Infection Innovation Consortium (iiCON) celebrates as SMEs and startups secure funding from Innovate UK Biomedical Catalyst Microbials Accelerator

The Microbials Accelerator, delivered by LYVA Labs and BioNow, with partners Infection Innovation Consortium (iiCON), University of Liverpool (UoL), CPI (Centre for Process Innovation), and Health Innovation Northwest Coast was for SMEs developing microbiomes, biofilms, and phage technologies. It gave ten organisations the skills and expertise to prepare them to scale their businesses, find and secure funding. They had access to a unique package of free business support and clinical/ technical advice. The companies were then supported to apply for up to £100k of Innovate UK Biomedical Catalyst feasibility funding. Nine companies secured £1 million between them to advance R&D activities and enable commercialisation. 

The Biomedical Catalyst is Innovate UK’s flagship grant funding mechanism, enabling small and medium-sized businesses to test and develop innovative health and care solutions across life sciences, including therapeutics, medical devices, and digital health. By awarding grants to UK-based businesses of varying stages of development enabling them to develop innovative healthcare solutions, secure investment, and speed up bringing new products to market.

As well as funding, Innovate UK Biomedical Catalyst brings together an ecosystem so projects are supported with access to partners on their innovation journey.

iiCON provided support to the companies during the accelerator programme, helping to define the grant projects and will continue to provide technical input and commercial support throughout the project awards.

One example of ongoing collaboration is Oxford Sim Cells. OSC will work with Dr Shaun Pennington within iiCON’s organoid platform to develop their preclinical vaccine candidates – building on a previously funded Innovate UK collaboration. Dr Pennington and his team will develop vaccine candidates using a novel method of creating genome free bacteria which retain surface proteins. This means they provoke an immune response without being able to replicate.

Janet Hemingway, Founding Director of the Infection Innovation Consortium (iiCON), an LSTM-based collaboration that works with industry to bring new infectious disease technologies to market, said: “Exploring new technologies and creative collaborations that will deliver next-generation treatments is at the heart of iiCON’s mission. We’re therefore delighted to be collaborating with LYVA Labs on this targeted support programme, which will give SMEs and those with new ideas access to a variety of really impactful benefits, such as the ability to upscale and overcome product development obstacles.”

Dr Samana Brannigan, Head of Health Technologies at Innovate UK, said: “This funding through our flagship programme will allow these early-stage SME’s to develop commercially viable offerings and build significant momentum in the microbial technologies space. From lung infections and infant gut microbiomes, to wound care and mosquito repellents, these projects and technologies could offer solutions for global health challenges and have huge impact on the health outcomes of millions of people worldwide.”

“It has been an enriching journey of discovery, collaboration, and accelerated growth, guided by the expertise of professionals in the field.” Boon Lim, PhD, CTO – Simcell.

About iiCON: Founded in 2020 with an £18.6m UK Government grant, iiCON brings together industry, academia and clinicians to accelerate the discovery, development and deployment of new treatments and products for infectious diseases – saving and improving millions of lives across the world. The consortium has quickly grown into a £260m programme working with a global network of more than 800 companies.

By enabling industry access to world-leading facilities and expertise, it has supported 36 new products to market, with more than 5 billion units of life-saving products and treatments reaching communities across the world. It has also created 559 jobs and bolstered the region’s R&D infection spend by £700m.

About Innovate UK: Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), is the UK’s innovation agency. It works to create a better future by inspiring, involving and investing in businesses developing life-changing innovations. Its mission is to help companies to grow through their development and commercialisation of new products, processes and services, supported by an outstanding innovation ecosystem that is agile, inclusive and easy to navigate.

The Biomedical Catalyst Accelerator Programme: In 2022 Innovate UK launched a call for providers to deliver its Biomedical Catalyst Accelerator Programme pilot, which supported the development of early-stage health and life science innovation in the UK. In collaboration with the Medical Research Council, they created the accelerator pilots to support spinouts, start-ups, and entrepreneurial-minded academics to test their ideas and develop concepts, with support from key stakeholders from the innovation ecosystem. LYVA Labs brought together a consortium of local partners with expertise in microbials, securing £500,000 funding to deliver a national ‘Microbials Accelerator’.

About LYVA Labs: a wholly owned subsidiary of LCR Ventures Ltd, LYVA Labs was created to drive growth and innovation across the Liverpool City Region. The team includes some of the region’s most well-respected names in the health and life science sectors from the public and private arenas. With initial funding from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, LYVA Labs has created a streamlined process for early-stage investment for people, ideas, and projects that are transforming the region through dynamic and regenerative innovation.

About Bionow: established in 2011, BioNow supports business growth, competitiveness, and innovation in the life sciences sector. BioNow helps its members to succeed in a competitive business landscape, bringing the life sciences community closer together.