The portfolio of SIF RVC has seven Skolkovo residents

LLC MIP-11 of Biopharmcluster North - a portfolio company of Seed Investment Fund RVC – became a resident of Skolkovo Centre for the development and commercialization of new technologies with its project The Development and commercialization of innovative medicines and cellular technologies for the treatment of hepatitis C.

MIP-11 conducts research to develop innovative drugs to treat hepatitis C, including an experimental drug AVR-560 that has a direct antiviral effect against hepatitis C virus (HCV). AVR-560 blocks the penetration of the virus into healthy liver cells and prevents them from being infected. Currently the drug is at late stage of preclinical testing, and it is expected that the drug will have a low incidence of side effects and almost complete absence of contraindication.

The current situation with drugs against hepatitis C can be described as unsatisfactory. There are no drugs on the market that would completely cure the patient. Treatment with interferon and ribavirin can only achieve 40-50% of cases to reduce viral attack. In this case, the virus remains in the body and is free to continue infecting healthy cells after the therapy.

Successful implementation of the project will allow creating of a new domestic product which will be complementary to the recently derived drugs from the class of protease inhibitors, and will be able to make a significant contribution to the development of interferon-free drugs therapy of hepatitis C – the General Director of MIP-11 Oleg Korzinov says.

Alex Teleshev, the director of SIF RVC: MIP-11 is the seventh portfolio company from the RVC Seed Investment Fund which received the status of Skolkovo resident. A few of our companies have applied for too, and we expect to hear about new residents soon.