2023
UCC Spin-out Company CergenX Raises €1.2 Million in Funding
Cork based MedTech company CergenX, which is developing ground breaking technology to screen newborns for brain injury, has raised an additional €1.2 million in funding.
The funding will support the ongoing development of the Newborn Brain Screener. The company will now expand its team by recruiting highly skilled professionals in AI, Product Management and Software Engineering. By attracting top talent in these critical areas, Cergenx aims to build on its strong momentum to date and accelerate the product's path to market.
This €1.2 million was raised via a private financing round, with a small number of high net worth individuals investing, along with Enterprise Ireland, a previous investor. The company has raised over €2 million to date.
Cergenx, a spin out from the Infant Centre in UCC, was founded by Jason Mowles (CEO), Professor Geraldine Boylan (CSO) and Sean Griffin (CTO) in December 2021. Cergenx is developing a Newborn Brain Screener to screen all newborns for signs of brain injury. The product uses AI to allow non-specialists to screen newborns for brain injury in less than 15 minutes. Early identification of at-risk new-borns will enable early intervention to help improve outcomes.
Chief Executive, Jason Mowles said, "This latest investment not only validates the immense potential of our new-born brain screener but also demonstrates the confidence our investors have in our vision. These funds will enable us to complete the development of the newborn brain screener and launch the product pilots next year. This is incredibly exciting and rewarding work and we have a real opportunity to make a major difference in a vital area of newborn healthcare.”
A prototype device is already available and the device is scheduled to undergo regulatory approval next year, followed by a release in 2025.
Brain injury affects 5 in every 1,000 new-borns but the actual figure is higher, as brain injury in newborns is often clinically invisible and brain activity, unlike other vital signs, is not routinely monitored. As a result, many newborns with brain injury are not diagnosed at birth when intervention is most effective. There are treatments and interventions available and the sooner they start, the better the outcome is for the infant. Cergenx's ultimate ambition is for the newborn brain screener to become a standard of care for all infants at birth.
Electroencephalography (EEG) monitoring is the current gold standard for assessing brain function in newborns, however, EEG’s can be expensive, complex to read, time consuming to set up, and very often there is a shortage of trained specialists available to interpret the results. It is therefore not possible to test all newborn babies after they are born. In fact, significantly fewer than 1% of all newborns have an EEG.
Professor Geraldine Boylan commented, “The device will help answer a very simple but important question for medical staff which is “Should I be worried about this baby’s brain or not”.”
The impact of undiagnosed or delayed diagnosis means newborns may not be offered early interventions and treatments. This can lead to significant neurodevelopmental impairments and can have huge impacts on both babies and their families. The ongoing costs to health care systems runs into the billions, both from ongoing lifetime medical costs and potential legal costs, putting increased strain on healthcare systems worldwide.
The company has identified a considerable market for the new-born brain screener. The product has many potential use cases. There are approximately 140 million births worldwide annually. The initial target markets for the company are in the EU, UK and the US where there are more than 8 million births per annum with a market size in excess of €1 billion annually.