Step 1: The Organism
Because spirulina cells are extraordinarily high in soluble protein (>60%), they can express much higher amounts of therapeutic proteins than any other food crop.
Illustration for The Organism
Accelerating Cures. Expanding Access.
Lumen’s unique drug development platform aims to radically reduce the time and investment needed for biologic drug development.
Doing What’s Never Been Done Before
Researchers around the world have long suspected that spirulina would be a valuable tool for making biologic drugs, if only it could be engineered. But these efforts failed for decades. Lumen was the first to achieve this breakthrough. This makes orally delivered biologics commercially viable for the first time.
Daily, Oral Biologic Drugs
We develop and manufacture biotherapeutics for disease targets that were previously inaccessible, due to the astonishingly high cost of traditional biomanufacturing. Now, for the first time, Lumen can make antibodies and other biologics at a cost that allows for daily, oral and topical delivery.
Our current programs target large markets where mechanisms of action are well proven and unmet medical need is clear.
How It Works
Step 2: Bioengineering
A gene encoding the therapeutic molecule (for example, an enzyme, antibody protein, or cytokine) is introduced into the spirulina chromosome.
Illustration for Bioengineering
Step 3: Production
The production system requires only water, salt, CO₂, and light, so it is inexpensive and highly scalable. The entire biomass is simply spray-dried to a fine powder.
Illustration for Production
Step 4: Delivery
This powder can be packed into dose-specific capsules. Most are shelf-stable at room temperature.
Illustration for Delivery
Better Tools Yield Better Outcomes
Lumen’s unique drug development platform aims to improve all three because of the proven safety of the expression host (spirulina as a food) and the speed at which we’re able to develop and manufacture new biologics.
The long safety records of both spirulina as a food and orally delivered protein therapeutics make our drugs less risky for study volunteers and patients. And, post-approval, our patented technology enables us to manufacture orally delivered biologic drugs at a cost per gram two to three orders of magnitude lower than traditional biomanufacturing. Other products can be made and sold as food ingredients or dietary supplements.
Taken together, these advantages enable new potential solutions for diseases and disorders that have long frustrated researchers hampered by the limitations of conventional drug development.
Our patented technology enables us to manufacture orally delivered biologic at a cost that’s two to three orders of magnitude lower than traditional biotech manufacturing systems.
We Like the Idea of Helping as Many People as Possible
In conventional drug development, it is common for companies to spend many years and huge sums of money developing extraordinarily expensive drugs intended to help relatively small groups of patients. Lumen focuses on the rapid development of biologics that will help hundreds of millions of people at costs far lower than previously thought possible.
How Far Does $1,000 in Manufacturing Costs Go?
Traditional technology yields enough for two patients.
VS
145x
More patients treated with Lumen’s technology
Lumen technology yields enough for 290 patients.