WIREDGOV

Jellagen Pty Ltd – the only company in the UK to provide collagen from jellyfish for the biotech industry - is gearing up for an international launch next month when it joins the Welsh Government delegation to Medica - Europe’s largest Med-Tech event.

Jellagen, which has just consolidated all its operations - including its R&D centre and HQ - in Pembrokeshire Science and Technology Park, will be part of the largest contingent from Wales ever to exhibit at Medica in Düsseldorf.

Jellagen supplies collagen for the medical device, regenerative medicine, cell culture reagent and in vitro diagnostic markets. It aims to be Europe's first provider of pharma grade, GMP and ISO certified Type II and Type V jellyfish collagen as a raw material, and one of only a few providers globally.

Collagen is used in the manufacture of biomaterials due to its ability to form strong fibres and is used as gels, scaffolds and membranes for a number of medical applications ranging from wound care and cartilage repair through to bone grafts.

Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Alex Mühlhölzl said the company, which has benefited from business development support from the Welsh Government, was delighted to have the opportunity to attend Medica and promote its business on the Welsh Government stand.

He said:

“Medica is the perfect platform to promote our novel and sustainable collagen products to a large and targeted audience. The trade fair attracts more than 120,000 delegates, providing us with access to a large international audience who are focussed on leading edge developments and products in the Med-Tech arena.”

“It’s a great opportunity for us to promote our products and capability on an international stage. We are actively seeking customers for our medical grade collagen products as well as collaborators for development of medical device research, including the application of additional collagen analogues.”

Economy Minister Edwina Hart said:

“Medica is one of the most important life science trade events that the Welsh Government supports and once again we will have a record attendance from Wales. I am delighted that Jellagen is using the event to launch its innovative products to an international audience and wish all the companies every success.”

Jellagen – a start-up founded in May 2013 - has already attracted substantial investment and funding to further develop and commercialise its products. This includes a £550,000 equity investment in April (led by Finance Wales, with co-investment by members of Xenos, the Wales business angel network and SWAIN), a SMART Scotland award in 2013 and more recently a SMART grant of just under £100,000 from Innovate UK.

Co-founder and CEO Andrew Mearns Spragg said the funding had helped boost business and consolidate their operations on one site:

“While we continue to work closely with our strategic partner Collagen Solutions Plc in Glasgow, which produces our medical grade collagen, our new location in Wales provides the perfect base from which to harvest the jellyfish. It also facilitates development of new R&D collaborations with Swansea and Cardiff Universities and to launch our new products and promote our brand.”