Deep Medical Therapeutics

Deep Medical Therapeutics is a medical technology company that generates intelligent genomic insights to optimize healthcare for Africa.

Africa is prone to 24% of the global disease burden. We have the most diverse genome globally and because of fragmented markets, low revenue medical products, and lack on existing infrastructure, large pharmaceutical companies have not invested in developing tailored medication for the African population.

At DMT we aim to establish scalable channels to collect DNA, perform diagnostic tests along with whole genome sequencing. Our preparatory software, powered by AI and Deep Learning Algorithms will uncover insights about specific diseases prone to Africa such as TB and HIV. These insights will be shared with government to better inform their decision making around healthcare systems. We will also empower the local pharmaceutical industry by collaborating with them for R&D and upstream development of drugs and vaccines.

Africa hosts only 3% of the world’s healthcare personnel who must cope with 24% of the global disease burden. Moreover, 70% of the world’s HIV patients and 90% of the mortalities caused by malaria are in Africa. Global healthcare has adopted a blanket approach to the treatment of diseases. However, differences in population genetics play a pivotal role in how certain groups respond to medications.  Currently, Africa provides 2% of global genomic data for drug and vaccine development however our continent has the fastest growing population, most diverse genome, and is the most vulnerable to infectious diseases.

COVID-19 has created unprecedented impacts globally. According to the WHO, the total death toll in Africa is expected to reach 190,000 if it is not controlled. Due to a significant lack in infrastructure to conduct testing in Africa, research indicates that current figures are an underestimation of the true infection rates. As the world pushes for a vaccine only 90 of the 7,679 COVID-19 genome sequencing tests are from Africa. A lack in COVID-19 genomic data from Africa will prevent pharmaceutical companies and health ministries from effectively mitigating the virus and from developing a vaccine or drug suitable for the African population.

At Deep Medical Therapeutics we aim to bridge the knowledge gap on African COVID-19 genomic data by:

• Building comprehensive and scalable channels to gather and store Africa's largest COVID-19 genomic data bank
• Building an analytics platform powered by AI and deep learning algorithms that provide insights on COVID-19 genomic data for drug and vaccine development

We intend to provide a three-part packaged product offering to support countries in Africa with their response to COVID-19 which will entail:

• Product A: Scaling up the infrastructure to allow for COVID-19 diagnostic testing.
• Product B: Providing the infrastructure to perform whole genome sequencing on patient samples that have tested positive for COVID-19 in Africa; this will enable us to study the core genetics and mutations of the disease.
• Product C: An intelligent software that is powered by AI and Deep Learning algorithms. This product will generate the insights required to understand the genetics of the disease and to support effective drug and vaccine development tailored for the African population.

DMTs primary customers/ target market are African pharmaceutical companies. At present, only 37 out of 54 African states have some level of pharmaceutical production.

To better understand our customers’ needs we have held interviews with two large pharmaceutical companies, the African Union - NEPAD, South African National Biodiversity Institute, and the National Health Laboratory Services of South Africa. We are also in the process of becoming an affiliate member of the Avoca Quality Consortium.

Based on feedback from these interviews, as well as desktop research our product offering is uniquely positioned to provide time sensitive infrastructure, expertise, DNA gathering channels and intelligent software to support product formulation and vaccine development that does not yet exist in South Africa. In phase 1, we intend to scale to five countries including South Africa, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, and Swaziland. Collectively these countries are home to 113 million people. For context there are 7,575,161 people suffering from HIV in these countries let alone from other diseases. DMT has the potential to personalize drug treatments and support with more effective drugs/ vaccines ultimately reducing the money spent on healthcare.  Pending the success of phase 1, we then plan to scale into the rest of Africa.

Africa is a “COVID-19 genomic data dark spot”. DMT will track the spread of COVID-19 by gathering and studying the viral genome in Africa to better understand the evolutionary behavior of the virus, identify existing drugs to re-purpose and empower pharmaceutical companies to develop drugs and vaccines tailored for the African population. These insights can be shared to inform government decision making.

By establishing this solution for COVID-19 it paves the way for other infectious disease such as TB and HIV that will ultimately strengthen access to affordable primary healthcare systems, enhance disease surveillance systems, and improve healthcare supply chains.

African genomic data is largely a mystery to the world. The pharmaceutical industry in Africa is in its infancy and has major governmental support. The application of genomics and AI has been applied mainly for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer with many of the players being in the US, Europe, and Asian markets. However, there are limited players in the African market focused on using the technology to solve for other diseases.

Some of our competitors include BC Platforms, 54gene, SOPHiA genetics, Innovation Lab: Sanfoni + google, Celsius, and Standigm.

DMT is the only South African based company that provides a solution that:

• Establishes channels to gather DNA samples across multiple countries in Southern Africa
• Provides diagnostic and whole genome sequencing infrastructure
• Utilizes an intelligent software to analyze the genomic data and uncover insights for COVID-19 vaccine development which are securely stored on a cloud server

We intend to revolutionize healthcare in Africa by

• Offering truly personalized approach to the diagnosis and treatment of diseases in Africa
• Ensure that our proprietary deep learning models and analytic tools will be easily scalable into other disease areas post COVID-19 (e.g. TB, HIV, Malaria)
• Insights generated from the sequencing of genomic data will be shared with governments for research purposes and DMT will partner with local pharmaceutical companies for upstream vaccine and drug development
• Our recommendations will be data driven and can offer more accurate diagnosis and treatment of diseases
• We will be a pioneering company tackling the African genetic diversity challenge

Deep Medical Therapeutics initially built a technology platform that could receive whole genome sequenced data of Tuberculosis (TB). A Tb sample was sequenced using a rapid, mobile sequencing technology, and data was transfer to the DMT mobile application. Using the mobile app, the clinician would be able to identify and diagnose the strain of TB, recommend the most optimal treatment, and detect drug-drug interactions, especially, for HIV-TB co-infections using WHO treatment guidelines. This DMT platform will be revised for COVID-19 and will consists of 3 components which form our organization’s core technology:

Component A focuses on the effective diagnosis of COVID-19 using PCR based technologies.  There is currently a significant lack of COVID-19 testing in Africa. DMT intends on setting up mobile testing facilities in order to support testing efforts across the continent.

Component B involves conducting whole genome sequencing on the COVID-19 positive cases identified from Component A to enable our team to study the core genetics and mutations of the virus.

Component C will be the intelligent software powered by AI and Deep Learning algorithms. DMT is developing a proprietary software platform that uses data analytics and deep learning predictive algorithms to understand the genetics of the COVID-19 viral strains  circulating in Africa. Our software will support research and development on how COVID-19 is mutating across Africa and use these findings to support the efficient and effective development of drugs and vaccines tailored for our population. These insights will also support government I their decision making.

Technology and the use of AI is one of the key drivers reshaping the healthcare industry. According to insights published by McKinsey & Co and the European Union’s EIT Health, AI solutions can support improvements in care outcomes, patient experience, and access to healthcare services. AI can also recognize patterns in large volumes of patient genomic data and population health statistics. By doing so AI can therefore forecast the spread of diseases, and customize treatments, particularly for chronic illnesses that account for a large share of healthcare budgets and support with effective drug and vaccine development, ultimately improving patient outcomes.

Several research studies have demonstrated the efficacy of the use of AI on genomic data for accelerated drug development. For example, research conducted by Artemov et al demonstrated how Deep Learning Artificial Neural Networks trained on genomic data were able to successfully predict with high accuracy the likelihood of failure of a clinical trial of over 200 example drugs. Another study conducted by Zitnik et al also demonstrated how a Convolutional Neural Network  was used to predict side effects of protein-protein and drug-protein interactions. The study led to the discovery of at least five novel drug-drug interaction predictions, which were subsequently found to have supporting literature evidence. With advances in computing and artificial intelligence, genomics, structural biology and bioinformatics, it is therefore possible to understand the progression of diseases and the ways in which our immune systems function, therefore assisting in drug and vaccine development.

According to the WHO, the COVID-19 total death toll in Africa is expected to reach 190,000 if it is not controlled. Due to a significant lack in infrastructure to conduct testing in Africa, research indicates that current figures are an underestimation of the true infection rates. A lack in COVID-19 genomic data from Africa will prevent pharmaceutical companies and health ministries from effectively mitigating the spread of the virus. Prior experience also indicates the need to understand the viral strain circulating within a population for effective drug and vaccine development. The Rotavirus, which causes severe diarrhea in young children, is an example of a failed vaccine particularly for Africans. The vaccines were based on rotavirus strains predominantly found in Europe and North America, as a result were highly effective in these regions but were less effective in Africa due to the circulation of a different strain. Studying the viral genome of COVID-19 is imperative in understanding the evolutionary behavior of the virus, identifying existing drugs that can be repurposed and enabling pharmaceutical companies to develop drugs and vaccines tailored for the African population. At Deep Medical Therapeutics we believe that we can play a significant role in mitigating the spread of COVID-19 by

• Scaling up Africa's ability to effectively diagnose COVID-19.
• Scaling up Africa's ability to perform and analyse COVID-19 whole genome sequencing.
• Assist government to gain insights on COVID-19 strains and minimize spread.
• Empower African Genomics researchers to perform upstream R&D on shared genomic data.
• Contribute to the development of a valuable genomic databank to be used for development of COVID-19 vaccines.
• Stimulate the local drug and vaccine development industry in Africa.
• Direct and Indirect Job creation and skills development:
  • Training of existing and new personal on how to perform whole genome sequencing
  • Drug and vaccine development industry
• Support in achieving the sustainable development goal, SDG3, on health and wellness

We intend to perform diagnostic tests for COVID-19 on 5.25 million people across 5 countries in Southern Africa. After infrastructure procurement and test hub establishment we aim to complete this testing goal in 9 months.  We also intend to perform 13,000 whole genome sequences of COVID-19 positive patients. 

Post COVID-19, in 5 years we hope to have expanded into other disease areas including TB, HIV and Malaria. There are approximately 7,575,761 peoples suffering from HIV and an average TB incidence rate of 348 per 100,000. By better understanding the genomics of these diseases in Africa we can support with the upstream development of drugs as well as start supporting physicians with the prescription of tailored treatment plans. Our solution could potentially impact over 1 billion Africans, a population which is the fastest growing and most vulnerable to infectious diseases.

In the next year DMT aims to:

1) Provide infrastructure: Establish at least five diagnostic and whole genome sequencing hubs in South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Malawi, and Mozambique to impact at least 5.25 million people in Southern Africa by testing them for COVID-19

2) Support government response to COVID-19: Share data analysis with government to better understand the rate of spread, how the virus mutates, the viral strain etc.

3) Iterate current product and technology: Iterate existing software originally developed for use with TB infected samples for the analysis of COVID-19 samples.

4) Establish channels to scale: Build key partnerships with the National Health Laboratory Services, Wits University, South African National Biodiversity Institute, H3 Africa etc. to scale into the rest of Africa.

In the next five years DMT aims to form partnerships with the local pharma industry to support with the R&D of drugs and vaccine development. Additionally, we aim to expand on the knowledge of disease prone to Africa and perform >3,000 whole genome sequences on Africans, building the largest African genomic data bank.

Africa has a nascent genomics market as well as pharmaceutical industry and hence there are many barriers to entry. DMT has developed a strategy that takes these barriers into consideration and uses them to develop a competitive edge. We have positioned ourselves for success and to become the market leader in pharmacogenomics by taking the following into consideration:

Financial:

The initial cost of infrastructure to set up our African genomic database and intelligent platform is expensive. If DMT can raise the required funding it will present a high barrier to entry for other companies.

Regulation:

Because genomics is in its infancy in Africa there is a lack of regulation/ policies about the acquisition, use and sharing of genomic data.

DNA acquisition channels: 

 At present there are no established channels to acquire DNA for research purposes and share insights across the African continent. This means there is an absence of genomic data and limited epidemiology data. 

Financial: 

DMT intends to raise the bulk of their startup costs through grant funds. Hence, we will share the key knowledge uncovered from the analysis of COVID-19 genomic data with government to support them in making informed decisions with regards to their response.

Regulation: 

The urgency of COVID-19 and the need for testing helps accelerate regulatory approval for patient testing at country level. During this process DMT intends to seek permission from patients to sequence their genome if positive. Broad consent will be required as well as the permission for secondary use of genomic data. Regulations around the gathering, use and sharing of genomic data was considered when designing the market entry strategy. DMT is also in the process of becoming an affiliate member of the Avoca Quality Consortium.  This gives DMT access to leading industry standards to ensure we build and operate products that serve the highest compliance standards and have the potential to be scaled globally.

DNA acquisition channels: 

DMT intends to setup robust DNA acquisition channels across Africa. A two-pronged approach will be taken to establish these channels including through field workers and medical practitioners/ clinics. In the longer term these channels will provider easier access to the gathering of DNA to investigate other diseases.

Establish collaborations with key partners:

For long term success and scale up, a core set of stakeholders is required. After these partnerships are solidified it will be difficult for other competitors to scale to the eventual size and network reach of DMT.

Our current staff is as follows:

• 2 full time staff
• 1 Intern (Admin)
• 2 contractors (Genomics, Bioinformatics, Deep Learning expertise)

However, with sufficient funds we are looking to recruit the following full-time staff on a contract basis:

• Data Engineer (1-2) Genomics, Bioinformatics
• Data Engineer (1-2) Artificial intelligence
• Geneticist (1)
• Virologist (1-2)
• Biotechnologist (1)

Dineo Lioma is an engineer, biotech innovator and businesswomen who plans to make a positive impact on the continent. Ms Lioma is the founding CEO of Deep Medical Therapeutics. She holds an MPhil in Micro- and Nanotechnology Enterprise from the University of Cambridge; BSc in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and a second Master’s Degree from the University of the Witwatersrand. Dineo is also the COO of CapeBio Technologies, a company that locally develops and manufactures enzymes used for DNA Analysis.

Byeronie Epstein is the Chief Operations Officer for Deep Medical Therapeutics. Byeronie has leadership experience in driving complex multi-stakeholder projects. She has mobilized over 27 multinationals that have a combined revenue of over $2 trillion to implement transport solutions in cities. She has also been the liaison to organizations like the World Bank and has implemented projects relating to sustainability in Europe, South America, North America, and Australia. Byeronie will leverage her data-driven approach to business model innovation, developed whilst leading an internal startup at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, to uncover systemic pain points across the African healthcare systems and co-develop DMT products that will deliver customer value. Byeronie has a master’s in Engineering for Sustainable Development from the University of Cambridge and a BSc in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cape Town.

The team also has contracted experts in Genomics, Bioinformatics and Artificial Intelligence, however, after having raised sufficient funds they are looking to recruit the experts on a full-time staff basis. 

Deep Medical Therapeutics participated in the IBM South Africa- Raizcorp Aspiring Entrepreneurs Program which is a business development and personal growth initiative that aims to bring aspirant entrepreneurs with an innovative IT business idea to a bankable feasibility. IBM South Africa helped to build the first iteration of our software that was used in a mobile app format for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with Tuberculosis.

DMT is in the process of becoming an affiliate member of the Avoca consortium. They are a collaborative comprised of over 120 pharma, biotech, CRO, and clinical service provider companies with the shared objective of elevating clinical trial quality and bringing key stakeholders in the clinical trials process into greater alignment. By joining this consortium we will have access to leading industry best practices and standards which we can adopt when dealing with patient data, genomic data, data sharing, and later when collaborating with local pharmaceutical companies on upstream development. 

We sell the COVID-19 tests (R850/ test). Intend to perform 5.25 million tests across 5 countries in Southern Africa.

We will also enter a profit sharing model with a local pharma company and share the genomic insights to help with drug and vaccine development.