing connects researchers with investors and industry to lead them through the commercialization process.
About Entrinsic Health Solutions
Entrinsic Health Solutions, Inc. (EHS) is a recognized leader in the development, manufacturing and commercialization of disruptive, science-derived amino-acid technologies that are clinically-proven to deliver better health outcomes in a broad range of therapeutic areas including gut health, hydration, skin and respiratory health. The Company’s proprietary Amino Acid Coupled-Transport (A₂CT™) technology platform leverages gold-standard science and harnesses game-changing amino acid technology to address critical health issues. A₂CT™ is a highly customizable transport system for addressing multiple target conditions and disease states. EHS has ongoing research and development that leverages amino acid science and technology for consumer health, therapeutics and performance hydration.
The University of Florida’s mission is to prepare our students to lead and influence the next generation and beyond for economic, cultural and societal benefit. Recognized as among the top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report, UF is one of the nation’s largest public universities, and is the only member of the Association of American Universities in Florida. Teaching, research and scholarship, and service span all of the UF’s academic disciplines and represent its commitment to be a premier university that the state, nation and world look to for leadership.
