Vaxess Technologies Closes Funding For Administering Vaccines Through A Bandage

Cambridge, Mass.-based Vaxess Technologies is inching closer to developing a bandage-like product that will be able to administer vaccines and other therapeutics through the skin.

Last week, Vaxess, which born from research developed at MIT and Tufts University, announced it had closed the final tranche of an $8.2 million Series A round, which brings the company’s total funding to more than $22 million. The funds will be used, in part, to advance research into its MIMIX platform, which enables sustained dermal delivery of a wide range of therapeutics and vaccines.

Vaxess said the MIMIX patch improves the efficacy of products across a range of therapeutic areas by mimicking” the prolonged exposure that occurs during a natural infection. MIMIX is placed on the skin for only a few minutes, yet the system continues to deliver the active product for anywhere from days to weeks, the company said. One of the benefits of the patch, the company said, is that MIMIX does not require refrigeration.

Michael Schrader, co-founder and chief executive officer of Vaxess, said the company is focused on the development of next-generation products that will lead to better patient outcomes and are also more easily distributed across the globe. Because it does not require refrigeration and the ease of use, the MIMIX pouch can be applied by patients at home, the company said.

The funding round was led by MIT venture capital firm The Engine. Additional support came from Bioinnovation Capital, Vaxess said. Previous funding has been supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.

In addition to the funding, Vaxess also announced that drug delivery and development veteran Purnanand Sarma was named to the company’s board of directors. Sarma currently serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Immunome, a biotechnology company developing first-in-class therapeutics leveraging the most highly educated components of the immune system from patients. Until recently, he served as the President & CEO of TARIS Biomedical, where he raised more than $100 million in equity financing, drove multiple products into the clinic, and entered into a deal worth up to $587 million with Allergan all based on the company’s proprietary sustained release drug delivery system.

“I believe MIMIX technology truly represents a step-change in the non-invasive, biodegradable and controlled delivery of medicines not requiring refrigeration,” Sarma said in a brief statement.

Schrader said Sarma’s experience, as well as the financial support from The Engine, are “powering the company’s next phase of growth into a wide range of therapeutic areas including oncology, autoimmune diseases, allergy, and vaccines.” – Bio Space