BigChem GmbH was founded this October to commercialize validated IT products and services developed at the Helmholtz Zentrum München. The research was supported by the Helmholtz Association and European and national projects, including the BMBF GO-Bio award. The central product is a web-based platform ‘OCHEM’ (Online CHEMical database and Modelling environment, ochem.eu), that allows the extraction of information from large datasets with exceptional precision and speed. The platform has been validated and developed in a number of high-profile partnerships with global biopharmaceutical companies and academic institutes. ‘Our work during the last years has not only led to influential scientific publications, but has also extended our software and database. This is now able to seamlessly handle millions of compounds and operates with data matrices containing billions of data entries,’ explains Dr Igor Tetko, lead scientist of the project and CEO of BigChem GmbH. Main applications include drug discovery and optimization projects and the identification of the mode of action of new drug candidates.
In a deal mediated by Ascenion, the commercial rights to the technology have been transferred from the Helmholtz Zentrum München and one of its spin-offs to BigChem GmbH. In the context of the transaction, Ascenion has acquired shares in the new company.
‘The technology provides a compelling approach to guiding drug discovery that significantly reduces costs and improves the quality of results,’ says Dr Anja Zimmermann, Ascenion’s expert for equity management and company valuation. With an extended, ready-to-market version of the product, BigChem GmbH is now set to attract clients and generate first revenues right from the start.’ Several companies and chemical authorities have already expressed their interest in working with BigChem.
Further information: BigChem Website
