Cambridge University spin-out competing for top EU award

Cambridge University spin-out competing for top EU award

Dr Husheer and Dr Chausiaux, Co-Founders of Cambridge Temperature Concepts

Cambridge, 4th of December 2009 (EMBARGOED). The aspiring technology venture company Cambridge Temperature Concepts, will represent British universities at a European academic enterprise awards event this month, recognizing their success to date developing and launching their product - DuoFertility. Founded by entrepreneurial young scientists who graduated from Cambridge University, the company has created the DuoFertility system to help the one in six European couples who face difficulty in falling pregnant.

Cambridge Temperature Concepts has been nominated for the ACES Academic Enterprise Awards 2009 in the life science category, rewarding individuals who have created a successful spin-out company based on ideas developed at universities and public research institutes in Europe. The award would add to an already impressive list of awards and business plan competition wins at collegiate, university and national level. The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) has also provided several development grants to help CTC bring DuoFertility to market, and the company is now funded by local investors the Cambridge Angels, Cambridge Capital Group, Downing Enterprise and other individuals and has raised more than £750,000 over three rounds of investment.

The inventor, Dr. Husheer, CEO of Cambridge Temperature Concepts, applied his knowledge of electronics to create the product - “My research was in the area of instrumentation for use in particle accelerators; however I saw a problem in the area of fertility with much greater social impact, and formed a team of researchers and graduate students to solve this.”

Since receiving their first major financial support in late 2007 the company has developed, tested, and gained medical approvals for their first product, DuoFertility, and begun selling this directly to consumers. “Even by the standards of Cambridge, Europe's largest biotech cluster, to go from seed funding to selling an approved medical product in just 18 months is a real achievement” says Dr Jonathan Milner company chairman for CTC, and the CEO of AbCam. Dr Milner is himself a veteran entrepreneur having founded AbCam in the late 90’s and grown his company to a publicly-listed entity worth over £90 million. His mentorship and support of CTC is an excellent example of how the Cambridge technopole fosters new businesses and jobs for the United Kingdom. NESTA – the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts recently stated that the Cambridge technopole has a net present value of £57.5 billion for UK gross domestic product (GDP).

With the support of the local business community CTC has now developed an exceedingly precise physiological temperature monitor with potential for applications across a spectrum of human healthcare, veterinary and sports science applications. The DuoFertility system uses this temperature monitoring technology to provide the most precise and convenient fertility monitor available today. The product is now in use by hundreds of couples throughout the UK and Europe, with several pregnancies being reported each week. As Dr. Oriane Chausiaux, Chief Scientific Officer, says “I might have remained a bench scientist, but there is no way I could have had my research touch so many people’s lives, so quickly”.

The hard-working team is looking forward to the award night, and greatly appreciates the encouragement that prizes such as the European nomination offer to a start-up company, with Dr Husheer adding that “We are delighted to gain the public recognition of our work that the ACES awards present. Being recognised as one of the top life sciences spin-outs by UK and European commentators, demonstrates the innovation and appeal of our DuoFertility monitor”.

Press contact for further information is Oriane Chausiaux. Email Oriane@temperatureconcepts.com Tel 01223 437 007

Notes to the editors

About Cambridge Temperature Concepts

Cambridge Temperature Concepts was founded in 2006 by a team of postgraduates from the University of Cambridge. Having won multiple awards and business plan competitions at a collegiate, university and national level, CTC is now funded by the Cambridge Angels, Cambridge Capital Group, Downing Enterprise and private investors. The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) has also provided several development grants to the Company.

The first round of funding in January 2007 raised £250,000 and was followed by a second round in September 2008 for £300,000. The third round in February 2009 raised a further £200,000, at which point the company had already reached a valuation of £3.8 million. Further financing is presently underway to fund global marketing of the DuoFertility product.

About DuoFertility

DuoFertility exists to help couples get pregnant naturally and conveniently by providing the best available fertility monitoring solution backed up with personalised help and support from of a team of world-class fertility experts.

DuoFertility is the most precise and convenient way to predict and detect a woman’s moment of maximum fertility. It works by unobtrusively measuring the woman’s body temperature 20,000 times a day with extreme accuracy. This method is scientifically proven to detect ovulation^? with 99% accuracy. DuoFertility avoids having to wake up early to measure temperature manually or having to repeat inconvenient and disagreeable urine tests. The data gathered by DuoFertility can optionally be displayed and analysed on a computer at home and can also help doctors provide the best medical advice to the couple. Because DuoFertility is entirely natural and non-intrusive, it can be used in conjunction with any other method that relies on natural intercourse to maximise a couple’s chances of success each and every monthly cycle.

DuoFertility is manufactured in the UK and priced at £495, a fraction of the cost of invasive procedures such as IVF. This includes the sensor and handheld device, along with unlimited fertility expert support.

Press images and Logos available here

Watch a short video demonstration here