Swedish private-owned company Lipid Technologies Provider (LTP) yesterday announced the signing of a substantial investment agreement with DSM Venturing, part of the DSM Group head-quartered in Heerlen, the Netherlands, and active worldwide in life science products, performance materials and industrial chemicals.
LTP develops, produces and commercialises lipid-based ingredients and formulations for functional skin care products food products and drug delivery systems. The company said it has chosen to partner with other companies in order to aid the development of pharmaceutical delivery systems based on its lipid technology platform. Financial details were not disclosed by the companies.
Currently the company's main goal is to develop lipid carriers - combinations of lipids that add functionality to a product, either as a carrier of bioactive substances or as an agent/carrier creating a specific physical function in food and skin care.
Although LTP's main focus is on the development of functional food ingredients and formulations, it is also active in lipid-based skin care ingredients. LTP's lipids and systems for skin care and cosmetics are destined for use in proprietary skin care products, ingredients and technology and functional creams.
For the proprietary skin care products market LTP has developed Galactobase, an emollient cream based on a patent-protected technology. The product's properties include once daily application, resistance to water and skin repair. Marketed as a non-irritant moisturising cream for dry skin treatment, Galactobase is currently on the market in Sweden.
Meanwhile, for the ingredients and technology markets the company has developed a range of ingredients based on galactolipids which aims to achieve sustained release and reduced local irritation for specific active components.
According to LTP, the concept of the use of lipid technology for functional creams is based on lipid systems being able to influence the properties of active components that are incorporated into the cream. This includes applications where improved activity is desirable, as well as reduced local irritation or lower systemic absorption.
In the future LTP's aims involve the development of new biologically active cream systems based on natural galactolipid ingredients which it says would give improved performance to products like antiperspirant agents, insect repellents, depilating agents or UV absorbents.
"We welcome the investment by DSM Venturing and we are convinced that it represents a significant opportunity for the further development of LTP's technologies in several promising areas. DSM's technological and industrial experience will make an important contribution to the commercialisation of LTP's product portfolio," commented LTP directors Jörgen Quick and Bengt Herslöf.
DSM Venturing is part of DSM's Venturing and Business Development business group and was formed in 2001. It is focused on direct investments in early stage companies in DSM's strategic growth fields: food ingredients, pharmaceutical intermediates and performance materials. It also participates in several venture capital funds active in these fields.