Mestastop Solutions raises Rs 1.3 cr in seed round led by CIIE.CO

Biotechnology startup Mestastop Solutions raised Rs 1.3 crore in a seed funding round, led by CIIE.CO. The round also saw participation from IKP Knowledge Park and Angels. Mestastop will use the funding to scale its AI-based platform METSCAN, which characterises cancer cells using patient data samples and their assay panels to understand the cell behaviour. It will further be utilised for running PoC animal model studies to validate proof of concept for cancer drug discovery and repurposing.

Founded in 2018, the Bengaluru-based company has a cross-functional team, trained in discovery, diagnostics and AI, supported by the state-of-the-art infrastructure. Dr Arnab Roy Chowdhury and his wife Dr Debabani Roy Chowdhury are the brains behind Mestastop which looks at revolutionising cancer treatment.

Cancer metastasis, a complex biological process, is responsible for 90% of cancer-related deaths. According to Emergen Research 2020 report, the global metastatic cancer treatment market is projected to be worth $111.16 billion by 2027. Mestastop is creating a cancer metastasis-focused platform which uses wet lab biology and predictive analytics to identify and distinguish unique properties of metastasis and leverage them for drug discovery and patient treatment.

Dr Roy Chowdhury, founder & CEO, Mestastop, said, “An evolutionary disease like cancer cannot be holistically targeted without targeting metastasis, a process that is complex and is yet to be fully understood. We have successfully created tools and platforms to decipher this biology, translated it with patient data, and then into animal models completing our first phase.”

Currently, the company has initiated testing patient data samples as well as animal model validation. In addition to this, one international patent has been filed and another provisional patent  is currently being drafted.

“Globally, there are several startups focusing on cancer diagnostics and drug discovery. Mestastop is creating a niche for itself using assay and genetically engineered cell-based approaches to develop an AI-based platform to predict metastasis and we are delighted to partner with them on this journey. We believe that their platform will play an instrumental role in changing cancer treatment in India and the world around,” Said Chintan Antani, AVP, Seed Investments, CIIE.CO.

Mestastop has developed three proprietary platforms - METAssay, METSCAN, and METVivo to unravel metastasis drug discovery and predictive diagnostics. The company is currently working on validating its platforms on a larger sample of patient tumours that will empower its IP creation. Previously the company also received an investment from Vistari Ventures and Mumbai Angels.