700039Market assessment for innovative functional food productsClosedGRD Proof of MarketInnovate UKThis project addresses the need to understand the market opportunities that are made possible by a new antibody technology being developed by VHsquared. The technology enables cost effective development and production of VHH domain fragment antibodies that are engineered to resist the effects of digestion. This opens up the opportunity to include specific antibody-like fragments as ingredients in food products or their use as dietary additives and supplements, as well as orally-delivered pharmaceutical agents. Antibodies that are used medically have become multi-billion pound products and represent the fastest growing class of therapeutic molecule in the pharmaceutical sector. To date, however, antibodies have been limited by the need for their administration by direct injection, the high cost of their production, and their sensitivity to degradation when administered orally. The VHsquared technology is set to change this and shift the use of antibody technology from the low volume/high cost pharmaceutical sector towards the higher volume/lower cost end occupied by functional and medical food and lower cost pharmaceutical products. This will dramatically expand the utility of antibodies and create a raft of new opportunities. This project seeks to map the way forward for VHsquared’s first products by creating a better understanding of the market dynamics, competitive forces and prevailing regulatory constraints.