Key Investor Signals
Secured €350,000 in UNIIQ convertible funding
South Holland’s proof-of-concept fund UNIIQ committed €350,000 in 2025 through a convertible loan to support the company’s transition from academic research to drug development.
Licensed Leiden University’s inhibitor technology
Leiden University licensed the heparanase-inhibitor technology to AVIGI. A published US patent application names co-founders Vincent Lit and Herman Overkleeft among its inventors.
Established mouse evidence for enzyme inhibition
Founding researchers developed irreversible heparanase inhibitors that reduced cancer metastasis in mouse models. Their 2022 PNAS study supports the technology’s preclinical scientific foundation.
Team
Vincent Lit
CEO and Co-founder
- Earned a Leiden University PhD, developing heparanase-inhibitor chemistry that became the basis of the venture.
- Co-first author of the 2022 PNAS study demonstrating irreversible heparanase inhibition and reduced metastasis in mice.
- Named inventor on US patent application US20250276993A1 for pseudo-disaccharide compounds targeting heparanase.
Arian Khoshchin
CDO and Co-founder
- Brings a decade of biopharma development experience, with training in Biopharmaceutical Sciences and Industrial Pharmacy.
- Founded Bonnie, a digital-receipt startup that sold its product through cash-register suppliers, including Belgium’s Touch Systems.
- Has a decade of experience helping startups progress from inception to initial growth, adding hands-on company-building expertise.
Herman Overkleeft
Scientific Co-founder and Technology Advisor
- Professor of bio-organic chemistry at Leiden since 2001, with decades of experience designing disease-relevant enzyme inhibitors.
- Co-developed the molecule behind Azafaros’ nizubaglustat, which secured funding for Phase 3 trials in rare metabolic diseases in 2025.
- Won the 2026 Spinoza Prize, the Netherlands’ most prestigious scientific award, for research in chemical biology.
Gijs Ruijgrok
Co-founder
- Developed heparanase inhibitors during his chemistry PhD at Leiden University, contributing to the technology behind AVIGI.
- Co-authored the 2022 PNAS paper on irreversible heparanase inhibitors that reduced cancer metastasis in mouse models.
- Joined Purtiso as a research associate, preparing and scaling recycled polyurethane products for validation by industrial partners.
Product
VL166 is a small-molecule inhibitor in preclinical proof of concept for kidney disease. Its sugar-inspired structure is engineered to bind permanently to heparanase, an enzyme that breaks down protective tissue around cells, including the kidney’s filtering barrier.
Permanent enzyme inhibition
VL166 is designed to enter heparanase’s active site and form an irreversible bond as the enzyme processes it. This mechanism switches off the bound enzyme and is intended to make inhibition selective.
Sugar-inspired molecular design
The compound mimics part of the sugar structure recognized by heparanase. Its defined chemical structure allows the team to refine synthesis and analysis while developing a selective inhibitor of the enzyme.
Kidney-focused development
The lead program targets damage to the kidney’s filtering units in diabetic and rare kidney diseases. Current work is at preclinical proof of concept, investigating a mechanism linked to inflammation and tissue scarring.
Market Overview
Kidney-protective prescription medicines serve patients at risk of progressive loss of renal function. Treatment spans common diabetic kidney disease and rarer disorders of the filtering barrier. The commercial category includes drugs that slow deterioration, alongside established blood-pressure and diabetes treatments.
Nephrologists prescribe disease-specific medicines, while insurers and health systems fund access through drug coverage. Sales of approved rare-kidney-disease treatments show an established specialty market. New mechanisms compete on their ability to preserve kidney function and complement existing care.
Estimated 2024 CKD market across the US, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, UK and Japan.
Travere recorded this US net product revenue for its kidney-disease medicine in Q2 2026.
An estimated 788 million people had chronic kidney disease globally in 2023.
CDC’s 2026 report estimates CKD in 38% of US adults with diagnosed or undiagnosed diabetes.
Comparable Outcomes
Chinook Therapeutics
Chinook developed precision medicines for kidney diseases, including the oral drug atrasentan and monoclonal antibody zigakibart for IgA nephropathy. Both were in Phase 3 at acquisition. Novartis completed the acquisition in August 2023, paying $3.2 billion upfront with up to $300 million more tied to regulatory milestones.
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Sources
This profile was built from public company materials, ecosystem sources, market references, and professional profiles.