A UK biotech company has launched what it describes as a world-first platform of lab-grown human muscle designed to give drug developers earlier, more accurate insights into how new medicines will behave in patients.

Myomaker Bio, a spin-out from Loughborough University, is scaling its bioengineered human muscle technology to support pharmaceutical and biotech companies seeking faster and more reliable preclinical testing without the need for animal studies.

Its team of scientists and researchers, described as world-leaders in muscle biology, has created human muscle tissues and organs that replicate the structure and function of real skeletal muscle.

The platforms allow researchers to study human muscle biology, injury, regeneration and drug response in a controlled laboratory setting. According to the company, they offer a more predictive way to assess how medicines will perform before entering clinical trial.

Professor Mark Lewis, who co-founded Myomaker Bio and recently left the University to become full-time CEO, said: “Drug development remains slow, expensive and heavily dependent on animal testing, which doesn’t always predict human outcomes. Our human muscle platforms are designed to bridge that gap.
“As pharmaceutical companies search for more effective and ethical research models, human tissue platforms such as ours could transform the preclinical testing landscape.

“By recreating human muscle biology in the laboratory, we can give drug developers a far more accurate way to evaluate medicines earlier in the development process. Ultimately, this means safer treatments reaching patients faster while reducing the need for animal testing.”

Now based in London laboratory facilities, the company is preparing for rapid scale-up after securing £325,000 investment from SFC Capital to accelerate development and commercialisation. The funding will support expansion of its scientific team, increased production of its muscle models and deeper partnerships with global drug developers.

PulseSight Therapeutics has unveiled positive phase 1 results for PST-611, its non-viral gene therapy candidate for dry age-related macular degeneration (AMD) with geographic atrophy (GA), following a podium presentation at ARVO 2026.

The first-in-human study, PST-611-CT1, assessed two ascending dose levels of PST-611 in six patients across Paris and Grenoble, with a 16-week follow-up. Investigators reported that the trial met its primary and secondary objectives, with the therapy demonstrating excellent safety and tolerability.

Most ocular adverse events were mild, two were moderate and no intraocular inflammation, treatment-emergent serious adverse events or suspected unexpected serious adverse reactions were observed. Best corrected visual acuity remained stable throughout.

Although not designed to measure efficacy, the study generated encouraging early signals. Patients spontaneously reported functional improvements in vision, while anatomical assessments suggested inflections in GA lesion growth. In one participant, the effect persisted beyond the trial’s follow-up period.

Presenting the findings, Professor Francine Behar-Cohen said: “Geographic atrophy is a progressive, sight-threatening disease with no effective treatment currently available in Europe – the unmet medical need is real and urgent.
“These phase 1 results are therefore particularly meaningful. PST-611 demonstrated excellent tolerability, which is fundamental when treating patients with a chronic condition.

She added: “What makes these results stand out are the early efficacy signals we observed, both anatomically and functionally. I look forward to the phase 2a trial, which will allow us to confirm the therapeutic potential of PST-611 over a longer follow-up and in a larger group of patients.”

Judith Greciet, PulseSight’s chief executive officer, said: “We are thrilled by the outcome of our first-in-human study of PST-611. The trial met its primary objective with an excellent safety profile and went beyond our expectations – we observed early functional and anatomical efficacy signals, notably spontaneous reports from several participants of noteworthy vision improvements, after a single dose and just four months of follow-up.”