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Developing treatments for better bone and joint health
Backed by a world-renowned scientific and medical team

About Us

 
Haoma Medica is a UK-based biotech company that focuses on treatments for Osteoporosis and Osteopenia. Our drug referred to as NaQuinate and commercially as Osteopura, is a novel compound with a new mechanism of action compared with existing treatments and is designed for low-dose oral administration.
 
The chemical compound, NaQuinate, occurs naturally within the body and preserves bone mass and architecture. Thus, the safety profile of this therapeutic approach has significant potential for long-term use.
 
The PuraLife Company is our nutraceutical division focused on developing a comprehensive range of over-the-counter products to improve bone and joint health. The PuraLife Company grew from the scientific and pharmaceutical research for the treatment of osteoporosis and osteopenia conducted by Haoma Medica. 
The active substance in Osteopura is present in all people, but only in very small amounts. Osteopura boosts the levels of this naturally occurring compound to preserve bone integrity. Haoma Medica started with the platform of “working with nature and not against it”.   
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Our Mission
To develop novel compounds that improve and extend quality of life by reducing fragility fractures.
Value Proposition
Naquinate is the only naturally occurring supplement that regulates both the healthy balance of bone build-up AND bone breakdown without side effects. All other available drugs only affect either bone-building cells OR bone-breakdown cells.

NaQuinate 

A novel therapeutic for the treatment for healthy bones for life

Strengths of NaQuinate

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​Nq8 inhibits bone loss in a pharmaceutical industry “Gold Standard” animal model of postmenopausal osteoporosis. The market is ready for a novel treatment with a new mechanism of action in the management of patients at risk of fracture; one that addresses the unmet need for a therapy with better efficacy in the treatment and prevention of long bone fractures, and one that provides anabolic characteristics but with a better safety profile. We believe NaQuinate and Osteopura can meet these requirements.

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  • Novel class of compound

  • Unique mechanism of action

  • Product naturally occurring in the body

  • Small molecule

  • Low dosage administered orally

Our products combine our novel bioactive ingredient Naquinate- Nq8 with a unique combination of ingredients that have been carefully formulated by our two founders, consultant orthopaedic surgeon Dr Cenk Oguz and bone health scientist Dr Stephen Hodges.
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In Nq8, we have discovered a unique supplement that helps maintain healthy bones by affecting the two main types of bone cells. It maintains the balance between the bone-building cells (osteoblasts) and cells that break down bone (osteoclasts).​

  • Ability to improve bone quality not just quantity

  • Non gender specific 

  • High bioavailability- ‘Quick On, Quick Off'

  • Inexpensive to manufacture

  • Beneficial additional effects

The Problem

​Fragility Fractures- Importance of Proactive Preventative Bone Care

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33% of women and 20% of men over 50 years will experience a fragility fracture

73% of women and 63% of men eligible for treatment not currently taking osteoporosis drugs due to side effects, difficulty associated with the administration of the drugs

 

A prior fracture is associated with an 86% increased risk of any future fracture

In a 17-year follow up study researchers found that vegetarians have 4x as many fractures and vegans 19.4x more than meat eaters. Source Tong et al 2020

Danger Of Untreated Osteoporosis- Impact On Quality Of Life


1 year post hip fracture:

40% unable to walk independently

20-24% mortality rate

80% restricted activity- driving & shopping

33% totally dependent- care person and/or nursing home

Patent Update

Haoma Medica has three patents. They cover the following countries: UK, US, Canada, Australia, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, India, China, Brazil, Isreal and the European zone

Pre-Clinical 

Our strategy within the early clinical development phase was focused on identifying and understanding more about NaQuinate’s unique mechanism of action compared with all current treatments and its ability to improve bone quality not just quantity.

Phase I

We have completed our first in human study. This was a single and multiple ascending dose study to evaluate the safety, tolerability and pharmacokinetics of varying doses of NaQuinate in healthy subjects. A full press release is available on our Press Release page.

Phase II

Our proposed Phase II study combines the objectives of a proof of concept study (efficacy) in patients with osteoporosis and osteopenia and a dose-ranging study to determine optimal doses for treatment. To evaluate the effects of treatment, we will be looking at bone markers associated with the maintenance of good bone health.

Press Releases

LONDON, Haoma Medica Announces Late-Breaking Science Results for Naquinate, as a New Way to Support Bone Health and Healthy Aging, at the ASBMR Annual Meeting

Haoma Medica announced at a presentation made at the 2022 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research:

Dr Stephen Hodges, Lead Investigator presented 'A vitamin K catabolite regulates Wnt 16-mediated B-catenin activation leading to increased osteoblast proliferation, with enhanced expression of osteocalcin and osteoprotegrin'.

Previous studies have shown Naquinate, a vitamin K catabolite, to protect against reduction in bone quality and quantity occurring in response to ovariectomy in rat and mouse models. In the data presented today using primary human femoral osteoblasts, Naquinate increased osteoblast proliferation after 3 days compared to control cultures. Cell extracts revealed enhanced expression of osteocalcin, osteoprotegrin and Wnt16 with translocation of B-catenin to the cell nucleus. In a parallel study using liver microsomes in the presence/absence of vitamin K, Naquinate did not affect gamma-carboxylation of osteocalcin.

'These results indicate a dual action for Naquinate on both bone resorption and bone formation pathways and shows that Naquinate does not work through the often-proposed classical bone actions of vitamin K. Naquinate itself appears to have a different and unique biological activity compared to vitamin K. Wnt16 is more active in cortical and Naquinate may be involved in regulating the cortical bone thickness and porosity,' said Dr Stephen Hodges, presenting author.

 

LONDON, Haoma Medica announced today the completion of a first-in-human trial for NaQuinate, a naphthoquinone carboxylic acid, which is being developed as a novel orally administered therapeutic for osteoporosis. 

''We are delighted that the first-in-human study has completed its last dosing. There were no significant safety or tolerability concerns up to the highest doses tested which underlines our expectation that NaQuinate is safe and well tolerated,'' said Dr Cenk Oguz, Haoma Medica's Chief Medical Officer.

'Our pre-clinical research has revealed an exciting feature of NaQuinate where it appears to have the capacity to work in harmony with the body's natural response to weight bearing exercise to synergistically enhance bone formation when and where required – now that would be a 'smart' drug,' said Dr Steve Deacon, Haoma Medica's CEO.

 

'Together with the safety data from this first-in-human study, this supports the potential that NaQuinate treatment could provide a safe, novel and smart therapeutic approach to bone disorders like osteoporosis and better maintain healthy skeletal aging.

New Research

LONDON, July 2024 - see full document under Press Release section
 

' Compared to control cultured primary human vascular smooth muscle cells, Naquinate (Nq8) has potent anti-inflammatory actions on challenged by growth in calcifying media.

 

The inflammatory burden was found to be reduced by limiting mRNA expression of the potent inflammatory cytokines Interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) and interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β).

 

In the presence of the inflammatory cytokine TNFα, Naquinate (Nq8) was statistically significantly better than SC514, a selective inhibitor of the intracellular protein kinase IKKβ, a central component in the nuclear factor kappa B1 (NFkB1)-mediated inflammatory response pathway. 

Using micro-computerized tomography, ex-vivo rodent aortic rings cultured in calcifying media were found to have statistically significant decreased arterial calcium being deposited at all levels of co-culture with Naquinate (Nq8).

Aged cells in culture become less functional.(senescent) Naquinate (Nq8) reduced inflammatory cytokine mRNA level in both basal and calcifying media conditions in long-term vascular smooth muscle cell culture.

 

The potent upstream regulator of cytokine stimulation at the gene level, NFkB1, mRNA was also down-regulated Moreover the mRNA levels of the senescence markers p16 and p21 were also markedly reduced in long-term vascular smooth muscle cell culture, being more evident in the presence of the inflammatory cytokine TNFα.'

Fund Raising

Seed Raise

Haoma Medica is fundraising a Seed round for its nutriceutical subsidiary, The PuraLife Company. 

Osteopura+ is the flagship nutraceutical product range- a new and unique combination of ingredients carefully formulated by Dr Cenk Oguz, and bone health scientists, to build better bones before it is too late. We provide a range of products aimed at teenagers to over 65+

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