Gene therapy manufacturing: Fuse Vectors secures US$5.2m

Gene therapy has been making significant strides in recent years. However, there’s a major hurdle holding it back: manufacturing. Copenhagen-based Fuse Vectors has set out to change the game with its innovative approach. At the heart of Fuse Vector are its co-founders, Benjamin Blaha and Jordan Turnbull. They recognised the limitations of traditional manufacturing technologies, seeing first-hand how outdated methods were producing therapies that were slow to develop, expensive, and often low in quality. As the founders describe it, traditional methods are like “tossing LEGO bricks into a tumble dryer and hoping houses emerge.”

Blaha and Turnbull set out to rethink viral vector development from scratch, leading to a breakthrough: a controlled, cell-free approach that assembles viral vectors with unprecedented precision and speed. “Fuse Vectors’ cell-free Fuse Technology offers significant improvements, reducing production time and costs while enhancing vector quality to meet patients’ unmet needs,” explains Blaha. “The enzymatic AAV capsid filling process eliminates cell-based AAV production, using efficient technologies storing components in a module library. This allows on-demand, controlled biocatalytic reactions to fill capsids and works across all serotypes.”

The funding, led by early-stage deep tech venture capital firm HCVC, will allow Fuse Vectors to move forward with their approach. The company is already collaborating with several partners, ranging from academic research groups to leading pharmaceutical companies. Fuse Vectors plans to pursue two commercialisation strategies: partnering with pharmaceutical companies and biotech firms to optimise drug candidates using their technology, and developing their own pipeline of therapeutic candidates. “We are thrilled to support Fuse Vectors in their mission to revolutionise gene therapy,” said Alexis Houssou, Managing Partner of HCVC. “With their unique cell-free viral vector solution, expert founding team and strong business model, Fuse Vectors has the potential to overcome significant challenges in the field, and we believe in their ability to bring transformative treatments to patients.”