Imagine this…
There’s super-rare chemical compound out there, the absence of which would cause research and development efforts across the entire global pharmaceutical industry to grind to a halt.
It’s crucial because it’s one of the most important “carrier proteins” known to modern medical science.
This carrier protein is a near universal vehicle for delivering active ingredients through cell walls — a process that makes the treatment of a wide variety of ailments, including certain cancers and degenerative neurological diseases, possible.
Its effectiveness in delivering life-saving molecules also makes it essential in the testing of new drugs.
The protein, it turns out, has therapeutic properties all on its own — specifically, it has a natural ability to stimulate immunoresponse in humans.
Might sound a bit too good to be true, but here’s the hook…
The Problem
This chemical compound can’t be made in labs. It cannot be synthesized. It must come from an equally rare, hard-to-find organism that lives in just one specific part of the world.
And to get this chemical compound from this organism, the organism must die.
Last but not least…
Once extracted and processed, the resulting protein can cost between $35,000 and $950,000 per gram.
Today, it takes about 500 grams, on average, of this crucial carrier protein just to get a new drug through FDA testing and into commercialization.
It’s what some of us like to call a “market bottleneck.” There is huge demand for this product, and there is huge profit to be made from it…
Unfortunately, there is also a massive shortage of it across the board — which is what creates a crimp in the supply chain and raises prices to the level you saw up above.
Honestly, when I first read about this stuff, my immediate response was sadness.
This carrier protein has the potential to impact humanity just as much as penicillin or pasteurization did in their days, but there’s just not enough of it to go around.
And prices are so high that many smaller biotech research firms simply can’t get their hands on enough of it — effectively cutting off an entire sector from participation in the development of new drug candidates.
But then I discovered something that makes all this promising…
The Solution
The need is great, and so are the potential rewards.
And right now, there’s a company out in California that may have gotten the timing down just right.
Not only has it patented a process for extracting this carrier protein from the Giant Keyhole Limpets that produce them naturally, but it even has a one-of-a-kind method for cultivating these mollusks in a controlled environment.
Which means this company just took ownership of that bottleneck I mentioned.
Its unique positioning has earned it multiple contracts and collaborative efforts with some of the biggest names in pharmaceuticals today.
If this sounds like a billion-dollar biotech company, there’s a reason for it — aside from the nine-figure market cap, it has everything it takes to build and maintain global recognition in this highly specialized niche market.
Only right now, the company’s total market capitalization is barely over $100 million.
I don’t think it takes much explanation to put all the pieces together here… A multi-billion dollar bottleneck in an absolutely essential — not to mention highly funded — industry, reigned over by a small-cap company in the early stages of its rise.
Most of the time, picking stocks is anything but straightforward… but with this one, you can see the big trend support from a mile away.
Which is exactly what my colleague Nick Hodge saw when he investigated this company a little while back.
He’s seen what it can do, and he has the inside story on what it will be doing moving forward.
To get his full report on this company, detailing everything you need to know about its operations, its technicals, and — most importantly — its prospects for the future, click here.
You won’t regret it.
Fortune favors the bold,
Alex Koyfman
