Halifax medical testing startup Myomar Molecular is conducting the first beta tests of its product as it nears the close of a $1 million funding round, with $900,000 committed.

Founder Rafaela Andrade said in an interview the testing began in September and will be finished by December. The participants have been recruited from the general population in Nova Scotia and signed up via Myomar’s website. Once the beta test is done, Andrade said Myomar will pursue regulatory approval from Health Canada.

Myomar, which is developing a urine test to monitor muscle degeneration, was founded in 2021 by Dalhousie University biochemist and molecular biology PhD Andrade. The company also conducted clinical trials of its technology in Newfoundland and Labrador earlier this year.

“The people we are analyzing right now, some of them are sedentary and some of them are very active, so we have seen very specific changes in the bio markers that very much align with their lifestyle,” said Andrade. “We’ll be able to predict with high accuracy what you should be doing to increase your muscle health.”

Myomar is working on two products: a lab-based test that involves users sending their urine in for analysis and a less precise, but more convenient at-home test. The version undergoing beta testing in Nova Scotia is the laboratory version. The company has also accumulated a waiting list of a little over 800 people, and beta testing signup is still open.

“We will still do both (types of test) because the laboratory testing is more precise,” said Andrade. “For example: injury recovery, where you want to know differences within a week of starting treatment.”

Based on a patient’s test results, Andrade plans for Myomar to recommend lifestyle changes to improve overall muscle health, such as the person changing the frequency or intensity with which they exercise, or making other lifestyle changes, like altering their diet.

“Everything that we are completing now in the beta test is for research only,” said Andrade. “Because of regulatory requirements, we can’t give specific recommendations, but this will be the foundation for a more robust system as we continue to grow.”

Most of the $1 million funding round Myomar is raising will go towards research and development work. Andrade also plans to grow her currently four-person team to seven people next year.

If all goes according to plan, Myomar will commercialize its product in Canada next year, with the United States to follow, distributing tests through physiotherapy clinics, fitness centres and nursing homes. The option for individuals to buy tests directly will come later.

So far, Myomar has done all its manufacturing work in-house, though as the tech reaches commercialization, Andrade expects to outsource that work to a third party.