Genetico Genetics Center for Genetics and Regenerative Medicine

The Genetico laboratories are equipped with high-throughput sequencers and the latest generation of robotic equipment and enable advanced genetic research required for medicine, genomics and proteomics.

A high-tech NGS laboratory was opened at the Genetico Center in 2017. Laboratory-based genome sequencing studies are the fastest and most affordable, competing in cost with foreign laboratories. The center almost 2.5 times reduced the cost of the NGS study and 3 times accelerated the time for decoding the genome, instead of 90 days - 1 month.

Performance indicators

2023:55% loss reduction to RUB 35.17 mln

The Genetico Center for Genetics and Reproductive Medicine in 2023 earned 346.1 million rubles in revenue, which is 10.7% more than the revenue a year ago at 312.6 million rubles. The company's net loss decreased by 54.9% - from 77.97 million to 35.17 million rubles. Such data are contained in the reporting under RAS, published at the end of March 2024.

Revenue growth at Genetico was associated with the development of the direction of genetic screening of chromosomal abnormalities ("Embryotest"), as well as with exome sequencing services and an increase in the number of tender sales.

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The report also reports that the loss from sales of Genetico in 2023 decreased by 2.9 times compared to 2022 and amounted to 15.14 million rubles.. At the end of 2023, EBITDA became positive and amounted to 29.09 million rubles.

The center also noted that Genetico's capital and reserves in 2023 grew by more than 30% thanks to the successful IPO on the Moscow Exchange. The listing also helped reduce the debt burden by 44.3%. The company's net debt decreased by 52.3% and amounted to 93.9 million rubles as of the end of 2023.

Speaking about the most important events of 2023, Genetico noted the launch of a new biotechnological direction - the development of gene therapeutics for the treatment of orphan diseases. The first stages of development of candidate drugs for the therapy of eye diseases, hereditary cardiomyopathies and neurodegenerative diseases were started. The Prenetix test system developed by the company (NIPT) received permission from Roszdravnadzor to be used as a medical device for detecting chromosomal abnormalities of the fetus in the mother's blood. Other Genetico test systems are expected to be approved by the end of 2024 - early 2025, the center said.^[1]

History

2023: Moscow Exchange IPO announcement

At the end of March 2023, the Human Stem Cell Institute (ISCH) announced the upcoming withdrawal of its subsidiary Genetico to the Moscow Stock Exchange. As part of the IPO, it is planned to place 10 million shares among investors, which will amount to 12% of the company's capital as a result of the placement. The organizer of the placement is ALOR, the co-organizer is IVA Partners. The date and price of the placement will be determined in the near future at the company's board of directors, the ISKCH press service said on March 30, 2023.

Genetico funds raised during the IPO are going to be used to develop genetic services in Russia, enter foreign markets, register its own test systems, as well as create candidate gene therapy drugs for the treatment of orphan diseases.

The company of the Human Stem Cell Institute announced an IPO at the Moscow Exchange

This is the first company on the Russian stock market in the field of genetic research. Genetico's IPO is an opportunity for private investors to invest in the growing market for genetic research in health care, said Arthur Isaev, chairman of the board of directors of Genetico.

According to the director of Genetico Vladimir Kaimonov, the market for medical genetics in Russia by March 2023 is at an early stage of development. The genetic studies that the company conducts are prescribed by doctors and medical centers for the treatment of infertility, for the diagnosis and prevention of genetic diseases, for the choice of treatments for patients. Basically, these studies are paid for by the patients themselves or charitable foundations, he noted.

However, over the past 10 years, more countries will include genetic research in national clinical guidelines and in the public health insurance system. Russian patients will not be an exception, and the market for public procurement of genetic services is waiting for growth. In addition, in recent years, the costs of treating rare diseases have been actively growing in the country, they already amount to tens of billions of rubles a year. This is an additional incentive for health care to invest in the prevention, diagnosis and prevention of genetic diseases, "added Kaymonov.[2]

2020: RVC sells stake in Genetico

On November 26, 2020, the Russian Venture Company (RVC) announced the sale of its entire stake (17.79%) Genetico after investing 180 million rubles in this center for genetics and reproductive medicine. The deal was concluded with the founder and CEO of Genetico Arthur Isaev.

The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed. RVC said the deal was profitable for the company's bio-fund, which owned a stake in Genetico.

It is specified that in the future the RVC Biological Fund package will be divided and its final owners will be the ISKCH group (IceGen-2 LLC) - 10% and Artur Isaev - 7.79%.

RVC sold a stake (17.79%) in Genetico

According to Mikhail Fedotov, director of RVC subsidiary funds, investing in Genetico, the RVC bio-fund focused not only on investment attractiveness, but also on the socio-economic effects of the project in a breakthrough direction, which includes genomic technologies.

One of our tasks as a specialized foundation was to support the biomedical project in the early stages of its development. Today Genetico is a sustainable company with a flexible product strategy and a good ability to adapt to current conditions, so the fund's withdrawal from the project is timely, he stressed.

Artur Isaev noted that the RVC bio-fund supported Genetico in the early phase not only with investments, but also in developing a strategy, expertise of corporate governance, attracting resources and communications with other development institutions. Now the company is trying to focus on directions in diagnosis and screening, which can give an increase in economic efficiency and cost reduction for the Russian budget, and for healthcare - a faster and more accurate diagnosis and increase the effectiveness of treatment, he added.^[3]

2018: Skolkovo Foundation Collective Use Center

In July 2018, the Genetico Center for Genetics and Reproductive Medicine received accreditation from the Skolkovo Foundation as a Center for Collective Use (CCP).

According to the agreement signed with the Skolkovo Foundation, the Genetico Center will provide residents of the Biomedical Cluster with services for genome sequencing (NGS), analysis of single cells and their specific activity, chromosomal micromatric analysis, as well as genetic research to find mutations and bioinformatic research.

To pay for the services of the Central Control Committee "Genetico," residents can use micro-grants from the Skolkovo Fund for a total of up to 4 million rubles a year.

2017: Roche Diagnostics contract

A subsidiary of the Human Stem Cell Institute, Genetico Center for Genetics and Reproductive Medicine and Roche Diagnostics have signed a contract for the supply of equipment for scientific research.

In 2017, the Genetico Center plans to open the first laboratory in Russia for research and transfer of technologies in the field of prenatal diagnostics. According to international experts and the results of extensive clinical studies conducted on more than 22,000 women, the technology that the Genetico Center with Roche Diagnostics is implementing is by far the most reliable. The project is carried out with the financial support of the Industry Development Fund of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, ASI and Skolkovo.

See also: Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis

2016: The Industrial Development Fund will allocate 300 million rubles to the Genetico Center

In June 2016, it became known that the Industrial Development Fund (FRP) will allocate a loan of 300 million rubles to Genetico Center for Genetics and Regenerative Medicine LLC (Genetico Center) for the introduction of new technologies in the field of genetic diagnostics.

Within the framework of the project, the total cost of which is more than 600 million rubles, on the basis of the Genetico Center, the production of DNA tests based on chips (microarrays) and next-generation sequencing for prenatal diagnosis of chromosomal diseases, for the detection and prevention of hereditary, oncological and other serious diseases will be organized.

The Genetico Center will open and equip new laboratories, and will become one of several genetic diagnostic centers in Europe, the best in terms of equipment and uniqueness of the technologies used. This will give Russia the opportunity to export genetic diagnostics services to neighboring countries and Europe.

With the high quality of DNA tests, the Genetico laboratory plans to reduce the cost of imported components of the tests and make them more available for inclusion in the compulsory medical insurance program.

According to the founder of the Genetico Center Artur Isaev: "Since 2012, we have already invested more than 300 million rubles in the Genetico project. Of these, about 100 million rubles are investments by the Biofund of the Russian Venture Company. The work of the first laboratories of the Genetico Center was launched between 2012 and 2015. Preimplantation genetic diagnostics, which increase the effectiveness of IVF, and microfluidics technologies, which give high accuracy of the reference level and low test cost, microarray and other technologies, are actively introduced into healthcare practice. The experience of recent decades shows that the increase in health care costs occurs precisely in terms of the increase in spending on orphan, rare and hereditary diseases. These "rare" diseases not only bring suffering and high disability and mortality, but also shape the rising costs of health care in all countries. In Russia, up to 40-50% of regional budgets can be spent on these groups of diseases. Technologies for genetic diagnosis and prevention of hereditary diseases are a modern tool for improving health care efficiency. We see huge potential interest in the genetic testing industry from ordinary people and the state. The sooner these tools begin to be put into practice, the more effective the economy will be. "

Technologies and DNA tests of the Genetico Center are aimed at the prevention, prevention of development, early detection and treatment of severe hereditary diseases. In practical health care, the use of such methods will lead to an increase in fertility, a decrease in the number of congenital malformations, a decrease in child mortality and a decrease in morbidity.

One of the technologies being implemented - prenatal screening of pregnant women for DNA in the blood of the expectant mother - is the most effective and safest to date. It increases the accuracy of diagnosing chromosomal pathologies (for example, Down syndrome) by more than 100 times compared to traditional prenatal screening methods.

Oncotests, which are being developed by the Genetico Center, allow on the one hand to identify the risks of cancer and begin timely prevention and treatment. On the other hand, patients with cancer and their doctors will receive a report on the basis of which it is possible to select drugs taking into account the individual genetic characteristics of the patient and tumor.

More than 6,000 hereditary diseases are known, more than 25% of which are not diagnosed by standard methods. Diagnostics using Genetico tests will allow searching for mutations in almost all genes responsible for hereditary diseases, and carry out molecular diagnostics at more affordable prices with a significant increase in the number of genes analyzed.

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