EvoGenix partners with BresaGen

Biotech start-up EvoGenix has teamed with Adelaide-based company BresaGen to work on a protein biopharmaceutical project.

BresaGen will conduct feasibility studies and process development for a class of small protein molecules which EvoGenix plans to develop as an entirely new approach to finding and treating difficult targets such as viruses and cancer.

BresaGen, which is listed on the ASX and has major operations in the US, has expertise in process development for producing protein pharmaceuticals.

It will apply its expertise to finding an effective way of making the targeting proteins reliably and cheaply, according to EvoGenix CEO Dr Merilyn Sleigh.

EvoGenix, which has operations in Sydney and Melbourne, is an early-stage biotech established to exploit novel technologies developed by the Cooperative Research Centre for Diagnostics.

"Commentators on the Australian biotechnology industry question how all of the new companies being established will thrive and grow," Sleigh said. "One very powerful solution to this problem will be for Australian biotechs to work together to make the most of the considerable expertise available."

In turn, BresaGen CEO Dr John Smeaton said the partnership validated the larger company's process development capabilities. "We're delighted to be working with the emerging companies in the biotech sector," he said.

Sleigh said the BresaGen partnership was EvoGenix's first. She said the company was positioned within the fast-growing field of protein biopharmaceuticals, offering a technology platform for the rapid identification and development of highly active proteins for use in human therapy and medical imaging.