The tech-bio company Evaxion, located in DTU Science Park for three years, is currently experiencing great success, largely due to the development of its personalized vaccines based on a combination of AI and immunology. These vaccines can help save and improve the lives of cancer patients.
By utilizing AI, Evaxion simulates the human immune system, allowing it to develop predictive models to identify and develop personalized targeted immunotherapy through a vaccine.
“What we have achieved, which is unique to Evaxion, is that with our AI platform, we have been able to predict the effect in humans within cancer treatment. That is, predict whether the vaccine works. It is unique and groundbreaking that our AI prediction of the vaccine can directly relate to the patient’s progression-free survival. If it had been in the USA, in my opinion, it would have been on CNN,” explains Andreas Holm Mattsson, Founder and Chief AI Officer.
Standard immunotherapy interrupts the communication between cancer cells and the immune system, preventing cancer cells from tricking the immune system into not attacking them. In addition to standard immunotherapy, which releases this brake, AI technology’s vaccines specifically direct the immune system to attack and remove the diseased cells in each patient.
“It works like a set of keys tested through a supercomputer. Within two days, the computer will have calculated which key works for this particular patient based on material from the patient’s tumor biopsy. And within seven weeks, we will develop a personalized vaccine that can be produced in the pharmaceutical industry in the future,” explains Andreas Holm Mattsson.
Facts about Evaxion's vaccine:
- The vaccine trains the immune system soldiers, T-cells, to recognize and kill cancer cells. This means that the cancer tumor is either completely removed, reduced in size, or, in some cases, has no effect.
- The side effects of this vaccine are far fewer than those of traditional cancer treatments such as chemotherapy.
- The vaccine’s effectiveness is high as it is tailored to the individual patient’s immune system.
- It takes two days for Evaxion’s supercomputer to calculate the “key” to how each vaccine should be developed. The vaccine is developed in just seven weeks, after which the patient is vaccinated.
- The vaccine is particularly effective when treating cancer types with many mutations, such as skin cancer and lung cancer.
- The vaccine is currently undergoing human testing in a phase 2b study conducted in Australia and Italy.
The facilities support a cyclical, iterative workflow
Before/after pictures from Evaxion’s laboratories in DTU Science Park
Our laboratories were designed and built according to our specifications in close collaboration with DTU Science Park. They were all completed in record time and at a very fair price.
Andreas Holm Mattsson
Founder and Chief AI Officer, Evaxion
Employee satisfaction is also essential for Evaxion. “It’s the basis for us being able to develop vaccines,” says Andreas Holm Mattsson. Therefore, it is crucial that the physical environment provides employees access to fresh air, exercise, and nature, and the employees actively utilize the green surroundings for activities such as padel and walk & talks.
As Andreas Holm Mattsson says:
Working with AI models requires a clear mind, and that’s what we get at the science park.
Andreas Holm Mattsson
Founder and Chief AI Officer, Evaxion
The future looks bright for Evaxion
After Evaxion moved into the park, they established new collaborations with neighboring companies. This is partly due to the networking opportunities at DTU Science Park, such as the annual Sports Festival.
Our collaboration with Expres2ion Biotechnologies, located across the road, is particularly successful. Together with them, we are developing a herpes vaccine. We also have other close partners, such as the patent advisory firm Inspicos.
Andreas Holm Mattsson
Founder and Chief AI Officer, Evaxion
In addition, Evaxion has brought in MSD as a significant shareholder. They are collaborating on developing a bacterial vaccine, addressing an important medical need. Andreas Holm Mattsson considers this collaboration extremely valuable for their business development.
Overall, Evaxion is in a good place today in terms of the company’s development and the employees’ satisfaction at work.
“So it doesn’t get much better than this,” concludes Andreas Holm Mattsson.”
