PopVax Raises $1.15 Mn in Funding from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

PopVax, an Indian full-stack biotechnology company developing novel mRNA vaccines and therapeutics using computational protein design, is pleased to announce that its ongoing research effort to develop lipid-polymer delivery formulations for thermostable mRNA vaccines has been funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation under a 1.15 million USD project agreement signed in October 2023.

This effort follows on from a prior 2021 project agreement under which PopVax was awarded 100,000 USD to support the company’s earliest exploratory work on mRNA platform development and thermostable mRNA delivery formulations. 

Read also - Fintech Startup Zinc Secures $25.5 Mn from Nexus Venture Partners, Others

“We at PopVax are delighted to receive support to develop novel thermostable delivery formulations for mRNA-based vaccines and therapeutics, a critical challenge that is central to our public health mission. During the COVID-19 pandemic, mRNA vaccines were designed against the novel pathogen in three days, entered clinical trials less than two months from conception, and were able to scale to billions of manufactured doses in just one year. This speed, enabled by the flexibility of mRNA technology, was critical at a time when just days of delays meant potentially thousands of lives lost. The mRNA vaccines approved in the United States and Europe, however, required storage temperatures between -20 °C and -80 °C, which put them out of reach of developing countries without extensive supply chains that are able to maintain those below-freezing temperatures,” said Soham Sankaran, Founder & Managing Director of PopVax. “The delivery formulations we are developing as part of this project are intended to be stable at normal refrigerator temperatures while retaining their potency across a range of routes of administration. This will enable rapid, population-scale distribution of new mRNA vaccines and therapeutics to combat infectious disease in developing countries – both potential future pandemics and the deadly pathogens already among us.”

Founded in late 2021, and previously incubated at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CSIR-CCMB), PopVax now employs 70 people across its computational, experimental, analytical, process development, and quality teams at the RNA Foundry, its integrated R&D and process development facility in Hyderabad.

About PopVax

PopVax is an Indian full-stack biotechnology company developing novel mRNA vaccines and therapeutics using computational protein design.

Startup Success Stories: Discover inspiring tales of startups overcoming challenges and achieving success.

Funding Startup News: Stay updated with the latest news and trends in startup funding and investment.

Startup Insights: Dive into in-depth analyses of various industries and market trends to make informed business decisions.