CPHI Pharma Awards 2023 – Accelerating Innovation Winners: React4Life

After another year of impressive nominations for the CPHI Pharma Awards our winners were announced at CPHI Barcelona in October. In this series of interviews, we speak to the teams behind the award-winning projects, concepts, and technologies. 

Please can you give some background to React4Life and the aims and goals of the company?

React4life, founded in 2016, is a pioneering Italian biotechnology company with a mission to revolutionise medical research and drug development. Co-founded by Silvia Scaglione and Maurizio Aiello, React4life strives to translate biomedical advancements into practical solutions for society. The company's primary goal is to address the challenges in drug testing and disease understanding that persist in current medical research.

Over 80% of drugs fail clinical tests, so the average time for a drug to come to market is about 12 years, leading to a cost of about US$1 billion (for every single drug). This problem is mainly due to a wrong drug selection in the pre-clinical phase.

Currently, scientists are missing reliable disease models to advance research, as the available models are unable to capture the complexity of human disease. 

To address this urgent need for advanced in vitro alternatives, more clinically relevant and closer to human physiology than animal models, React4life patented, developed, and industrialised MIVO® Multi In Vitro Organ – an innovative organ-on-chip technology able to emulate human organs in the lab.

MIVO® represents a step forward to all the currently used tools for in vitro tests, as well as compared to the animal model, due to its unique capacity to model the dynamic behaviour of the human organism in a relevant 3D-sized environment. 

It improves the reliability of the testing outcome and can be used for advanced drug testing assays, discovering new therapeutic approaches, and basic research without involving animal use. 

You won the ‘Accelerating Innovation’ prize for your MIVO® technology – please can you tell us a little more about this and how the technology came about?

With over 15 years of dedicated research, React4Life is at the forefront of scientific innovation, channeling its efforts to transform biomedical advancements into tangible benefits for mankind. In the last two years, our unwavering commitment has been directed toward the revolutionary application of the patented MIVO® technology in different fields from nutraceutical, cosmetics, and medical device to the most challenging oncology and immune-oncology fields. This strategic pursuit not only addresses the limitations of current pre-clinical phases but also aligns with ethical considerations by substantially reducing reliance on animal testing, ushering in a new era of more predictive results within human models.

What challenges did you encounter in developing this technology and how did you overcome them? 

In developing the MIVO® technology, we faced various challenges that demanded innovative solutions and strategic approaches. Understanding the complexities of human biology and the dynamic interactions between different organs was crucial. Overcoming these challenges required a multidisciplinary approach, involving experts in tissue engineering, biomaterials, and biology.

React4life is committed to continuous research and development, fostering collaborations with leading institutions and experts in relevant fields. Iterative testing and refinement of the technology are also informed by customer feedback and suggestions. Our journey involves staying at the forefront of scientific advancements and adapting our approach based on ongoing insights and expertise.

The organ-on-a-chip model is key for developing personalised therapies, could you please explain some of these advantages, and how this trickles down to the patient? 

In the MIVO® organ-on-a-chip, the ability to host and culture patient-derived biopsies is a game-changer, offering a more precise representation of the specific conditions of an individual patient. Consider an oncology patient: by using a piece of their own cancer tissue and putting in circulation their immune cells, we can potentially study an immunotherapy tailored to the patient’s unique situation. With this approach, it's possible to identify the most effective drug for a specific cancer of a specific patient at that particular moment. This level of precision is paramount in developing personalised therapies, enabling targeted drug testing, and expediting drug discovery. 

For patients, this translates into more effective and tailored treatments, minimising adverse effects, and ultimately improving overall treatment outcomes. The organ-on-a-chip technology thus brings the promise of personalised medicine closer to reality, reshaping the landscape of patient care.

How can this technology be useful in the treatment of rare diseases? 

The MIVO® technology has a considerable potential in advancing the treatment of rare diseases by accurately reproducing the pathological conditions. Studying rare diseases presents inherent complications, ranging from the time and costs required to understand the underlying mechanisms to the expenses associated with supporting the development of potential therapies. Given the exceptional nature of rare diseases and their limited knowledge, having access to a controlled system, like MIVO®, can help in gaining better insights into the mechanisms behind the disease, advancing research and disease understanding. The MIVO® organ-on-chip could prove beneficial in terms of both time and cost efficiency in the study of these rare conditions.

What does winning the award mean to you and how will it help you as a company?

Winning the Accelerating Innovation award is a testament to React4life's commitment to advancing scientific research and transforming drug development. It recognises the company's role in reshaping in vitro testing and its potential to significantly impact patient outcomes. This recognition enhances React4life's standing in the industry, fostering collaborations and opening avenues for further growth.

Can we expect to see further innovation from React4Life, in this technology and other projects? 

Absolutely, React4life remains dedicated to ongoing innovation. The company continues to refine the MIVO® technology based on our client’s feedbacks, exploring new applications in different research areas and pushing the boundaries of biotechnological advancements.

About Maurizio Aiello, CEO of React4life

Maurizio Aiello, Co-Founder, and CEO of React4life, is a visionary leader with a multidisciplinary background. Holding an MSc Degree in Physics, Maurizio's expertise spans molecular dynamics, nuclear physics, fluid dynamics, and network security. With a long-term vision, Maurizio plays a pivotal role at React4life, overseeing business internationalisation, lobbying efforts, and the development of innovative new products. His international experience positions him as a key driver in executing strategies and fostering innovation within the company.