Building a Startup in a Collaborative Ecosystem

Carla Spina’s journey began at the University of Calgary, where she immersed herself in inorganic and analytical chemistry, paving her way to a Ph.D. at McGill University under the guidance of Dr. D.S. Bohle, the Canadian Chair in Bioinorganic Chemistry. After that, she landed an internship at BASF in Germany, where she honed her skills in non-aqueous formulations and pharmaceuticals. Returning to Canada, Carla ventured into industry to develop and commercialize antimicrobial wound care devices. Thereafter, she decided to leverage her experiences into the development of first-in-class pharmaceuticals for the treatment of inflammatory skin diseases. 

Today, Carla is at the helm of Noa Therapeutics, a preclinical Canadian biotech company she co-founded. Noa derives its name from dual inspirations: Firstly, ‘noa’ is a Maori word meaning “everything defying convention and breaking free from preconception,” and secondly, ‘Noa’ serves as an acronym for 'network of awesome', referring to the supportive individuals who have crossed paths with Carla and played a role in her significant achievements.

The Noa team is developing solutions tailor-made for individual patients with autoimmune diseases by producing non-steroidal, multimodal small molecules. By defying the convention of traditional drug treatments, they are on track to dramatically change the outlook for those living with complex inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis. 

Carla has a personal interest in this subject owing to her sister's immune disease – lupus. She witnessed firsthand the limitations of traditional treatments. Carla shares a bleak picture, “About 89% of patients are really dissatisfied with current therapeutic options. About 60% experience failures. To top it all off, the long-term use of therapeutics causes further complications.”

The company's first significant challenge is atopic dermatitis, or atopic eczema, a condition that occurs when a breach in the skin’s barrier leaves the patient prone to infection and triggers an inflammatory response. But it’s not that simple. Carla explains, “It’s a cycle of which comes first, chicken or the egg? Does the breached barrier cause the inflammation, or does the inflammation process cause the barrier to be breached?” 

At Noa, the team is curbing the inflammatory response and at the same time restoring the barrier function to prevent recurrence with the help of special molecules they are developing. Carla describes, “We address the three key drivers for inflammatory diseases involving barrier dysfunction, barriers being our skin, gut, eyes, heart, and even the neurons in our brain. And these novel trimodal therapies are able to address multiple disease drivers simultaneously to increase the probability of success and confer the potential for disease modification or resolution of these chronic inflammatory diseases.” 

This approach, integrating organic chemistry, biochemistry, and medicine, promises a more comprehensive solution to a range of inflammatory diseases.

Currently, Noa Therapeutics is in its nascent stage, thriving as a preclinical biotech firm within Canada's largest incubator, JLabs, and MaRS Discovery District. The company just closed its oversubscribed pre-seed round. Carla shares, “We're really excited to jump back into the lab and advance our preclinical program, not just for atopic dermatitis, but advancing into systemic inflammatory diseases like ulcerative colitis.”

Key Learnings From Carla’s Experience

• Being capital efficient during the early stages is both about where you spend the money and where you secure it. Engage with your ecosystem to validate your idea and to get as close to possible to those who are already in the field and looking to collaborate, such as startup incubators, academics, and accelerators.

• Building a company is not a solitary endeavor. The key is to actively seek help, share ideas, and learn from others. This approach not only helps to validate and refine your ideas but also expands your network, which is crucial for long-term success.

• Reach out to a wide range of potential investors and stakeholders as you never know where funding opportunities may arise. Build strong relationships and seek advocates in your space by being authentic and genuine in your interactions. At the end of the day, talking to as many people as possible is crucial.