Ivry-sur-Seine, France, July 12, 2012 - EyeBrain, a company developing medical devices for the early diagnosis and monitoring of neurological diseases, announces today that one of its scientific teams is moving into the premises of the Brain and Spine Institute (Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epiniere - ICM) at the Pitie-Salpetriere hospital in Paris. The team is led by Magali Seassau, head of scientific studies at EyeBrain. Its aim is to foster scientific exchange with ICM researchers and speed up the development of clinical research tools for neurological diseases.
One in eight people is affected by these diseases, which are characterized by lesional eruptions on the brain, the spinal cord, the peripheral nerves or the muscles. They are often chronic and incapacitating conditions that require extensive medical treatment and social care. Clinical research in the field of neurosciences is a major challenge for the treatment of patients, from diagnosis to disease monitoring and action to improve their quality of life.
The ICM is an international center of excellence specialized in research into neurological diseases. It selected EyeBrain for its know-how in the analysis of eye movements. Depending on any abnormalities detected, these movements make it possible to determine which regions of the brain are not functioning correctly and to reach an early diagnosis of the disease.
By moving a research team into the ICM’s premises, EyeBrain will have the benefit of exceptional resources. The Institute employs 600 researchers who are among the most highly regarded in the world, and it has 22,000 square meters of laboratory space that houses patients, doctors and researchers under the same roof. This will enable EyeBrain to work on the development of innovative new devices for diagnosing neurological diseases.
“We welcome the arrival of EyeBrain, a young firm that developed its first product thanks to a research collaboration with researchers from our institute,” said Alexis Genin, the ICM’s research applications director. “We are convinced that the company’s location within the ICM will speed up the development of useful new devices for the early diagnosis of nervous system diseases.”
“Our move into the ICM reflects the medical world’s strong recognition of EyeBrain’s knowhow,” said Magali Seassau. “We are delighted to become part of this prestigious establishment, where we will be able to exploit the many existing synergies between our respective researchers and to develop and validate our new products more easily and more quickly.”
The Mobile EyeBrain Tracker designed and developed by EyeBrain in collaboration with the ICM is currently the only CE-marked medical device on the market that differentiates between several Parkinsonian syndromes - such as progressive supra-nuclear paralysis (PSP), cortico-basal degeneration (CBD) and amyotrophic multiple sclerosis (AMS) - by studying patients’ eye movements. It also makes it possible to monitor the development of patients suffering from multiple sclerosis and to ascertain the effects of the treatments prescribed by doctors. In addition, it is often used in the conduct of clinical trials (especially in the area of dyslexia).
“Our ambition is to broaden the EyeBrain Tracker’s field of application,” explained the chairman of EyeBrain, Serge Kinkingnehun. “In that regard, moving into the ICM will help accelerate the development of medical devices to assist in the diagnosis of neurological and psychiatric diseases. Our next products will perform still better and will correspond perfectly to the needs of the medical profession.”
About EyeBrain
EyeBrain manufactures medical devices for the early diagnosis of neurological diseases. These devices are based on the movement of the eyes and they make it possible to test specific regions of the brain by recording and analyzing eye movements using very sophisticated algorithms developed by the company. EyeBrain’s devices fill a gap in neurological diagnostics. For the first time, clinicians can rely on a simple set of eye movement parameters to differentiate between very similar syndromes, such as progressive supra-nuclear paralysis (PSP) and cortico-basal degeneration (CBD). The test is easy to carry out, non-invasive and the results are available in less than 20 minutes for a small cost.
The Mobile EyeBrain Tracker (EBT) comes as a complete solution including an eye tracker, a computer with two screens and stimulation and analysis software. It is already being used routinely in hospitals to help with the early characterization of Parkinsonian syndromes, to assist in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis and to monitor the development of these pathologies. Studies are also underway to characterize the eye motricity anomalies involved in reading difficulties, such as those experienced by people with dyslexia.
The Mobile EBT (Mobile EyeBrain Tracker) is the only device of its kind in the world to have obtained the CE mark. The company has ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 certification. Eye motricity testing (eye tracking) is paid for by the French social security system.
EyeBrain, which is based in the Paris suburb of Ivry-sur-Seine, was founded in 2008 and currently employs 15 people. It raised funding of EUR 1.2 million from the CapDecisif and G1J venture capital funds in 2009 and already generates revenues through the sale of the EyeBrain Tracker. It is engaged in collaborations with the French National Health and Medical Research Institute (Inserm), the French National Scientific Research Center (CNRS), Paris University Hospitals group, the University of Paris-Descartes, the Pierre and Marie Curie University, the Rouffach hospital and the French Brain and Spine Institute (ICM).
For further information about the company, go to: http://www.eye-brain.com
For further information about eye tracking, go to: http://www.eyebrainpedia.com
About the Brain and Spinal Cord Institute
The French Brain and Spine Institute (Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Epiniere - ICM) is a world-class research establishment that is innovative in both its conception and its organization. By bringing together patients, doctors and researchers under the same roof, it aims to facilitate the rapid development of treatments for lesions of the nervous system so that they can be applied to patients as quickly as possible. The center has the best scientists from every domain and every country. They are conducting groundbreaking research in this area.
From a scientific standpoint, the ICM’s approach is novel to the extent that its research is decompartmentalized. Its 30 or so research teams work independently but are associated along thematic lines that encourage the pooling of expertise and the implementation of joint projects. Bringing together patients, doctors and researchers under one roof facilitates the conduct of both fundamental and clinical research. The object of the exercise is to shorten the lead time from research to therapeutics to the great benefit of patients.
For further information about the ICM, go to: http://icm-institute.org
Mark Tidmarsh
ANDREW LLOYD & ASSOCIATES
http://www.ala.com
mark@ala.com
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ALA_Group
Brighton Business Centre 95 Ditchling Road Brighton BN1 4ST ENGLAND
Tel: +44 1273 675100 Fax: +44 1273 675400
55 rue Boissonade 75014 Paris FRANCE
Tel: +33 1 56 54 07 00 Fax: +33 1 56 54 07 01
INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY MARKETS, STRATEGY & COMMUNICATION
