Epiterna

Epiterna is a Swiss-based longevity biotechnology company that emerged from stealth in 2022, founded by Alejandro Ocampo and Kevin Perez. It operates as a spin-off from Ocampo's research laboratory at the University of Lausanne. The firm focuses on addressing aging as the root cause of physical decline and disease, rather than treating individual age-related ailments. Its primary mission is to develop affordable and accessible products to extend the healthy lifespan of both humans and companion animals, such as dogs and cats.

The company's scientific foundation is built upon the extensive background of its co-founder, Alejandro Ocampo, who has dedicated over 15 years to studying the aging process at a cellular and molecular level. His research journey includes a Ph.D. from the University of Miami, postdoctoral studies at the Salk Institute where he was a pioneer in demonstrating how epigenetic reprogramming could extend lifespan in mice, and leading his own lab at the University of Lausanne. This deep expertise in cellular reprogramming and the mechanisms of aging is the cornerstone of Epiterna's approach.

Epiterna's core technology is a high-throughput drug screening platform designed to evaluate the effect of various medicines on healthspan and lifespan. This platform assesses compounds at the molecular and cellular levels using established animal models. A key aspect of the business model is to initially focus on repurposing drugs and compounds that are already approved for specific diseases in humans and animals. This strategy aims to leverage existing safety data to accelerate the development timeline and ensure the resulting therapies are affordable and widely accessible. The company is particularly interested in small-molecule drugs due to their advantages in manufacturing, distribution, and cost-effectiveness. By August 2023, the firm had already evaluated hundreds of medicines in smaller animals and over a dozen in larger ones, successfully validating known candidates and discovering new potential leads.

In August 2023, Epiterna announced it had secured €10 million in a seed funding round from Prima Materia, an investment firm co-founded by Spotify's Daniel Ek and early backer Shakil Khan. This capital is intended to accelerate the company's growth and development efforts. The company has outlined plans to initiate its first clinical trials for companion dogs in Europe during 2024, while also intending to begin human trials before launching its first products for animals.

Keywords: longevity biotechnology, healthy lifespan, drug discovery, epigenetic reprogramming, anti-aging therapies, animal health, pet longevity, drug screening platform, small-molecule drugs, cellular reprogramming, age-related diseases, veterinary medicine, preclinical research, healthspan extension, Alejandro Ocampo, Prima Materia, University of Lausanne spin-off, companion animal therapeutics, aging research, geroprotectors