Lynk Solutec is a startup specializing in the development of coating materials that prevent the attachment of blood and bacteria to endoscope lenses. Founded in July 2020 by Seo Jungmok, a professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Yonsei University.

CEO Seo introduced Lynksolutec as a company commercializing nano-coating technology that has been developed in collaboration with researchers for a long period.

Nano-coating is a medical device coating technology that inherently inhibits thrombosis and side effects caused by bacteria.

“The advancement of medical equipment has been linked to the development of medical technology, saving countless lives through treatment. Among them, endoscopes are the only tools for observing our body precisely during surgery, and the clear condition of the lens is especially important. While conducting collaborative research with doctors, we learned about persistent issues that occur during endoscopic surgery. During surgery using endoscopes, the lens frequently becomes obscured due to factors such as fogging from the patient’s respiration or bleeding caused by tissue excision. Traditionally, approaches like attaching devices injecting saline solution or using anti-fog agents were used to address these issues. However, saline solution runs the risk of being aspirated into the respiratory system during bronchial-related surgeries, and the anti-fog agents have limitations in preventing blood attachment,” CEO Seo explained.

He began researching ways to fundamentally prevent visual impairment beyond the conventional methods. As a result, they developed a nano-coating that can inherently prevent the attachment of any substance.

“The nano-coating technology of Lynksolutec uniformly applies a very thin liquid to the surface. This liquid can inherently inhibit the attachment of substances, such as water vapor, blood, and bacteria, that cause issues before and after surgery on the surface of medical devices. The nano-coating can be directly applied to various materials of medical devices, including metals, ceramics, and polymers,” he added. He further stated that they plan to expand the application of nano-coating technology to various medical devices such as orthopedic artificial joints, dental implants, urological stents and catheters, and ECMO.

“Recent advancements in laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgeries have significantly reduced surgery times and incision sites. However, the only method of observing the surgical area remains endoscopy. Due to the attachment of steam and blood during surgery, there is a significant inconvenience requiring personnel to constantly clean the endoscope on-site. Depending on the level of standardization at different hospitals and the proficiency of individuals, the frequency of adverse events varies, resulting in substantial costs for education and management. The nano-coating technology developed by Lynksolutec can inherently inhibit the attachment of substances that cause harmful effects to the surface of medical devices. The advantage of this item lies in its infinite potential applications. The fact that doctors are directly participating in research and development is also a competitive advantage.”

CEO Seo was asked about how he started the business. He said, “While conducting research, I always dreamed of seeing the technology I had developed being practically applied and commercialized. During this time, doctors who were experiencing inconvenience using endoscopes showed interest in Lynksolutec’s technology, which led me to challenge entrepreneurship. Through preliminary startup packages, leading laboratory startup projects, and initial startup packages, we have been able to consistently pursue research and development.”

In 2022, Lynk Solutec received investment from Daily Partners and Yonsei University’s technology holding company. It was also selected for TIPS.

Regarding future plans, CEO Seo said, “We will focus on obtaining medical device approvals for the commercialization of caps for endoscope vision, which is our first product. We also plan to enter foreign markets through collaboration with global medical device companies.”

[HanKyung Job & Joy, Reporter Lee Jin-Ho]