VALBIOTIS confirms its interest in the study of the intestinal microbiota, a promising field in the prevention of metabolic diseases

LA ROCHELLE, France--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Regulatory News:

VALBIOTIS (Paris:ALVAL) (FR0013254851 – ALVAL / PEA/SME eligible), a French Research & Development company committed to scientific innovation for preventing and combating metabolic diseases, confirms its interest in the study of the intestinal microbiota, a promising field of investigation on innovative solutions for metabolic diseases.

Since the 2000s, there has been a growing number of scientific publications highlighting the connection between the different components of the microbiota and the development or prevention of numerous human pathologies, in particular gastro-intestinal and metabolic diseases.

Rapidly expanding investments

The microbiota has become a valued target for developing innovative health applications. The many potential prospects led to massive fund-raisings, and in 2016, the total raised surpassed a billion dollars in Europe and the United States.¹ A growing number of players are committing to the R&D effort, including biotechnology companies supported by pharmaceutical firms, investment funds and leading groups in the field of nutrition.

The French government’s confirmation of its commitment to enhancing its healthcare innovation policy has led to strong support for this boost in R&D, as well as its involvement in various programs and studies based on the microbiota, conducted by leading public-sector research institutes: Inra, Inserm, Institut Pasteur, etc.

VALBIOTIS, a major player in research for preventing and combating metabolic diseases, is engaged in the microbiota. Since its creation in 2014, VALBIOTIS has made the intestinal microbiota a strong axis of its R&D strategy for the prevention of metabolic diseases. In this regard, the company is systematically exploring potential interactions between its products and intestinal microbial populations, using the latest gold standard techniques: Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) and qPCR. The objective is to establish a link between the preclinical and clinical proof of efficacy of its products and their significant effects on the intestinal microbiota.

Sébastien PELTIER, CEO of VALBIOTIS: “Our research program on the microbiota, conducted in collaboration with recognized experts, already generates strategic data for our prevention products and confirm the innovative strategy of VALBIOTIS. The appointment of Murielle CAZAUBIEL as Director of Development and Medical Affairs also supports this position. In particular, Murielle has extensive knowledge of metagenomics for microbiota analysis and will be actively involved in ensuring that the studies conducted by VALBIOTIS in this field will make their mark on an international scale.”

¹ La Tribune, 12 June 2017, www.latribune.fr/entreprises-finance/industrie/chimie-pharmacie/les-investisseurs-de-plus-en-plus-seduits-par-les-therapies-basees-sur-le-microbiote-733963.html

VALBIOTIS is consolidating its expertise through its “Microbiota” program and has set 3 main objectives:

• to precisely define the effects of 3 VALBIOTIS products on the intestinal microbiota: VALEDIA^®, VAL-63 NAFLD, LpD64 (targeting prediabetes, NAFLD, and overweight/obesity respectively); the benefits of LpD64 and VALEDIA^® have been studied and their positive impact has already been proven on certain populations of micro-organisms, associated with the development of obesity for LdP64 (see press release, 6 March 2018) and in the development of metabolic disorders for VALEDIA^® (see press release, 22 January 2018);
• to further investigate the links between the microbiota and metabolic diseases;
• to identify new targets and biomarkers for preventing and combating metabolic diseases.

A unique database

The studies conducted by VALBIOTIS have led to the compilation of an exclusive and unique database combining preclinical, clinical, biological and intestinal microbiota metasequencing data.

The data collected from representative samples from a wide range of metabolic status will play an important role in broadening scientific understanding of the involvement of the intestinal microbiota in the pathologies studied as well as in identifying microbial strains of interest and the most relevant pathways for therapeutic research.

This comprehensive and exclusive database has high value potential and will be a focal point of the VALBIOTIS development strategy.

This strategic R&D focus has instigated significant changes at VALBIOTIS, creating a favorable climate for the market launch of its products via one or possibly several major players in the healthcare sector.

Intestinal microbiota: French population have a good understanding of the role of the intestine and its microbial populations in terms of health

Results of an opinion survey conducted by the OPINEA Institute for VALBIOTIS* on a thousand participants representative of the French population.

• 9 out of 10 participants (88.3%) state that the intestine is a “key” organ in terms of health, namely because it plays host to the intestinal microbiota.² This is particularly understood by people over 35 and high income populations. The media and the internet are most commonly cited as sources of information.

• 6 out of 10 French people understand the potential benefits of acting on their intestinal microbiota in order to prevent certain diseases and this is particularly true among people over 35, with 2 out of 3 of this population agreeing with this view. However, 66% of people interviewed (57% of high income groups) are unaware of the type of research being conducted by the scientific community to establish a link between the intestinal microbiota and metabolic diseases.

• Public health campaigns on healthy lifestyle appear to have had a positive impact. When asked, “in your opinion, what actions must be taken in daily life to prevent metabolic diseases?”, 80.5% responded with “exercise regularly”, 78% with “eat a healthy and well-balanced diet”, 58% with “avoid eating sugar” and 44% with “cut out fatty foods”.

• Lastly, 73.8% of participants would be willing to take a plant-based dietary supplement daily which targets the intestinal microbiota and with clinically proven efficacy, in order to prevent metabolic diseases.

² Population of 10¹⁴ different species of micro-organism (bacteria, fungi, viruses) living inside the human digestive tract.

Survey report is available on demand, at VALBIOTIS Coporate Communication Department.

* Survey conducted by Opinéa Institute Market Research & Intelligence for VALBIOTIS to evaluate the French population’s understanding of the intestinal microbiota.

Field survey conducted online from 4 to 8 October 2018, on a panel of 1,000 people representative of the French population, aged from 16 to 74 years old.

ABOUT VALBIOTIS

VALBIOTIS is a French Research & Development company committed to scientific innovation for preventing and combating metabolic diseases. Its products are made for manufacturers in the agri-food and pharmaceutical industries. VALBIOTIS particularly focuses on solutions to prevent type 2 diabetes, NASH (nonalcoholic steatohepatitis), obesity and cardiovascular diseases.

VALBIOTIS was founded in La Rochelle in early 2014 and has formed numerous partnerships with top academic centers in France and abroad, including La Rochelle University, the CNRS and Clermont Auvergne University located in Clermont-Ferrand. These partnerships have enabled VALBIOTIS to benefit from strong financial leverage, particularly thanks to experts and technical partners who support its projects. The Company has established three sites in France – Périgny, La Rochelle (17) and Riom (63) – and an American office in Boston (MA).

VALBIOTIS is a member of the “BPI Excellence” network and received the “Innovative Company” status accorded by BPI France. Valbiotis has also been awarded “Young Innovative Company” status and has received major financial support from the European Union for its research programs by obtaining support from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Find out more about VALBIOTIS:
http://valbiotis.com/en/

Name: VALBIOTIS
ISIN code: FR0013254851
Mnemonic code: ALVAL

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