Day in the Life of Chanelle Ryan, Senior Scientist, P.Happi®

Pioneering biotech start-up P.Happi® has a transformative mission: to empower women to take control of their intimate wellbeing. The all-female team of scientists recently launched its first product – an innovative daily serum that forms a barrier to help protect the intimate female area from the ‘bad’ bacteria that can disrupt the microbiome and cause discomfort and health issues ranging from urinary tract infections (UTIs) to thrush. The product is available now to purchase online and at UK pharmacies nationwide.

Leveraging parent company B.Y.M.® Technologies’ proprietary ingredient – B.Y.M.® 1405 – P.Happi’s first-of-its-kind solution offers a completely new approach to creating a balanced female microbiota. By addressing female health problems that are all-too often under-researched, underserved or simply ignored, the P.Happi team hopes to lead a revolution in delivering proactive, science-based solutions for long-term femhealth and wellbeing.

Chanelle Ryan is Senior Scientist for P.Happi and shares her typical day at the company’s advanced lab facilities, co-located in Scale Space as part of the Imperial White City Incubator innovation ecosystem.

1: What is a typical day like for you?

I’m generally based in the lab, unless it’s a P.Happi® manufacturing day or we’re out at an event or conference. In the lab, I usually I have to check on some of our B.Y.M.®1405 bacteria. I pretty much always have a big batch growing up to go into P.Happi® serum bottles or for R&D tests. I have regular check-ins with Chiara, our CEO and founder, and the rest of the team where we discuss all aspects of the business. That’s really fun, to see what’s going on with marketing, sales, the business side of things. That was all new to me when I started at B.Y.M.®Technologies, having worked almost exclusively in academic research before. You really do wear so many hats in a start-up, it’s challenging and exciting.

2: What do you love about working in WCID – in three words?

Community, resources, diverse ideas.

3: Why did you choose to be located here?

When I started and we first moved into a little lab, we were based in West London –  it’s a great area. The Imperial White City Incubator in Scale Space was a dream location. Its connection and proximity to Imperial College London (where our founder did her PhD) was a big draw, and we have benefited from resources and expertise at both Imperial and from the Scale Space community.

4: What does ‘innovation’ mean to you and how does your company contribute to it?

Finding new ways to solve existing problems. B.Y.M. Technologies is doing just that with our first product, P.Happi®. The live bacterium we use, B.Y.M.®1405, has been researched in academia for decades but this is its first use in skincare. The female intimate microbiome is the perfect niche for this too, as our bacterium is microbiome-friendly, allowing lactobacilli (the protective bacteria in our vaginas) to thrive, while forming an external barrier against pathogens, like E. coli, that can invade, disrupt the healthy microbiome and cause infections like UTI (urinary tract infection), BV (bacterial vaginosis) and thrush. These are issues that every woman faces, whether it be one-off or recurrent infections. The serum is intensely moisturising and soothing too, which is especially welcome in menopause, and that’s something that practically every one of us with a vagina faces at some point.

5: What are you most proud of in your current role?

It has been really fun –  and challenging – to get to grips with this bug. It’s not the most straightforward bacterium to work with, and there have been some unique challenges. But we have come so far in the last few years. We can now grow large volumes of the bacteria, process it, and make consistent, high-quality serum that is currently being sold around the country. I’m incredibly proud of that.

6: What is the hot topic in your business?

It’s great to see that women’s experience with the menopause is now being more widely discussed and that government and businesses are finally taking note of women in general, but especially older women in the workplace and in society as a whole. Increased awareness of the impacts of menopausal symptoms is making it much easier for women to get on with  their lives throughout peri-menopause and post-menopause, with better accommodations and greater access to treatment (HRT) and theimproved routes to funding for new research. In February, the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) issued new guidance on menopause in the workplace, setting out UK employers’ legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010. Earlier this year, the UK government also began roll-out of its “Pharmacy First” policy – a new measure designed to the cut the NHS backlog that is also transforming women’s access to NHS treatment and services (for example, being able to pick up prescription medications for urinary tract infections at pharmacies without requiring a GP appointment beforehand). These are all very positive moves towards expanding women’s access to treatment and increasing the scope of provision by pharmacies as the first point of care and, ultimately, driving improved health outcomes.

7: What’s the best business advice you have for people looking to break into your specialism?

Working for a start-up is super exciting and I would say don’t be afraid to go for it, especially in the early days of the company. It has been amazing to be with the project from the outset, when it was just an idea, to now seeing a complete product that I helped make on shelves for sale. And I’ve been exposed to all aspects of the business, which you don’t get in most jobs. It’s something new every day, it’s never boring.

8: What would Plan B have been on the career front?

I’ve always been interested in nutrition and dietetics. I still love food and cooking, and microbiology isn’t so different. It’s all about following a recipe and getting your mixtures right, and trusting your gut now and then.