Falling Walls People Falling Walls Science Summit 2023
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Felix Biotechnology

United States

Felix Biotechnology

Year Science Breakthrough 2019 ScienceBreakthrough | Venture 2019 2019 Winner | Venture Winner Science Start-ups (Falling Walls Venture)

Presented by
Natalie Jing Ma

Nominated by
Yale University

 

Felix Biotechnology was founded in 2019 to accelerate the deployment of novel biotherapeutics treating microbial infections, a growing threat in human health and beyond. It combines cutting-edge synthetic biology technologies from Yale and Berkeley into a pipeline that enables it to target, engineer, and deploy biotherapeutics against a wide range of bacterial infections, including those resistant to existing antibiotics.  Felix’s therapies overcome the challenges faced by traditional antibiotics by uniquely target the key mechanisms underlying bacterial antibiotic resistance, driving bacterial evolution to states of antibiotic susceptibility or reduced virulence, and ensuring a treatment option is always available.

NATALIE JING MA, FELIX BIOTECHNOLOGY

Felix’s lead clinical asset targets antibiotic-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa infections in cystic fibrosis patients and has already been deployed in 10 patients through non-dilutively funded compassionate use. In all cases, no adverse safety events were noted, bacterial load was reduced and in some cases eliminated, and remaining bacteria were susceptible to antibiotics. Building on this success, Felix is seeking tranched Series A funds to develop this asset commercially. Simultaneously, it is continuing development of an exciting pipeline targeting antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, and other undisclosed pathogens to once again make microbial infections a threat of the past.

Natalie Ma

FELIX BIOTECHNOLOGY

Natalie Ma is an entrepreneur working to build a better future for humanity on Earth and in space through biotechnology. She currently serves as the Director of Business Development at Felix Biotechnology, a phage technology company developing therapies to life-threatening, drug-resistant bacterial infections. Felix Bio’s precision therapy approach to phage not only kills pathogens and treats infections, but also drives evolution of remaining pathogen populations to become sensitive to antibiotics and less dangerous to humans. Prior to Felix, Natalie was a Blavatnik Fellow at Yale University, where she worked with faculty to develop the commercial value story of their discoveries and launch startups. Prior to this, she was a Consultant at ClearView Healthcare Partners, developing commercial strategies for therapies in oncology, rare disease, and infectious disease for biotech and pharma companies. 

Natalie holds a B.S. in Environmental Science and a PhD in Molecular Biology, with a particular focus on synthetic biology. In her free time, she pursues projects seeking to launch humankind into permanent space settlement and to understand the interplay between biological breakthroughs and global security, as well as cultivating a passion for foraged and wild food. 

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