Genovax s.r.l.

What Genovax s.r.l. does

Genovax s.r.l. is an Italian private biotechnology company founded in March 2008 as a spin-off from the University of Genova, headquartered in Colleretto Giacosa in the Turin metropolitan area (VAT 09820670017, shared capital EUR 15,000). The company develops therapeutic vaccines for chronic diseases, with two principal programs: GX101, a tolerogenic gene vaccination therapy for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) based on an Ig-pCons chimeric construct that fuses a consensus anti-dsDNA autoantibody peptide with a human IgG Fc region to induce regulatory T-cell responses (CD4+CD25+ and CD8+CD28-) and restore immunological tolerance, with complete protection from lupus onset demonstrated in lupus-prone mice; and GX301, a telomerase-derived peptide cancer immunotherapy using four proprietary internationally-patented peptides administered with adjuvants, evaluated in a Phase I/II trial in advanced prostate and renal carcinoma showing mean survival exceeding 11 months versus approximately 6 months from literature, and renal carcinoma mean survival of 13 months in 3 patients. The company also identified two early-stage preclinical programs (GX201 for immunotherapy and GX401 for atherosclerosis) in 2009, but no subsequent development progress on these is documented.

Genovax operates as a research-stage biotech with no commercialized products, no pricing model, and no disclosed revenue. The business model has historically relied on regional grant funding — including the 2009 Piedmont Region 'YOUNG RESEARCHERS IN COMPANIES' grant and participation in a consortium led by Prof. Giorgio Inghirami that won the EUR 20 million 'Biotechnology for Life Sciences' regional call — supplemented by asset monetization. In September 2012, Genovax executed its principal commercial event by selling the GX301 project, including its patents, know-how, and associated intellectual property, to Mediolanum farmaceutici S.p.A. (Milano), which assumed further development; this left GX101 (lupus, preclinical with a pre-IND meeting held in 2010) as the company's primary remaining asset. Customer-facing activity is limited to academic clinical trial partnerships, notably the San Martino University Hospital in Genova, with patient cohorts in SLE, advanced prostate cancer, and renal carcinoma representing the addressable end-markets rather than current paying customers.

The company is founder-controlled and lean, led by CEO and Board President Domenico Criscuolo (with prior Big Pharma clinical development experience at Roche Italy, ICON, Novuspharma, and Creabilis Therapeutics), Scientific Director Gilberto Filaci, and Scientific Board Member Franco Indiveri (Full Professor of Internal Medicine at the University of Genova and author of 350+ publications). Institutional VC or PE backing is not disclosed in the source material; founding financial support came from Eporgen Venture of the Bioindustry Canavese Park in Ivrea. The last documented news milestone is October 2014, with no subsequent clinical readouts, fundraisings, or pipeline expansions on record.

Name

Genovax s.r.l.

Legal name

Genovax S.r.l.

Website

https://genovax.it

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Genovax s.r.l. is an Italian private biotech developing therapeutic vaccines for chronic diseases, including the GX101 tolerogenic gene vaccination for systemic lupus erythematosus and the now-divested GX301 telomerase peptide cancer immunotherapy.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biopharmaceutical R&D (Therapeutic Vaccines)

NAICS

Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414), Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836), Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

Therapeutic Vaccines (cancer, chronic infection immunotherapy) (HLAAAEAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Therapeutic Vaccines (e.g., Cancer/Chronic Infection) (HLAIAEAG), Vaccine Technology Platforms (mRNA, viral vector, protein subunit, inactivated/live-attenuated, VLP, DNA) (HLAAAEAD)

Keywords

• Therapeutic vaccines
• Tolerogenic gene vaccination
• Cancer immunotherapy
• Autoimmune disease therapy
• Peptide-based vaccines

Headquarters

HQ city

Turin

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Genovax s.r.l. is a research-stage biotechnology company developing therapeutic vaccines based on tolerogenic gene vaccination and peptide-based immunotherapy for chronic diseases. Its primary candidates are GX101, a tolerogenic vaccine for systemic lupus erythematosus using an Ig-pCons chimeric construct, and GX301, a telomerase peptide vaccine for prostate and renal carcinoma (transferred to Mediolanum Farmaceutici in 2012). Preclinical programs GX201 and GX401 extend the pipeline into additional immunotherapy and atherosclerosis indications.

Product overview

Genovax is a biotech company developing therapeutic vaccines for chronic diseases. The company has two main products: GX101 (a tolerogenic gene vaccination for systemic lupus erythematosus using an Ig-pCons chimeric construct) and GX301 (a telomerase-based vaccine for prostate and kidney cancers). GX301 was sold to Mediolanum Farmaceutici S.p.A. in 2012. Two additional preclinical projects are noted: GX201 for immunotherapy and GX401 for atherosclerosis.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GX101 Tolerogenic Vaccine for Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
• GX301 Telomerase Peptide Cancer Vaccine
• GX201 Immunotherapy Program
• GX401 Atherosclerosis Program Preclinical-stage atherosclerosis program in preliminary development, seeking financial support. Disclosed publicly at the Healthcare Biotech Forum in March 2009.

Quantifiable outcome

• Phase I/II study completed with mean survival time of 11+ months in advanced prostate cancer patients vs ~6 months expected
• +3 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Mediolanum farmaceutici S.p.A.coreTechnology or Integration · 1 September 2012In September 2012, the GX301 project with its patents, know-how, and all associated intellectual property was sold to Mediolanum farmaceutici S.p.A. (headquartered in Milano). The company is undertaking further development of the telomerase vaccine technology.
• Piedmont Regional Consortium (led by Prof. Giorgio Inghirami)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGenovax participated in a consortium that won the 20 million euro Piedmont regional call in 'Biotechnology for Life Sciences'. The consortium was headed by Prof. Giorgio Inghirami from Torino. Genovax contributed scientific expertise on the GX301 immuno-oncology project. The evaluation completed in January 2009 resulted in the consortium winning access to research funds for three years.

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• CureVac: European mRNA therapeutic vaccine developer focused on oncology and prophylactic vaccines. Shares therapeutic vaccine modality and European base with Genovax, serving as a relevant peer for understanding the trajectory of European vaccine biotechs.
• BioNTech: German biotech developing mRNA-based vaccines and immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases. Comparable to Genovax in therapeutic vaccine modality, though BioNTech is significantly more advanced and capitalized, providing a benchmark for what platform-based vaccine companies can achieve at scale.
• Vaccibody: Norwegian biotech developing therapeutic DNA vaccines for cancer and infectious diseases using proprietary vaccine platform technology. Shares the DNA/genetic vaccine modality with Genovax's gene vaccination approach.

Regional players

• Neovii Pharmaceuticals: European biotech with autoimmune disease focus, including therapies for lupus and transplant-related conditions. Relevant peer for understanding autoimmune therapeutic development, particularly for SLE where Genovax's GX101 is targeted.

Broad incumbents

• Genmab: Danish biotech developing antibody-based immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune conditions. Broader incumbent in the immunotherapy space with relevant therapeutic area overlap (autoimmune, oncology) and European headquarters.
• Bavarian Nordic: Larger European vaccine company with portfolio spanning infectious disease and oncology immunotherapies. Provides a comparable European-headquartered vaccine biotech benchmark with broader commercial capabilities.

Direct peers

• Immutep: Clinical-stage biotech developing LAG-3 based immunotherapies for cancer and autoimmune diseases including SLE. Comparable therapeutic focus on autoimmune disease modulation via immunological mechanisms, with a more advanced clinical pipeline.
• Hookipa Pharma: Austrian biotech developing arenavirus-based therapeutic vaccines for cancer and infectious diseases. Comparable therapeutic vaccine modality targeting oncology, with similar European academic spin-off origins and clinical-stage positioning.
• Immatics: Clinical-stage biotech developing peptide-based therapeutic cancer vaccines (TCR-based immunotherapies). Closely comparable to Genovax's GX301 telomerase peptide vaccine approach in cancer immunotherapy, though with more advanced clinical pipeline.
• Gritstone bio: US biotech developing neoantigen-based therapeutic vaccines for cancer and infectious diseases. Comparable in therapeutic cancer vaccine modality and clinical-stage development of personalized immunotherapies.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/genovax-s.r.l.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Genovax s.r.l.