MBA alumnus Shashi Marulappa develops metabolite to promote better health

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

Oklahoma State University MBA alumnus Shashi Marulappa launched a new supplement to support better health. As the CEO of NutriForward, the company’s product, RiduZone, received FDA approval and is already on the market.

During his time at OSU, he worked on business development with technology plans. In 2011, Marulappa formed Innovastics, which developed into NutriForward in 2014. He has worked with the University of California in developing anti-obesity technology.

Marulappa has been interested in pharmaceuticals for a long time. He began by looking for university-based pharmaceutical products to develop. This is a difficult process because developing a drug from scratch is a billion-dollar process. Marulappa was worried about raising the necessary capital, so he looked into the medial devices industry.

As a more affordable venture, he looked into metabolite development. The FDA allows the development of the metabolite as a supplement. It can also receive patent protection. All these reasons supported his move into pharmaceuticals as a business decision.

Marulappa wanted to work on developing RiduZone, a metabolite, because he hoped to be involved in solving some of the biggest healthcare problems in the world. Obesity is an issue for about 60 to 65 percent of Americans, and he wanted to produce some solutions for this problem.

This product will have an impact on consumers in the realm of obesity reduction.

“Even reducing someone’s weight by five to 10 percent will dramatically help people manage diseases,” Marulappa said.

This metabolite can help people fight diseases such as cardiovascular and liver disease caused by obesity.

“This metabolite is naturally produced in the body for metabolism,” Marulappa said. “Our body does not produce near enough, so that is where the metabolite will help.”

Currently, they are working to develop a different molecule for pediatrics.

In his closing remarks, Marulappa leaves students with an abundance of advice while completing their degrees.

“Make the best out of their time at business school developing business plans as a part of regular courses,” Marulappa said. “Even if a company does not go anywhere, found a company because it will be a great learning experience. It is a great learning practice beyond the classroom, and it helps in understanding legal aspects, which is very important.”

Marulappa admits he had an interesting time while at OSU. He worked on his dual masters in pathobiology/virology and serology and an MBA. These are two separate areas, but having skills in both areas both helped him start a business and be successful. He participated in many business competitions, and he stresses the importance of students participating in these competitions.

Marulappa has a background in veterinarian studies and a graduate degree in pathobiology/virology. He completed the MBA program at OSU in 2010. After school, he went on to work for a cancer drug development company in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

By Taylor Mullan