QureTech Bio granted millions to fight antibiotic resistance

Umeå life science company QureTech Bio has received a SEK 3 million grant from the Swelife innovation programme (funded by the Swedish Government via Vinnova) to make antibiotic-resistant bacteria sensitive to different antibiotics again.

“We are delighted to receive this grant, as it will enable us to create a product that can help patients and save lives,” says Fredrik Almqvist, CEO of QureTech Bio.

Bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics are a growing global problem and can result in medicines becoming less effective. QureTech Bio, which is located at the Umeå Biotech Incubator (UBI), wants to combat this by developing new drugs that either enhance the effect of existing antibiotics or that disarm bacteria instead of killing them, thus reducing resistance development.

Now the company, in collaboration with Umeå University and Malmö-based Magle Chemoswed, has been awarded SEK 3 million by Swelife via the Samverkansprojekt för bättre hälsa (Collaboration Project for better health ). The money will be used to take the project to the next phase of development.

“We have discovered new opportunities to treat severe infections by making antibiotic-resistant bacteria susceptible to various antibiotics again. We have already demonstrated that our substances have an effect in a very difficult-to-treat disease model and this money from Swelife makes it possible for us to focus on studies that will help develop a commercial product,” says Fredrik Almqvist.

“We are delighted with this collaboration, in which we can combine our in-house developed drug delivery system with the new drug candidates developed by QureTech Bio,” says Peter Schuisky, CSO at Magle Chemoswed. “Our shared goal is to develop a product that can effectively treat antibiotic-resistant infections and save lives.”

Fredrik Almqvist continues:

“Thanks to this grant we have the opportunity to deepen our collaboration with Magle Chemoswed, which has created exciting technology for administering the substances that can make the final product more effective.”

He believes the grant will help move the project to a stage where it becomes more attractive to larger investors.

“It is crucial for us to be able to develop a product that can help patients, and illnesses acquired in healthcare settings are a major problem right now. QureTech Bio offers a new way of treating these diseases – and the potential is enormous.”

“In the United States alone someone dies every fifteen minutes from an antibiotic-resistant bacteria, and the situation is similar in Europe, so solving this problem is extremely important.”

He continues:

“We are very pleased that despite tough competition Swelife believes our project is important enough to invest in. It is a quality stamp on our efforts so far. The funding gives us the financial conditions to work in the longer term. Our focus and major goal are to save lives and we have high hopes for the future.”

For more information contact:

Fredrik Almqvist, PhD
Quretech Bio Co-Founder and CEO
fredrik.almqvist@quretech.com
+46 70-397 90 97

About Quretech Bio:

Quretech Bio is a Swedish pharmaceutical development company that addresses a significant medical need by developing a new class of antibacterial agents that target antimicrobial resistance. Quretech Bio’s vision is to develop first-line medicines to combat infectious diseases and the occurrence of antibiotic resistance, establishing itself as a leading pharmaceutical discovery company in its field.

About Swelife – for a competitive life science ecosystem in Sweden:

Swelife supports collaboration within academia, industry and healthcare, with the goal to strengthen life science in Sweden and improve public health. It is a strategic innovation programme, funded by the Swedish Government via the Swedish innovation agency, Vinnova, and by the programme’s partners.

www.swelife.se