Plymouth, Mich. – Bosch Ventures, the corporate venture capital company of the Bosch Group, completed an investment in the Series A funding round of Applyo Jena GmbH. The Germany-based company is an innovative freeze-drying technology provider, that offers significant advantages over traditional liquid reagents, e.g. extended shelf-life and ease of use. “Diagnostics are increasingly shifting to the point of care and even towards home testing, enabling faster, more accessible, and patient-centric solutions that enhance early detection and treatment efficiency. Applyo’s pioneering approach opens exciting opportunities for providers of point of care systems to transport and store sensitive reagents and enzymes without continuous cool chains and therefore enabling more sustainable supply chains”, says Dr. Ingo Ramesohl, Managing Director of Bosch Ventures.
Redefining freeze-drying
Applyo Jena is specialized in the development and production of lyophilized reagents and enzymes, so called “lyo beads”. Throughout the process of lyophilization, a form of freeze-drying, water is removed from sensitive reagents and enzymes and beads are formed. This offers significant advantages over traditional liquid reagents, including extended shelf life, stability at ambient temperature, and ease of use.
Applyo Jena has developed a proprietary and unique lyophilization technology to produce precise lyo beads with homogenous quality. Compared to other processes, liquid nitrogen is not required. That not only lifts the scalability of lyo beads production to a new level but also unlocks new markets in life science and pharmaceuticals. This breakthrough approach is redefining the possibilities of freeze-drying and taps into a fast-growing global market that is valued at more than 6bn US Dollar based on a recent report by Research Nester.
Dr. Hanno Hermann, Co-founder of Applyo Jena, stated, "After relocation to our new laboratory, the funding from Bosch Ventures and LBBW VC now opens the door to bring our innovative lyophilized reagent solutions to a broader global market." Apart from internationalization and further expansion of the global distribution network, Applyo Jena will use the Series A funding round to enter new markets such as pharmaceuticals, meeting the global demand for stable, ready-to-use reagents in diagnostics, pharmaceuticals, and life sciences.
The investment round led by Bosch Ventures, together with LBBW VC, underscores the commitment to supporting groundbreaking technologies that advance the fields of diagnostics and life sciences improving people’s quality of life.
