Aptahem AB is a publicly listed biotechnology company with a business model focused on preclinical and clinical development of aptamer-based treatment for severe, life-threatening  conditions in which coagulation and inflammation are combined in the disease process. Aptahem’s business is based on technology developed from aptamer research at Lund University in cooperation with Karolinska Institutet and The Swedish Institute for Communicable Disease Control (now The Public Health Agency of Sweden). This cooperation led to the development of a new class of synthetic biomolecules, so-called aptamers, which have negligible side effects. Using these aptamers, researchers identified potential capabilities of a malaria model in the brain to dissolve blood clots in cases where the parasite forms blood coagulants to survive. For human patients, this would lead to clots and eventually a fatal stroke.

Aptahem’s current Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) investigated this technology and developed it to include anticoagulant indications. In this way, commercial development began and eventually led to the establishment of Aptahem. Under the leadership of its CSO, Aptahem’s development team discovered a series of positive characteristics among the company’s lead drug candidate, including the strong anti-inflammatory capabilities. Apta-1, Aptahem’s leading drug candidate, is being developed as an emergency drug designed to prevent the damage of organs and tissues that leads to,  among other factors, the high mortality rates in sepsis patients. With an updated development plan, the company intends to take Apta-1 to clinical trials in humans in a clinically exposed area where effective treatment is not currently available. The company’s shares are traded under the APTA Stock name on Spotlight Stock Market (former AktieTorget) since 17 April 2015.