MAYS IBRAHIM (ABU DHABI)
California-based biomaterials company Matregenix is aiming to make regenerative medicine more affordable and accessible through synthetic nanofibre materials designed to mimic the body's natural tissue structure.
The startup is among 27 companies selected to join Hub71's Access Programme this year as part of Cohort 18, which attracted a record 2,453 applications from 112 countries, resulting in an acceptance rate of just 1.1%.
Matregenix, founded by Sherif Soliman, is developing advanced nanofibre-based biomaterials for soft tissue repair and regenerative medicine applications.
“The hope is to replace the costly and limited biological grafts with an engineered synthetic material that would be a lot more cost-effective,” Soliman told Aletihad in a recent interview.
Biological materials derived from animal tissue or human cadavers remain the industry standard but are often expensive, have limited shelf lives, and require complex manufacturing processes, limiting accessibility for patients and healthcare providers, he said.
Matregenix's technology uses high-voltage electrospinning to create ultra-fine fibres that form a three-dimensional mesh. “The biggest advantage of the process that we use is that it creates an architecture that closely mimics the native extracellular matrix or native tissue,” Soliman explained.
“Because it has all the right properties and microstructure characteristics, it helps the tissue restore itself by acting as a scaffolding material.”
Unlike conventional synthetic biomaterials, Matregenix's amino acid-based materials break down into naturally occurring byproducts rather than acidic compounds that can trigger inflammation, according to the founder.
The materials are being developed for a range of applications including wound healing, tendon repair, shoulder surgeries, dental bone regeneration, ophthalmology, and hernia repair.
Matregenix has so far focused on preclinical development, generating data through laboratory studies as well as small and large animal models.
According to Soliman, the company's materials have demonstrated performance comparable to, and in some cases exceeding, existing biological grafts.
The company is targeting wound healing as its first commercial application and expects to submit the product for regulatory review by the end of this year, with commercialisation planned for early next year. “We are very close to achieving FDA clearance for our initial products,” Soliman said.
The global soft tissue regeneration market is currently valued at more than $20 billion, he added, with much of the sector still dependent on biological materials.
Matregenix joined Hub71 with ambitions to establish the region's first manufacturing facility dedicated to advanced biomaterials. “Today, there is not a single manufacturer that does that,” Soliman said. “Through Hub71, we're hoping to make Abu Dhabi the hub for that.”
He credited Hub71 with helping the company navigate the local ecosystem easily. “The traction that we gained with them and the stakeholders they connected us with, we definitely could not have done on our own,” the founder said.
For the first time, all startups selected for Hub71's latest cohort are headquartered outside the UAE. Through the 12-month Access Programme, participating startups receive up to Dh250,000 in in-kind support and Dh250,000 in cash through a SAFE note, alongside mentorship, investor introductions, regulatory guidance and access to corporate and government partners.
Top-performing startups may also qualify for additional support to accelerate global expansion from Abu Dhabi.