Tailored Antioxidant Supplementation to Improve Quality of Life Based on Oxidative Stress Management

From academic and clinical research to impact: turning innovation into care

Kondree is a hybrid French Biotech-Medtech company, a spin-off from the University of Montpellier, supported by a licence from the regional technology transfer agency SATT AxLR. Led by Claire Lefranc, Kondree was created to translate a major academic breakthrough into scalable, real-world patient care through an exclusive worldwide licence.

This innovation is the result of 20 years of research conducted by Prof. Dalila Laoudj-Chenivesse and her team at the PHYMEDEXP laboratory (INSERM, CNRS, University of Montpellier), in collaboration with the University Hospital of Montpellier.

Their work uncovered the critical role of oxidative stress in Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD), paving the way for a personalized antioxidant supplementation strategy tailored to each patient’s bioanalytical profile. Kondree has secured the intellectual property for an innovative method, which not only facilitates the personalised management of FSHD, but also provides the basis for the development of broader applications for other oxidative stress-related diseases, thanks to customisable antioxidant dosages derived from blood profiles.

Understand Oxidative Stress Impact

A medical challenge with no therapeutic solution: The case of FSHD

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FSHD and Oxidative Stress: A 20-Year Journey of Clinical Discovery

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From Hypothesis to Clinical Impact — Personalized Antioxidant Therapy for FSHD

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Beyond FSHD, ongoing R&D program in Frailty

CPP obtained from ANSM – promotor CHU NANTES

Oxidative stress

Understanding oxidative stress: A hidden driver of disease and aging

Oxidative stress results from an imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the body’s antioxidant defenses. While ROS are natural byproducts of metabolism and play a role in immune function and repair, excessive levels can damage DNA, proteins, and cells-accelerating aging and contributing to disease.

First described in the 1950s, oxidative stress is now associated with numerous chronic diseases, including neurodegenerative (e.g., Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s), autoimmune (e.g., rheumatoid arthritis, IBD), metabolic (e.g., diabetes), cardiovascular (e.g., atherosclerosis), neuromuscular (e.g FSHD) and age-related (e.g., sarcopenia, frailty) disorders.

The body relies on internal antioxidant systems and dietary antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, selenium, and zinc to neutralise these compounds and maintain balance. However, factors such as inflammation, pollution, poor diet, and aging can overwhelm these systems.

Although antioxidant therapy gained popularity in the 1970s, research now cautions against overuse-high doses can act as pro-oxidants, and some ROS are essential for healthy function. The goal isn’t to eliminate ROS, but to maintain a precise balance.

This raises important questions:
  • How can oxidative stress and antioxidant capacity be accurately measured?
  • How should results be interpreted in a clinical context?
  • How can we safely correct imbalances?
  • What long-term health benefits might target interventions provide?

Kondree's Innovation

A personalized approach, offering a new and unique therapeutic solution for FSHD and other oxidative stress-related diseases as part of routine care.

Oxidative stress results from an imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the body’s antioxidant defenses. While ROS are natural byproducts of metabolism and play a role in immune function and repair, excessive levels can damage DNA, proteins, and cells-accelerating aging and contributing to disease.
Pre-Analytical Process & Sampling

A rigorous pre-analytical workflow (collection, stabilization, centrifugation, cryogenic shipping) 

Adaptation of a dosage based on a blood biological test

Accurate, individualized assessment of oxidative stress, powered by advanced bioanalysis.

Personalized antioxidant therapy

Accurate, individualized assessment of oxidative stress, powered by advanced bioanalysis.

Become a validated center

You are a neurologist, nutritionist, general practitioner … and would like to propose personalized supplementation to fix Oxidative stress in FSHD? Join the Kondree’s approved centers worldwide.
  • Advice and training of physicians to guide antioxidant supplementation,
  • Access the latest research and best practices in oxidative stress and FSHD management,
  • Develop collaborations to integrate new data to obtain supplementary data on efficiency,
  • Collect user feedback: Integrate a feedback mechanism to allow users to report problems or suggest improvements.

Want to learn more?

Read our publications
Contact us

For patients

Our protocol uses a scientifically validated bioanalysis to define the specific antioxidant needs of each FSHD patient — ensuring the most effective and personalized intervention.

Our protocol uses a scientifically validated bioanalysis to define the specific antioxidant needs of each FSHD patient — ensuring the most effective and personalized intervention.

This approach is protected by an exclusive worldwide license, transferring academic insight into a comprehensive FSHD management strategy offering incremental benefits for patients with FSHD.

This innovative holistic approach will ultimately transform FSHD care management

Interested in Personalized Antioxidant Supplementation?

Contact us

Frailty

Expanding Our Approach to Frailty

Kondree has initiated and is funding this innovative project, which is developed through a strategic partnership between the CHU de Nantes, PHYMEDEX, and Kondree: Exploratory pathophysiological study in frail patients starting in June 2025. Our current focus is on creating a validated, integrated biological and digital signature (combining biomarkers, clinical, functional, and questionnaire data) for medical applications. Building on our success with a biological/digital signature in FSHD patients—where personalized antioxidant supplementation improved muscle strength and quality of life—we are now expanding our efforts to encompass frailty in the elderly.
Frailty involves progressive muscle loss, decreased strength, and declining functional capacity, primarily driven by oxidative stress, chronic inflammation, and nutritional deficits. Given the aging global population, the market for interventions targeting frailty and age-related muscle deterioration is rapidly growing. Our approach aims to identify specific biomarkers of oxidative and inflammatory damage, enabling personalized strategies such as targeted antioxidant supplementation.
By integrating biological and digital health data, we are developing a comprehensive signature to predict, monitor, and prevent frailty-related decline. This broader scope not only increases the clinical relevance but also significantly enlarges the potential market, positioning us as leaders in precision medicine for aging and frailty management, with substantial commercial and societal benefits.

Our Team

Kondree brings together complementary international expertise in biomedical research, clinical strategy, and technological innovation.
Our multicultural foundation and cross-border collaborations enable us to approach challenges with agility and creativity—driving impactful solutions for patients with FSHD.

Claire Lefranc

CEO – Co-founder

Legal expert specializing in business strategy development and the management of complex projects.

Thomas Person

CTO – Co-founder

Graduate of École Centrale, expert in the management of innovative IT projects.

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Dalila Laoudj-Chenivesse

Scientific Advisor

Professor of Physiology at the Faculty of Medicine. Researcher at the PHYMEDEXP laboratory, CNRS, INSERM, Montpellier.

Marie-Christine Dabauvalle

FSHD Expert

Professor of Cell Biology at the University of Würzburg.

Meet our team

32nd Annual FSHD Society International Research Congress on June 12, 2025, in Amsterdam

We are please to announce that Dr. Sandrine Arbogast, researcher in Pr D. Laoudj-Chenivesse’s group (PhyMedExp Unit, Montpellier) will attend the 2025 International Research Congress on FSHD. She will support and share valuable data to advance Kondree’s innovative approach based on recent insights into personalised antioxidant supplementation that significantly approve muscle strength and quality of life for FSHD patients in a real world setting, conducted in collaboration with the Clinical Physiology Department of Montpellier University Hospital and PhyMedExpt Unit.
More info

2025 FSHD Connect Europe on June 14, 2025, in Amsterdam

Our team is proud to contribute to this important gathering of researchers, clinicians, and patient advocates working together to advance the understanding and treatment of Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD). Kondree is proud to sponsor this event, which represents a valuable opportunity to engage with the FSHD research and patient community, and to strengthen collaborations across Europe and beyond.
More info

Scientific Foundation

Laoudj-Chenivesse D., et al.

Increased levels of adenine nucleotide translocator 1 protein and response to oxidative stress are early events in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy muscle

J Mol Med, 2005

Barro M., et al. (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Myoblasts from affected and non-affected FSHD muscles exhibit morphological differentiation defects

J Cell Mol Med, 2010

Turki A., et al. (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Functional muscle impairment in facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy is correlated with oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction

Free Radical Biol Med, 2012

Passerieux E., et al. (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Effects of vitamin C, vitamin E, zinc gluconate, and selenomethionine supplementation on muscle function and oxidative stress biomarkers in patients with facioscapulohumeral dystrophy: a double-blind randomized controlled clinical trial

Free Radical Biol Med, 2014

Denny and Heather

Are Antioxidants a Potential Therapy for FSHD? A Review of the Literature

Oxid Med Cell Longev, 2017

Wilson V., et al. (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Impaired oxygen demand during exercise is related to oxidative stress and muscle function in Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy

JCSM Rapid Comm, 2018

Wilson V., et al (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Muscle strength, quantity and quality and muscle fat quantity and their association with oxidative stress in patients with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy: Effect of antioxidant supplementation

FRBM, 2023

Amzali S., Wilson V., et al. (Laoudj-Chenivesse D. group)

Nutritional Status of Patients with Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy

Nutrients, 2023

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A medical challenge with no therapeutic solution: The case of FSHD

Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD) is a rare, progressive neuromuscular disorder affecting over 52,000 people in Europe, including around 5,000 in France. It leads to muscle weakness, fatigue, loss of mobility, and — in severe cases — permanent disability. To date, no curative treatment exists. While gene therapy and pharmacogenetics are being explored, the underlying mechanisms of FSHD remain insufficiently understood. Despite growing research interest, recent clinical trials have not met expectations, and most therapeutic approaches remain in early development.

FSHD and Oxidative Stress: A 20-Year Journey of Clinical Discovery

Since the early 2000s, researchers from the PHYMEDEXP laboratory (INSERM, CNRS, University of Montpellier) led by Prof. Dalila Laoudj-Chenivesse, in collaboration with the department of Physiology, CHU de Montpellier, have identified a significant link between facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) and oxidative stress. Their studies revealed increased levels of oxidative damage in both muscle and blood samples from patients with FSHD, as well as deficiencies in essential antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, zinc and selenium (Turki et al, 2012). They also observed a correlation between this oxidative imbalance and reduced muscle strength and endurance, suggesting that oxidative stress plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of FSHD. These findings were consistent with broader scientific research, further supporting the hypothesis that oxidative stress plays a crucial role in FSHD pathogenesis. Other studies from Prof. Laoudj-Chenivesse’s team and others have also demonstrated the FSHD specificity of this defect is also underscored by the susceptibility of primary muscle cells to oxidative agents and alteration in gene expression and protein synthesis involved in oxidative stress response [Barro et al., J Cell Mol Med. 2010; …].

From Hypothesis to Clinical Impact — Personalized Antioxidant Therapy for FSHD

In 2010, the FSHD group led by Prof. Dalila Laoudj-Chenivesse (PHYMEDEX unit) in collaboration with the Department of Physiology at CHU de Montpellier, established that oxidative stress significantly contributes to the development of Facioscapulohumeral Muscular Dystrophy (FSHD) through various analyses (Laoudj et al., 2005; Barro et al., 2010; Turki et al., 2012; Wilson et al., 2018). This indicates that antioxidants may improve patient outcomes. A randomized placebo-controlled trial with 54 FSHD patients (NCT01596803) found that four months of antioxidant supplementation—vitamins C and E, L-selenomethionine, and zinc—was safe and significantly improved muscle function (Passerieux et al., 2015; Wilson et al., 2024), resulting in Orphan Drug Designation from the EMA in 2016. Individualized dosing was necessary due to antioxidant imbalances and patients’ nutritional deficiencies (Amzali et al. 2023), highlighting risks associated with unsupervised antioxidant use. To address these issues, a comprehensive five-year personalized care program was launched in 2015 with the FSHD group at CHU Montpellier (NCT02622438). This program, enrolling 152 patients, included tailored supplementation and produced long-term benefits in muscle function, daily performance, and quality of life, demonstrating the approach’s relevance. Further research continues to underscore the importance of oxidative stress and antioxidant therapy in FSHD muscle disease management (Denny and Heather, 2017).