UCalgary startup Taylored Biotherapeutics develops mental health solutions targeting the gut-brain connection

Imagine a world where people suffering from debilitating mood conditions like bipolar disorder and depression had a treatment option that worked on their gut health to improve their mental wellness. One University of Calgary startup is one step closer to making this a reality. 

Taylored Biotherapeutics, founded by UCalgary’s Dr. Valerie Taylor, MD, PhD, and supported by Chief Operating Officer Asem Bala, has achieved a significant milestone by securing a $100,000 grant from the Ontario Brain Institute (OBI).

This award, part of OBI’s highly competitive Neurotech Entrepreneurship to Validate Emerging Innovations (NERVE) program, will support Taylored Biotherapeutics’ pioneering work in psychobiotic therapies — mental health treatments that leverage the gut-brain connection to address chronic mental health issues.

A surprising path to psychobiotics

Taylor, a psychiatrist and professor at the Cumming School of Medicine, discovered an unexpected link between gut health and mental health while treating patients with mood disorders. Two of her patients, long unresponsive to traditional treatments and experiencing drug side-effects, experienced significant remission in their symptoms after taking antibiotics for unrelated infections. Intrigued, Taylor began investigating whether changes in the gut microbiome could influence mood.

Her subsequent research into the gut-brain axis — a system connecting gut health to mental wellness — revealed promising findings. Early clinical trials using fecal microbiota transplants (FMT), often referred to as poop pills, produced surprisingly positive results, indicating that targeting the gut microbiome could effectively alleviate symptoms of mood disorders. 

“We thought it was going to be an interesting scientific endeavour, helping us better understand the role bacteria play in the gut microbiome in individuals with mental illness,” says Taylor. “Instead, we found that this was a viable and effective way to treat mental illness, leading us to consider ways to leverage it to assist patients.”

Encouraged by these initial successes, Taylor saw the potential for a novel approach to mental health treatment. She, Bala and others on their team are now exploring ways to transform these insights into targeted psychobiotic therapies, hoping to offer patients safer and more-effective options for mental health care.

Symptom-free solutions

Taylored Biotherapeutics is now evolving towards greater precision and accuracy. Building on the successes of FMT studies, it is now working to identify, isolate and develop each bacteria type into targeted solutions tailored for respective mental health conditions. “First, we hope to target bipolar disorder,” says Taylor. “Then, we plan to expand to depression and anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and so on.” 

The startup is confident it they can soon provide a viable alternative to traditional psychiatric drugs, which often come with debilitating side-effects such as significant weight gain, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Unlike these medications, psychobiotic treatments might avoid these side-effects, offering a much-needed solution for patients seeking effective care, without the physical toll.

Poised to make progress through new challenges

Transitioning from groundbreaking research to a fully operational startup presents significant and unfamiliar challenges, which Taylor and Bala have begun tackling with support from programs like Aeir. Aier, housed in UCalgary’s Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking, guides academics looking to turn their ideas into significant sustained impact beyond the lab. 

In June, Taylor and Bala recognized that, for Taylored Biotherapeutics to grow, Bala would need to focus on the company full-time. They also needed to conduct additional clinical trials to build upon their initial success, which required securing new funding. 

They identified the highly competitive NERVE grant as a potential solution. However, this grant is notoriously difficult to secure, with only a handful of applicants invited to pitch each year and only seven award recipients. Taylor and Bala reached out to Aeir’s mentorship team for guidance to maximize their chances on this first attempt.

Aeir mentors worked closely with Taylor and Bala to craft a compelling, investor-ready pitch, refining the presentation and honing the message to balance scientific insight with business impact. “We know how to navigate and communicate in the scientific space, but the business side is a completely different arena,” Taylor says. “Aeir helped us bridge that gap.” 

This is a testament to the significant impact UCalgary researchers can realize in the world, given the right mix of motivated researchers, experienced mentors and effective process. 

“Working with Taylor Biotherapeutics is particularly exciting because of their audacious vision to radically improve the lives of millions of people,” says Aeir co-founder and director Dr. Adam Pidlisecky, PhD. “Taylor and Bala’s goal is big, and they see this as a catalyst to propel their commercialization efforts, delivering tangible results that impact people’s lives.”

Advancing toward market readiness

With NERVE program funding, Taylor and Bala are poised to run additional clinical trials, and Bala can focus on bringing their products to market full-time. The grant will enable them to build upon their promising early results, moving their psychobiotic treatments through further testing, regulatory steps and into production. A key part of this progression includes working with a local production partner in Alberta, reinforcing Taylored Biotherapeutics’ commitment to fostering innovation within the province. 

“We’re no longer in the discovery phase,” Bala says. “We have a product, and now we need to move it forward, navigating regulatory steps, clinical trials and market readiness.” In the coming months, the team will intensify efforts to validate and refine their treatments, preparing them for broader testing and eventual market entry. 

With the continued guidance and support from programs like Aeir, the UCeed Cenovus EDI Accelerator, OBI and others, Taylored Biotherapeutics is on track to transform mental health care by offering a new class of targeted, revolutionary therapies, meeting the growing demand for safe and effective alternatives to conventional psychiatric medications.

Stay connected with UCalgary’s innovation ecosystem to follow the journeys of Taylored Biotherapeutics and other Aeir-supported startups. For academics with entrepreneurial aspirations, Aeir offers researchers looking to grow their research’s impact by connecting them with stellar mentors who have successfully ventured into the entrepreneurial landscape. Researchers receive tailored, ongoing one-on-one and objectives-based guidance and gain access to premier resources like exclusive networks and purpose-built tools, giving them a leg up as they turn their discoveries into impactful ventures. You can find the Aeir team in the Hunter Hub for Entrepreneurial Thinking.