New funding round to fuel USUN's mussel adhesive protein industrialization

Jiangyin USUN Biochemical Technology Co., Ltd. ("USUN"), a leading enterprise in mussel adhesive protein, has successfully completed a new funding round. This round was led by Highlight Capital, with participation from Luhua Investment, and Kunquan Capital acted as the financial advisor.

The proceeds will be primarily used for the clinical development of its original Class III medical device, an intradermal injection product based on mussel adhesive protein, and chronic wound care products. This funding will accelerate USUN's commercialization of its anti-inflammatory and repair product pipeline and comprehensively enhance its overall competitiveness as the global original developer of mussel adhesive protein.

Founded in 2011, USUN was established by Nobel Laureate Professor Bengt Samuelsson, Professor Jan-Christer Janson—a recipient of China's International Science and Technology Cooperation Award—and Dr. Gu Ming. As the first company globally to formally apply mussel adhesive protein (MAP) in the medical field, USUN Bio is dedicated to developing innovative macromolecular raw materials centered on this protein and creating "device-cosmetic" hybrid products, having established a complete industrial chain from laboratory research to market commercialization. To sharpen its focus on core operations, the company spun off its innovative drug business in 2021 into EnliTISA (Shanghai) Pharmaceutical.

Mussel Adhesive Protein (MAP) is a single protein extracted from the byssus gland of marine mussels, rich in dopa groups, hydroxyproline, lysine, and other components. Renowned as "Marine Soft Gold," MAP demonstrates exceptional anti-inflammatory and reparative properties along with immune barrier reconstruction functions, holding significant potential in high-end medical devices and efficacy skincare fields.

However, its industrialization faces worldwide challenges including extremely low natural extraction efficiency and difficult quality control—approximately ten thousand mussels are required to yield just one gram of pure MAP, leading to chronic and severe global supply shortages.

Addressing this industry-wide bottleneck, USUN Bio has dedicated over a decade to intensive R&D, successfully developing a comprehensive industrial purification technology. This breakthrough enables the large-scale, standardized extraction and room-temperature preservation of high-purity mussel adhesive protein. Furthermore, leveraging deep insights into the protein's structure-activity relationship, the company has established complementary production pathways via chemical synthesis and genetic engineering.

Advancing from fundamental research to clinical translation, USUN Bio has not only systematically validated, for the first time, the local anti-inflammatory, wound-healing promotion, and melanogenesis inhibition activities of mussel adhesive protein but has also leveraged these discoveries to bridge the gap from laboratory to clinic, establishing itself as a global pioneer in the medical application of MAP.

As one of the primary architects of early industry standards for mussel adhesive protein, USUN Bio collaborated with authoritative institutions, including the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), to jointly establish four "Medical Industry Standards of the People's Republic of China." Currently, the company holds three Chinese invention patents and three international invention patents (granted across 11 regions including China, the United States, and Europe), and has obtained 16 Class II Medical Device Product Registration Certificates.

USUN is committed to addressing the most profound unmet clinical needs, dedicating itself to in-depth clinical development to thoroughly explore and validate the clinical value of mussel adhesive protein as a biomedical material. This clinically-grounded foundation guides the development and commercialization of its medical aesthetics and wellness products.

The company's product lines are divided into two sectors: serious medicine, and medical aesthetics and wellness. Through collaborations with renowned beauty brands, USUN Bio applies mussel adhesive protein to address conditions related to the skin, mucous membranes, and melanin regulation. This approach targets inflammation of the skin and mucous membranes, as well as resulting symptoms such as aging, damage, redness, swelling, heat, pain, and itching, thereby repairing the immune barrier of both skin and mucosa. By establishing a complete ecosystem integrating technology, products, and the market, USUN is positioned to achieve high-quality products, scalable profitability, and international expansion.