VALBY, Denmark, Aug. 29, 2002 (PRIMEZONE) -- VersaMatrix A/S is a new biotech company owned 100% by Carlsberg, who will finance it with an amount of up to DKK 25 mill. The company will use its know-how and technology to develop new methods for the production and purification of biotechnological products.
VersaMatrix is based on a licence to use patented technology developed at the Carlsberg Research Center. This technology utilizes tiny beads with a diameter of 0.10.5 mm constructed as special networks of crosslinked polymer chains, which are chemically very stable, have good biocompatibility and can absorb large amounts of water or other solvents. Furthermore, the polymer network is provided with chemical handles, which can be modified to recognize and bind a specific substance, e.g. an impurity in potential drugs, which then easily can be separated after it has been bound to the small handles.
VersaMatrix will develop new advanced polymer materials, which are expected to be used within the fields of medicotechnology and diagnostics as well. As an example, these polymers can be used to bind and stabilize enzymes e.g. in diagnostic equipment for blood analysis. In other words, this is a versatile polymer matrix, thus the name of the company. Several international companies have already expressed their interest in cooperating with VersaMatrix.
Ib Johannsen has been appointed Chief Executive Officer of VersaMatrix. He has extensive experience within polymer research as well as management. For four years he was manager at the NKT Research Centre and for seven years Director of the Danish Centre for Polymer Technology with 50 employees. Today, VersaMatrix has four employees, and it is expected that further twelve employees will be hired within the next couple of years.
For the time being, VersaMatrix is located at the Carlsberg Research Center in rented premises, but within a couple of years, the company is expected to need more room outside the Research Center.
Chief Executive Officer Joern P. Jensen, Carlsberg A/S, is chairman of the Board of Directors which also includes Executive Vice President Klaus Bock, Carlsberg Research Center and Chief Financial Officer Per Broendum Andersen, Carlsberg A/S.