Molsid company

(Biotech & Medtech)

Molsid, a young BioMed company, based in Lyon (France), develops a new generation of fluorogenic molecular probes.

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Market Needs

Modern life science and biotech/medtech applications require the detection of biocatalytical activity of a specific enzyme in live cells without the use of antibodies. However, today’s chromogenic substrates suffer from low performance and marketed fluorogenic substrates lack robustness. The use of enzyme-responsive probes releasing a precipitated signal meets significant challenges, i.e. sensitivity, fast response time, and signal retention. These advantages help identifying clearly and rapidly biomarkers for cancer and other pathogens, contaminations and antibiotic resistances. With Antimicrobial Resistance being announced to become the leading cause of death by 2050 world-wide, the need for early diagnostics is steadily growing.

Breakthrough

In 2003, Jens Hasserodt, professor of organic chemistry at ENS de Lyon, France, started a research program into the development of a new generation of pro-fluorescent, enzyme-responsive probes urgent market needs. Today, Molsid has an exclusive licence on the patent portfolio protecting this innovative molecular technology and currently growths its own patent portfolio.

Origins

Many reports of the past 20 years have highlighted the unique properties of the solid-state fluorophore HPQ, also known as “ELF 97 alcohol”. HPQ is a highly attractive candidate for the incorporation into enzyme-responsive molecular probes that furnish high sensitivity, rapid response, and signal retention. But HPQ has unfavourable chemical properties with regard to its incorporation into stable and robust molecular probes. Hence, a single probe has hitherto been marketed, responding to generic phosphatase activity. It is here that Molsid’s innovative chemical technology changes the game by offering robust probes for many enzyme activities.

ENS Lyon

Team

We are based in Lyon’s Biodistrict Gerland, on the ENS Campus, where we develop and produce the broadest range of robust fluorogenic precipitation-based probes available world-wide. We offer unsurpassed fast and sensitive fluorescence detection for a large panel of enzymes for industrial and R&D applications.

 

Management

Anne Khoschnud

— Chairwoman, Co-founder

25 years of experience in innovative company set-up, business strategy and development, innovation management, team and ressources management, international marketing

After initial linguistic and economic studies in Heidelberg, Germany, Anne got a Master of Project Management from Montpellier University in France. She worked in the Financial Direction of Imerys SA in Paris and in the consumer marketing department of T-Mobile International in London before joining a first start-up project in France. She co-founded 3 innovative companies in different fields (IT, optoelectronics and biomed) and worked as a business strategy consultant for 7 years. She is an occasional lecturer at 2 French top universities (ENSAM, Sorbonne). Anne co-founded Molsid in 2018 and was its CEO & Chairwoman until Oct 2021 before splitting the position and becoming its Chairwoman.

Jens Hasserodt

— Chief scientific advisor, Co-founder

30 years of experience in R&D in organic chemistry, design of molecular probes, inventor of SmartID technology, renowned scientist and lecturer, Professor at ENS Lyon

Jens obtained his PhD degree in Chemistry from Heidelberg University in Germany. He spent 7 years at the Scripps Research Institute in San Diego, CA, before joining France’s elite university Ecole Normale Supérieure in Lyon as a professor of chemistry. Ever since, he developed an international reputation for his research into the detection and characterization of enzyme activity by optical (fluorescence) and magnetic (MRI) detection using sophisticated chemical reactants. He has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles in international science journals, has filed 11 patents, and trained 17 PhD students to date. Jens is Molsid’s Chief Scientific Advisor and its main shareholder.

Younes Lazrak

— Executive Director

22 years of experience in the In Vitro Diagnostics industry. Executive MBA. Graduated in biochemistry, “Innovation & industrial management"

(Strasbourg U. and INSA Strasbourg), holding an Executive MBA (Würzburg U, with residences at Boston U. and Florida Gulf State U.). Younes spent his career bringing innovative concepts to the market: “From idea to technology to actual business…”. Since 2010, he is active in the In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) industry, since 2016 with a focus on infectious diseases. Amongst his positions, he was IP & Licensing Director at Ipsogen, then Qiagen and more recently CEO of C4Diagnostics. In his positions, he successfully lead through CE marking, FDA approval and commercialization of many innovative IVD, IVD companion diagnostics and environmental diagnostic tests.

Stéphan Roux

— CFO

30 years of experience in business administration and financial management, corporate strategy, finance and accounting, team and resource management in various industries.

After an initial diploma in Economics (« Agrégation »), Stephan completed his studies with a Master 2 in Finance, Taxation and Management Control and a Master in Corporate Law (Dijon, Lyon, Paris).  He started his career in an audit firm and was immediately recruited as a financial director at the age of 24. He has solid competencies in the development and management of SME groups until their buy-out or merger. He has successfully managed fundraising projects from 8 to 18 million euros for 3 groups and industrial projects. He joined Molsid in 2023 as its Chief Financial Officer.

Strategic advisory board

Gilles Antoniotti

Gilles Antoniotti has 30 years of experience in the health sector.

He has been a Medical Biologist anda medical crisis manager at Nosoconseil RAMSAY SANTE, an Associate professor and researcher at
the Pitié Salpétrière medical school, a founding shareholder of Biomedica which then became
EUROFINS LAB RA, and of NOSOCONSEIL. In France, he is a speaker and a national expert at HAS
(government agency for the evaluation of health technologies), SPF (national health agency), and
Cepias (prevention of infections center), and author of international publications and medical books.

Christian Abraham

— Strategic Advisor

15 years+ of experience in therapeutic areas such as autoimmune, neurological, infectious diseases, and oncology in diverse industries including Biotech, Diagnostic, and Pharmaceutical.

Christian obtained his PhD in Biology at Gutenberg University (Germany) and complemented it with postdoctoral research (Dep. of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Dep. of Molecular & Cellular Anatomy, University Clinic Aachen). He supplemented his background with an Executive MBA from Gutenberg School of Business. He gained extensive international experience during his roles spanning Business & Portfolio development, Alliance management and Market Access. Due to his diverse background, Christian brings a well-rounded view for finding solutions on how healthcare can be made patient-centric, inclusive, and affordable. Christian is Molsid’s strategic advisor since 2018 and became a shareholder in 2021.

Pierre Morgon

— Interim CEO

35 years of experience in leading positions in the global life science industry in C-level positions at global level in multinational corporations and as CEO of start-up companies.

Pierre holds a Doctorate of Pharmacy, a MA in Business Law and a MBA, he is an alumnus of INSEAD and IMD. CEO of MRGN Advisors, Executive VP, Portfolio Strategy and Supranational Affairs at CanSino Biologics and Regional Partner for Switzerland at Merieux Equity Partners. He is Chairman of the Boards of Theradiag, Eurocine Vaccines, MYCB1, Adiposs, Kupando and Health Technologies Holding, and Non-Executive Director to the Boards of Vaccitech, Univercells and Amoeba. He is a lecturer in several MBA programs and in life science conferences, and at the Mass Challenge incubator in Switzerland where he is also a mentor for start-up life sciences companies. Pierre is Molsid’s strategic advisor since 2018.

Bernard Mandrand

— Strategic Advisor

40 years of experience in leading positions in the molecular biology and diagnostics industry.

Bernard holds a PhD in Biophysics and biochemistry from UCB Lyon1 in 1974. Co-founder and Chairman of several companies, Bernard is a former Scientific Director of bioMérieux and Scientific Director of Lyonbiopôle Excellence Cluster in Lyon. He co-founded and led several start-ups and spin-offs: Ademtech, Apibio (a JV between bioMérieux-CEA), Adjuvatis and GlycoBAR. Specialized in bio-analysis and microbiology, he co-authored 68 publications as well as 62 patents granted in Europe and 55 granted in the US. Bernard is a renowned expert for innovation in the life sciences sector. He is Molsid’s Strategic Advisor since its foundation in 2018.

Soizic Ambrosi

— Strategic Advisor

20 years of experience in legal, tax and finance affairs in Pharma

Soizic Ambrosi has filled major positions within big pharma players such as Novartis where she was Head of the Tax department. She is a former member of the Board of Banque de France and LEEM Tax Council. Soizic studied at Harvard Business School Finances and Collège Polytechnique and has a DJCE (legal) diploma. Former CFO of Molsid, and still a shareholder, she founded her own Healthtech start-up recently (Intertio) of which she is the Chairman and CEO.

Strategic Antimicrobial Resistance advisory board

Rafael Cantón

— PHD

Clinical Microbiology specialist, Head of the Clinical Microbiology Department at the University Hospital Ramón y Cajal in Madrid (Spain) and associated Professor of Clinical Microbiology at Complutense University in Madrid.

Prof. Rafael Cantóns research activity is developed within the Spanish Network for Research in Infectious Diseases (CIBERINFEC, https://www.ciberinfec.es/) and Institute Ramón y Cajal for Health Research (IRYCIS, http://www.irycis.org) in which he coordinates the Microbiology, Immunology and Infection Area. This activity is focussed on antimicrobial resistance mechanisms, including extended-spectrum beta-lactamases and carbapenemases, antimicrobial susceptibility testing, respiratory tract infections (mainly in bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis), and interplay of clonal epidemiology and resistance. He is currently the clinical data coordinator of the European Committee for Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) (former president). He has been President of the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology (SEIMC). He has published more than 600 articles in peer-review journals, 55 book chapters and had several communications on international meeting and congresses. His H factor is 96. He is member of the editorial board of Microbial Drug Resistant, Drug Resistance Updates, Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, Enfermedades Infecciosas y Microbiología Clinica and Revista Española de Quimioterapia journals. He is editor of the Clinical Microbiology Procedures of the SEIMC (https://seimc.org/).

Laurent Poirel

— PHD

Medical and Molecular Microbiology Unit, Faculty of Science and Medicine, University of Fribourg, Switzerland. Swiss National Reference Center for Emerging Antibiotic Resistance

Laurent Poirel is Associate Professor at the Emerging Resistance to Antibiotics Research Unit and Swiss National Reference Center for Emerging Antibiotic Resistance at the University of Fribourg. His research interests emerging mechanisms of resistance to ß-lactams, polymyxins, and quinolones in Gram-negative rods, either in human and veterinary medicine. He is specialized on the genetics of acquisition of resistance genes in Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Acinetobacter baumannii, plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance, and polymyxin resistance determinants in Enterobacteriaceae. He has co-invented a series of rapid diagnostic tests for detection of emerging resistance traits. He is the author of ca. 600 publications in international journals, his H-index being 136. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the European Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and Associate Editor of two highly-ranked journals, i.e. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy and Journal of Antimicrobial Agents. He has been active member of the ESCMID, being a member of the Executive Subcommittee (2015-2018), co-director of two ESCMID Summer Schools (Borstel 2017 and Paris 2018), and currently member of the ESGARS Executive Committee.

Frédéric LAURENT

— Professor of Microbiology

Frédéric LAURENT is Professor of Microbiology at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Lyon within the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1. He leads the Department for bacteriology within of the Hospices Civils de Lyon (HCL)

Prof. Frédéric LAURENT is Professor of Microbiology at the Faculty of Pharmacy of Lyon within the University Claude Bernard Lyon 1. He leads the Department for bacteriology within of the Hospices Civils de Lyon (HCL). Frédéric holds a diploma in Medical Biology and obtained his pharmacy thesis in 1997, a PhD in 2000 and an authorization to supervise research (HDR) in 2005. He completed a post-doctoral fellowship at St George’s Hospital-University of London devoted to the The use of genetic approaches (DNA chips) to understand the pathophysiology of staphylococcal infections. He is co-principal investigator of the “Pathogenesis of staphylococcal infections” team within the International Center for Research in Infectiology INSERM U1111-CNRS UMR5308, University Lyon 1, ENS de Lyon and in charge of a dedicated research axis specifically for understanding the pathophysiology of staphylococcal osteoarticular infections.

He is also co-director of the National Reference Center for Staphylococci, which is the pathogen most frequently involved in osteoarticular infections. He has published more than 200 publications since 1995 as well as numerous book chapters. He is a member of the executive committee of the European Staphylococcal Study Groups (EGES) of the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID).

Pr. Mandy Wootton

— PhD

Scientist/Operational manager of the Specialist Antimicrobial Chemotherapy Unit (SACU) in Public Health Wales, a unit providing an antibiotic-resistance reference service to Wales.

Mandy Wotton has >20 years of experience in susceptibility testing methods and resistance mechanisms. She is secretary of the BSAC susceptibility testing committee, providing educational workshops and conferences and she is an active participant in developing EUCAST methodology and guidelines for the European Development Laboratory (EDL). Prior to her Cardiff position, she spent over 10 years in clinical research on antibiotics in Bristol, where she completed her PhD in glycopeptide resistance in S. aureus.

Dr. Beverly Egyir

— PhD

Senior Research Fellow · Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), Ghana

Beverly Egyir activities comprise research on AMR, participation in the antimicrobial stewardship, and monitoring of hospital and community-acquired infections. She uses state-of-the-art phenotypic and molecular tools to understand the epidemiology of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria isolated from humans, livestock, and the environment. Specifically, she studies superbugs like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), ESBL-producing bacteria, and others- with an overall goal of tackling antimicrobial resistance in Ghana and on the African continent. She also teaches and supervises undergraduate and postgraduate students in the field of bacteriology and antimicrobial resistance. She has organized several training sessions for students/ laboratory staff on correct identification and performance of standard antimicrobial susceptibility testing of bacterial species. She founded Women in Biomedicine, Africa, an organization born out of a passion to provide mentorship and career guidance for young women in biomedical careers; to harness their skills to significantly improve health care in Africa. She is a member of the National Antimicrobial Resistance Group in Ghana.

Dr David Jenkins

— PhD

Medical microbiologist and infection prevention specialist at University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, President of BSAC

David Jenkins has served as lead infection prevention doctor at University Hospitals of Leicester for over 20 years. He is also his Trust’s lead doctor for antimicrobial stewardship. In addition, Dr Jenkins is responsible for undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in infection at the University of Leicester Medical School. He is engaged in research in antimicrobial stewardship and was a co-investigator on an antibiotic prescribing behaviour research project funded by the Economics and Social Research Council, looking at prescribing practice in the UK, South Africa and Sri Lanka. He also took part in a study investigating antimicrobial use and resistance in Cape Verde.

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