Aegirbio’s share of the project is approximately MSEK 8.6, and the German partner Lixonex GmbH has the remaining share. Aegirbio will allocate resources to bear half of its own expenses. The remainder, approximately MSEK 4.3, will be received through Vinnova as a direct cash grant.
The project aims to develop a new platform for point-of-care (POC) serology tests, with COVID-19 as the first application. Aegirbio’s veritope molecules can be used to react with patients’ antibodies against, for example, virus and bacteria, with high precision. The molecules are relatively easy to develop and much more cost-efficient to produce in the required volumes compared with the products currently in use. This entails that Aegirbio will be able to adapt the fully developed platform promptly to new virus variants.
“This is an important financial contribution and conclusive evidence of our technology’s performance. We were ranked 27th among 550 applications and have now received notice of a direct financial grant of almost MSEK 4.3 for the project, which will use our MagniaReader and Veritope technology. With this project, we see a possibility to emerge as a leader in POC testing. The precision offered by our veritope technology in combination with the superior sensitivity of the MagniaReader allows us to develop tests with high accuracy and monitor the formation of antibodies – rapdidly and at affordable production costs,” says Martin Linde, CEO of Aegirbio.