EuropaBio sat down with new member SenseUp, to find out about the natural evolution approach for novel protein and RNA products
INTERVIEW
About Georg Schaumann
Georg studied biology in Düsseldorf and Aachen, before inventing single-cell biosensors for microbial strain development by natural evolution for his PhD at Forschungszentrum Jülich. He started SenseUP as a spin-off project in 2015, and raised funding with Helmholtz-Enterprise, GO-Bio phase I & II accompanied by two seed-financing rounds. SenseUP GmbH began commercial activity in mid 2017 and today has an active team of 12 and has received awards from German, European and global institutions. Georg is a father of two and lives in Cologne.
Interview with Dr. Georg Schaumann, CEO and Founder at SenseUP
1) What inspired the foundation of SenseUp?
SenseUP was founded by scientists with the desire to translate great scientific achievements into real-world applications. We believe that science and technology will strongly contribute to solving the world’s biggest problems. But to do so, they must be implemented in industrial applications and that’s what SenseUP was founded for and is delivering on now.
2) What are the policy areas which offer opportunities and potential challenges for SenseUp?
Opportunities: Bio-technologies such as ours will enable the transition of many industrial sectors away from an oil, chemical or animal base to new solutions that better support environmental goals and a growing population. Policies that support environmental and climate regulation can accelerate this transition.
Challenges: In Europe, the regulatory process for novelty products is extremely long and complex. We need this to change to avoid innovation migrating to more accommodating parts of the world.
3) What are your plans for growth?
Since 2019, SenseUP has been working on an RNA program to explore and identify novel applications with strong commercial value. We have now started developing a range of RNA products based on microbial fermentation using SenseUp’s patented Corynebacterium and natural evolution technology.
Our aim is to develop sustainable and effective commercial products that are ready for industrial-scale production at low cost and can be launched in the years to come in cooperation with strategic industrial partners.
4) How do you see SenseUp being able to transform the biotech industry?
By delivering on our vision! This is: “Enabling a healthy and sustainable future by unlocking the path to valuable proteins and RNA”
RNA has revolutionary potential as a therapeutic agent for both human and animal health, as well as for use as a biopesticide in agriculture.
We are targeting animal parasites and plant pathogens that cause financial losses worth billions of Euros, in addition to positive impact on human, animal and environmental health.
