Lithuania’s biotech: Six companies to put on your radar

Despite its small population of fewer than 3 million people, Lithuania punches above its weight in the life sciences industry. Lithuania’s life sciences sector now boasts over 550 biotech companies, and the industry continues to expand. Though still emerging as a biotech startup hub, the country is already nurturing several promising ventures.

For example, Vilnius, the capital of the country, is home to a key branch of Thermo Fisher Scientific, and in 2020, Vilnius University’s Life Sciences Center joined the European Molecular Biology Laboratory network, unlocking major EU biotech investments.

Here are six startups at the forefront of Lithuania’s growing biotech scene, showcasing innovations in protein engineering, gene editing, and microfluidics. 

Atrandi Biosciences

Originally launched under the name Droplet Genomics, the biotech company rebranded itself as Atrandi Biosciences. This name change came after a $5 million (€4.5 million) funding round in 2023 led by Vsquared Ventures.

Based in Vilnius, Lithuania, Atrandi blends together life sciences, engineering, and machine learning to speed up life sciences research and drug discovery. In particular, the firm uses fluorescence microscopy and microfluidics to allow researchers to carry out molecular biology experiments within millions of minuscule droplets with volumes reaching just nanometers in scale. 

Some of the applications of its proprietary droplet microfluidics technology include being able to count the number of single molecules in samples and measuring their interactions with single cells. Atrandi specifically aims to apply its craft to the development of personalized medicine.

Biomatter Designs 

Founded in 2018, Biomatter Designs is a synthetic biology company based in Vilnius, Lithuania, that specializes in protein and enzyme design. In addition to synthetic biology, the company uses machine learning to engineer proteins for a variety of applications, including protein drugs and industrial enzymes.

Proteins come in a dazzling array of shapes and sizes. Classical methods for protein engineering depend on screening existing proteins, which is expensive and time-consuming. Biomatter Designs takes a different approach, using artificial intelligence (AI), to analyze reams of data from natural proteins and learn how they behave. It then applies this knowledge to designing synthetic proteins that could be more efficient than those that occur in the natural world.

In August 2024, Biomatter Designs raised $7.22 million (€6.5 million) in a seed funding round led by UVC Partners and Inventure VC.

CasZyme

The gene editing tool CRISPR-Cas9 has captured the imaginations of investors and companies across the life sciences space. The technology has made it simpler than ever to make precise changes to the genome for applications in the pharmaceutical and industrial biotechnology sectors. However, early generations of the technology faced limitations in where edits could be made within the genome. 

To remedy this situation, CasZyme, a biotech company based in Vilnius, Lithuania, was set up to broaden the range of Cas proteins that can snip DNA. This could allow edits to be made in more sites in the genome than is currently possible.

One well-known member of CasZyme’s founding team is Virginijus Šikšnys, a molecular biologist at Vilnius University in Lithuania. Šikšnys was a CRISPR-Cas9 pioneer and his group developed forms of the technology independently and at the same time as the Nobel Prize winners Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna. 

In 2024, CasZyme opened a new laboratory facility in Vilnius to expand its research and development capabilities.

Delta Biosciences

Founded in 2020, Delta Biosciences is a Lithuanian biotech startup that uses technologies such as microfluidics, DNA tagging, and artificial intelligence to accelerate drug discovery. The company’s screening platform aims to reduce the time it takes to identify potential therapeutic candidates, enhancing drug development processes. Delta Biosciences leverages CERN‘s micro-engineering expertise, which has allowed them to develop highly miniaturized and precise detection systems​.

Delta Biosciences integrates microfluidics with AI-driven analysis to screen large libraries of compounds rapidly. This approach allows them to conduct high-throughput, cost-effective experiments on a microscale, which is particularly useful in the drug discovery phase. The company also uses DNA tags to track and analyze molecular interactions at a highly granular level. Their screening platform has applications in identifying novel drug candidates, making it particularly suited for areas like infectious diseases and oncology.

Originally launched during the COVID-19 pandemic, Delta Biosciences was involved in the search for treatments related to COVID-19. They are now expanding their platform to other therapeutic areas.

Genie Biotech

Founded in 2018, Genie Biotech is a U.K. and Lithuania-based biotechnology company that specializes in developing novel bioconjugation technologies. The company’s core innovation is GenieTAG, a proprietary platform that enhances the assembly of biological drugs. This technology allows for precise site-specific conjugation, offering researchers tools to develop more effective therapeutic products by improving drug targeting and minimizing off-target effects​.

Genie Biotech’s main product, GenieTAG, uses click chemistry to attach payloads to proteins or antibodies in a controlled, site-specific manner. This process enables the creation of biologics that closely mimic natural structures, improving the efficacy of drugs, especially in fields like vaccine development and theranostics. 

The technology is particularly promising for developing therapeutic antibodies and nanoparticle vaccines, offering a precision medicine approach that improves targeting while reducing side effects​.

Vital3D

Vital3D, founded in 2021 and based in Lithuania, focuses on 3D bioprinting technology for medical research and drug development. The company aims to create accurate, 3D-printed models of human organs and tissues. Vital3D’s approach allows researchers to create organoids and organ-on-a-chip models that replicate human biology, offering more precise tools for drug testing and disease research​.

Vital3D’s breakthrough is its FemtoBrush technology, a laser-based bioprinting tool that allows for dynamic manipulation of the laser beam, enabling precise printing at both micro and macro scales. This innovation helps tackle one of the biggest challenges in organ bioprinting: the creation of complex vascular networks. By adjusting the laser’s width, Vital3D can print intricate capillaries for organoids, while also speeding up larger-scale tissue printing​. This technology is especially useful for developing organ-on-a-chip models and scaffolds for drug testing. 

Vital3D is currently developing bioprinted scaffolds and nephron-on-a-chip models focused on kidney cells, with the ultimate goal of creating fully functional organs. 

Lithuania, small but mighty

Most Lithuanian biotech companies are centered around Vilnius, which makes sense given that Lithuania is one of Europe’s smaller countries. While there isn’t a significant amount of companies developing their own proprietary drug pipeline, there is still significant innovation going on in the country.

And Lithuania’s most ambitious project in biotechnology is underway. BIO CITY, a biotech hub being developed in Vilnius, will be one of Europe’s largest biotechnology hubs. This massive $7.8 billion (€7 billion) investment hints at Lithuania’s goal to position itself at the forefront of gene therapy, biologics, and other cutting-edge technologies​. 

This hub will boost Lithuania’s innovation potential in the year to come, confirming the small country is indeed punching above its weight and does not intend to stop.