Heilbronn-investor BORN2GROW supports coronavirus vaccine development at baseclick GmbH

Published On: April 9th, 2020

Neuried, Germany April 8th 2020 – baseclick GmbH, a biotechnological company and experts in nucleic acid modification, received generous financial support from Heilbronn-investor BORN2GROW to develop an mRNA-based vaccine to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the last years, the team of Dr. Thomas Frischmuth at baseclick GmbH advanced the click chemistry for the modification of messenger RNA (mRNA) for the application of individualized cancer therapy as well as the treatment of rare diseases. This promising worldwide patented click technology is now to be incorporated into the development of a corona vaccine. The Heilbronn- investor BORN2GROW has agreed to finance the corona vaccine development and has provided baseclick GmbH with the first start-up financing. The chief executive officer and head of research at baseclick Dr. Thomas Frischmuth said: “I am very grateful that BORN2GROW has expressed its trust in the baseclick team and made the start of the development of a vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 possible at baseclick.”

With 10 years of experience and in-depth scientific understanding, baseclick GmbH relies on gene-based vaccines. The vaccine contains selected gene segments of the virus in the form of modified mRNA for cell targeting and immunostimulants. This type of vaccine leads to the formation of harmless virus proteins in humans after injection. These are recognized by the immune system in the human body and lead to immune protection supported by adjuvant immune stimulation. In combination with the click technology for which baseclick GmbH is known worldwide, this financial support is used to start the development of such an mRNA-based vaccine.

“We know Dr. Thomas Frischmuth from the time establishing grows of Greenovation and PPS Protein Services very well and have great confidence in his skills. Together with baseclick, we look forward to helping to get the global pandemic under control as quickly as possible”, says Thomas R. Villinger, Board of Directors of BORN2GROW and Managing Director of the “ZFHN” Future-Fund Heilbronn.

About baseclick GmbH:

Baseclick GmbH is a leading biotechnological company and was founded in 2008 as a spin out of the Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich by Prof. Dr. Thomas Carell. With the so-called “click chemistry”, discovered by the Nobel laureate in chemistry Prof. Dr. Barry Sharpless, baseclick GmbH has developed a wide variety of nucleic acid modifications. The technology is used in many products, such as EdU cell proliferation kits, modifications of oligonucleotides, labeling of nucleotides for “Next Generation Sequencing” (NGS) methods, mRNA preparation kit for NGS diagnostic applications and the development of RNA-based drugs. baseclick GmbH, based in Neuried, has out-licensed this technology to numerous leading companies worldwide.

About BORN2GROW:

BORN2GROW is a Heilbronn-based and internationally active seed fund that focuses on investments in high-growth startups in forward-looking technologies such as life sciences, artificial intelligence & machine learning, Internet of Things, new materials and hardware & robotics. BORN2GROW is a subsidiary of the ZFHN Future Fund Heilbronn, a family office that has been investing in technology-related startups and growth companies on the way to market maturity in Europe, Israel, Asia and the USA for over 15 years.

contact:

baseclick GmbH
Floriansbogen 2-4
82061 Neuried
Germany
Phone: +49 89 9699 3404
Email: admin@baseclick.eu

BORN2GROW
Edisonstr. 19
74076 Heilbronn
Germany
Phone: +49 7131 8731 83-50
info@born2grow.de