Annoviant Secures $2.99M NIH Funding for Pediatric Heart Valve Conduit

Atlanta-based Annoviant™, a trailblazer in the medical technology sector, has been awarded a substantial $2.99 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to advance its innovative TxGuard™ pulmonary valved conduit. This financial boost, a SBIR Phase 2b award, is set to expedite the product's development and market entry, marking a crucial step in Annoviant's goal to revolutionize pediatric cardiac care.

The TxGuard™ technology, patented by Annoviant, represents a significant leap in the treatment of congenital heart disease (CHD), the most common birth defect and a significant contributor to infant mortality. CHD affects approximately 40,000 newborns in the United States each year and impacts 1.35 million globally. The United States alone is home to an estimated 2.9 million CHD patients, highlighting the pressing need for advanced treatment options.

The TxGuard™ pulmonary valved conduit is designed to address the limitations of existing commercial devices, offering superior clinical benefits such as resistance to calcification, thrombosis, and infection, as well as enhanced compatibility with the patient's own cells. This state-of-the-art solution promises to reduce the frequency of surgeries required throughout a patient's life, thereby improving outcomes and reducing healthcare costs.

Annoviant's Co-Founder and CEO, Ajay Houde, expressed his enthusiasm for the grant, stating, "This additional funding from the NIH, along with the support of our investors, is a testament to our commitment to life-saving innovation." The TxGuard™ technology has the potential to transform the lives of pediatric CHD patients who often face a lifetime of multiple surgeries, with the associated healthcare costs running into billions for the U.S. industry.

Dr. Naren Vyavahare, Annoviant's CTO and Co-Founder, emphasized the importance of developing medical devices that can grow with pediatric patients, stating, "Our fifteen years of research have culminated in the TxGuard™ technology, which not only resists thrombosis and calcification but also promotes cell integration and remodeling. With the NIH's support, we are poised to refine our pulmonary valved conduits to better serve CHD patients."

Founded in 2018, Annoviant™ is dedicated to creating transformative medical devices that enhance and save lives. The company's mission is driven by the personal experiences of its founders and their dedication to improving the lives and treatment outcomes of CHD patients. The TxGuard™ technology is at the core of Annoviant's mission, offering a patented breakthrough designed to heal and adapt alongside patients with life-threatening CHD and other soft tissue conditions. This suite of patented devices aims to tackle a range of clinical challenges and reduce healthcare costs by minimizing the need for repeated surgeries. Annoviant collaborates with a wide network of research institutions and industry partners to bring its innovative solutions to fruition.