Proteimax, an Israeli biotech company active internationally for seven years, says it's developed a platform of 54 natural micro-peptides based on more than 20 years of foundational biological research on intracellular peptides that regulate cellular function. The company describes the discovery as a breakthrough for humanity, backed by dozens of patents on molecules and production methods.
The company was co-founded by Dr. Andrea S. Heimann, Chief Science Officer, and Prof. Hammar Pró, both biotechnology scientists from Brazil who made aliyah to Israel, along with Dr. Arnon Krongrad, an American physician and scientist, and Nimrod Elmish, the company's CEO. Peptides are short chains of 2 to 50 amino acids that act as protein building blocks.
First Product Reaches Market
Elmish says the company's first peptide, PEP19, is already commercialized in the United States and Brazil after a series of successful trials, including in humans, and approvals meeting FDA standards that granted it GRAS status and classification as a safe food supplement with no side effects. "The medical world now understands that peptides — the protein building blocks we have discovered — are able to carry messages and commands that the body can read and understand," Elmish says. "We are talking about 54 building blocks, each responsible for a different aspect of health."
Elmish says PEP19 sends "an immediate command to all fat cells," signaling that the body is in an "extreme state" and must use stubborn fat reserves and convert them into an energy source. He says experiments on mammals at particularly low temperatures, including in ice water, provided insights into the human body and led to extraordinary discoveries. Human trials showed the peptide acts directly on fat cells rather than through brain signaling pathways, he says.
Controlled clinical trials in humans produced a 17% reduction in abdominal fat, a 23% reduction in insulin resistance, a 6% reduction in HbA1c levels, and a 35% improvement in sleep quality. Elmish says the company saw optimal efficacy through a daily capsule taken before sleep, without changing lifestyle habits, diet, or injections, and without side effects.
Global Expansion and Future Pipeline
Elmish says PEP19 is intended for millions of people who want to improve their metabolic health, including those with excess visceral fat or prediabetes, people who want to support their metabolism as part of a healthy lifestyle, and GLP-1 patients seeking support throughout the process or afterward. The peptide can simultaneously combat heart attacks, high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, and peripheral fat, and daily use may improve those measures, he says.
Proteimax is expanding its global marketing and distribution efforts alongside the launch of PEP19 in the United States, where it's been marketed in recent months as a dietary supplement. The company is building a network of distribution and marketing partners, as well as partnerships for mass production and raw material refinement. The Brazilian Ministry of Health launched a major trial involving approximately 1,000 people using PEP19 after positive clinical results among patients with chronic hepatic fat, with the goal of optimizing dosing for users with different indications before possible incorporation into the SUS, the Brazilian Unified Health System, as a therapeutic alternative.
Elmish says Israel isn't a priority for the company at this stage, calling it "a land of impossible restrictions" and saying the Ministry of Health erects bureaucratic walls for years, including the need to obtain kashrut approvals from the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
Ambitious Long-Term Vision
The company's broader vision includes remaining peptides expected to reach the market over the coming decade. Elmish says the second peptide, PEP44, is focused on selectively "killing" any rapidly dividing cell in the body and is expected to provide an unprecedented solution for cancer diseases. The third peptide, PEP51, will address neurological diseases and act to restore the central nervous system, which could help treat diseases like Alzheimer's and, in the long term, extend life expectancy by more than 50 years, he says.
Elmish says the company stayed quiet for many years to complete patents and FDA approvals and avoid the spotlight. The company didn't want giant pharmaceutical companies to realize it was presenting a single-capsule solution for a large share of the world's pharmaceutical revenues in the future, he says. The company is at its commercial stage after a total raise of approximately $5.5 million, including $4 million from a Series A round that closed earlier this year.
Why This Matters:
Peptides have become one of the most exciting areas in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals in recent years, and a discovery of an innovative peptide that's demonstrated significant results in humans is rare and attracts interest from pharmaceutical, dietary supplement, cosmetics, and functional food companies worldwide. Metabolic health is revolutionizing the global healthcare industry. Outside Israel, peptides are considered the next big thing in healthcare and are offered in various settings beyond primary care physicians. In the United States, prescriptions for peptides, including GLP-1, can be obtained over the phone by a nurse or a doctor. The commercial success of Proteimax's first peptide and the ambitious claims for its pipeline reflect both the promise and the hype surrounding this emerging field.