Medtech Occuity to enter Boehringer Ingelheim start-up programme

Occuity, the fast-growing Reading-based Medtech  has signed a preliminary agreement with world leading research-driven pharmaceutical company, Boehringer Ingelheim, to enter its start-ups acceleration program, to develop exploit Occuity's patented glucose monitoring technology to help animals suffering from diabetes.

Occuity's handheld technology, works by shining a low power beam of light into the eye and detecting the changes in refractive index in the aqueous humour that correlate closely with changes in its glucose concentration.

Currently being developed for use in humans, the technology within the device can take measurements in a few seconds. Since it is completely non-contact, it’s use for supporting the treatment of diabetes in veterinary environments is appealing.

Occuity CEO, Dan Daly, said: “We have long thought about the potential application of our technology in veterinary. Diabetes in dogs and cats can occur at any age – most commonly at older than 6 years of age for cats and usually 4-14 years of age for dogs – just like diabetes in humans, it’s a growing problem.

"I am delighted to have signed this agreement and look forward to progressing the project with the team at Boehringer Ingelheim.”

Boehringer Ingelheim Open innovation digital Director, Frederic Dimur, added: “As part of our startup program Synapse Acceleration® we are delighted to work with Occuity which has been selected for the 6th edition. We are looking forward to exploring both technical feasibility and veterinary usability tackling the challenge of diabetes management in pets.”