Tranzyme’s platform technologies have attracted a
number of high-profile collaborators. To date, Tranzyme has
established enduring parternships with the University of Utah
Genome Center, NeoGenesis Drug Discovery, Inc., Cystic
Fibrosis Foundation Therapeutics, Inc., and Quark Biotech,
Inc., among others.

One of Tranzyme’s most exciting technologies is its
TranzEmbryo product, which is used to create genetically
modified animals by cloning genes of interest into animal
embryos. What makes TranzEmbryo such a valuable
technology is that it enables the creation of animal models in
a number of mammalian species—such as guinea pigs,
rabbits, ferrets, and hamsters—which previously could not
be subjected to genetic manipulation. And while more
traditional technologies achieved a paltry efficiency rate of
two to five percent, TranzEmbryo technology has increased
the efficiency rate tenfold, to as high as 60 percent in most
species. Indeed, through a collaboration with Ozgene Pty
Ltd. of Australia, TranzEmbryo is being used as we speak to
generate transgenic mice and rats.

However, Garg realizes that in order to survive for the
long haul, Tranzyme must begin to develop products of its
own and not merely provide platform technologies to other
firms. “Building on our current platform, we’re carving out a
niche for ourselves, for our own drug discovery programs.
We’ve decided to focus on neurosensory diseases, diseases
involving sight, hearing, and the other senses—such as
Alzheimer’s—but our technology works in virtually every
disease, from cardiovascular to autoimmune to cancer,” says
Garg.

Why focus on neurosensory diseases in particular?
Simple—because it makes good business sense. Garg
explains, “We found that the area of neurosensory disease has
been remarkably underexploited, mainly because it is so
difficult to work with those kinds of diseases. So we’ve carved
out the neurosensory disease area for ourselves while we’ve
established partnerships with other firms in other areas.”

Garg received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the
University of Adelaide, Australia in 1982. Prior to joining
Tranzyme in September of 2000, Garg served as COO at
Apex Bioscience, Inc. and, before that, served as Vice
President of Product Development and Manufacturing at
DNX, Inc. (now part of Baxter).

Asked whether there is much competition in the HIV
vector-based technology space, Dr. Ram Ramabhadran,
Senior Vice President of Research and Development at
Tranzyme, admits that there are a number of competitors but
that no other company’s technology has so broad a reach.“We
feel we have the most complete platform. There are
technologies that deliver genes just to cells, there are other
technologies that deliver genes just in animals, but none of
them are able to move from the very beginning to the very
end of the process, from the most basic to the most complex
systems. Our technology seamlessly transitions from in vitro
(in the test tube), to ex vivo (outside the animal), to in vivo
(inside the animal),” Ramabhadran boasts.

Ramabhadran, moreover, proudly points out that the
fifteen-person company is “cash-flow neutral.” “We’re a selfsupporting
company because of the partnerships we’ve
established, which is very rare for a young biotech company.
We haven’t grown beyond our means,” he says.

Of course, in order to grow, Tranzyme must be able to
generate long-term revenue. To address this need, Garg has
developed a “three-prong” business strategy. He explains,
“This strategy includes, first, immediate short-term revenue;
second, long-term royalties for any products developed with
our technologies; third, our own internal drug discovery
program, which will be the real value-creation engine.”

So when will Tranzyme be able to capitalize on this
essential third prong by coming out with its own drugs?
“We’re gathering all the resources right now, gaining access to
genes and building animal models. Our expectation is that by
the end of 2004,we should have some drug candidates to take
into the pre-clinical testing phase,” proclaims Garg.