Malaria Diagnostics -- Business Development
The NCCR Proof-of-Concept (PoC) project “Business Development for Malaria Diagnostics” was granted to Nico Bruns at the University of Strathclyde (Prof. Nico Bruns) with CHF 20’000.
The project was directly linked to the NCCR project of the Bruns’ group on the development of a new malaria diagnostic based on the catalytical amplification of a malarial biomarker via polymerization. This led to the development of a spinoff project from the Adolphe Merkle Institute and University of Fribourg named Hemolytics. The goal of the PoC was to assure that resources for assisting the business side of Hemolytics were available.
Two generations of diagnostic kit prototypes were built at Hemolytics. Several series of field tests in collaboration with the Centro de Pesquisa em Medicina Tropical clinic in Porto Velho, Brazil were performed. This data, together with all the preliminary information gathered by Hemolytics formed the basis to write a formal business plan. This business plan, together with a pitch deck created based on the business plan, was used to appeal to and engage with potential impact investors. These were the objectives of the POC which was a vital component towards the transition of this NCCR project into a sustainable business.
Hence the PoC was used for the temporary, part-time hiring of a business developer with entrepreneurial experience for preparation of the necessary next steps.
For more information, please see:
