News Fertility & pregnancy

Medtech start-up raises €1.75m to improve IVF efficacy

By Published On: January 5, 2024
Medtech start-up raises €1.75m to improve IVF efficacy

The Catalan start-up Manina Medtech has raised €1.75m in funding to improve IVF embryo implantation.

Manina, a Vall d’Hebron Research Institute spin-off, has closed its first round of pre-seed financing with Medex Partner as the lead investor, with investment from a consortium of business angels and support from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación.

Its device, known as SEEDCHRONY, utilises a sensor integrated into the transfer catheter to detect specific biomarkers and aims to enable an AI instantaneous assessment of the uterine environment for embryo implantation, allowing for the transfer to be made when the chances of success are highest.

Unlike the standard of care and the current solutions, the device claims to be more accurate; the measurements are done directly in the uterine fluid, and the results are immediate. 

Currently, 190 million people and one in six couples worldwide are affected by infertility, making them seek help in assisted reproduction treatments. In Spain, 10 per cent of births are due to these techniques.

In the case of IVF, these treatments can be long and exhausting processes. The success of IVF depends not only on the quality of the gametes and the generated embryo but also on whether the uterus is ready to receive the embryo.

Currently, the only available techniques for evaluating endometrial receptivity are laboratory methods requiring endometrial tissue biopsies and a long wait to obtain the results.

SEEDCHRONY, Manina argues, will represent a substantial change in the embryo transfer procedure and allow the uterine readiness evaluation immediately, avoiding biopsies and preserving the endometrial tissue.

The company estimates its device could increase IVF success rates by more than 20 per cent.

The start-up says it will use the new funding to complete clinical research in IVF patients, validate the usefulness of its technology and increase the success of assisted reproduction treatments.

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