Meet Thomas Folliard, CEO and Founder, of ExcepGen
Unlocking the power of nucleic acids for a new era of medicine.
One of the most recent investments by the Oxford Angel Fund is with biotech company ExcepGen. Their technology makes mRNA and DNA dramatically more powerful, enabling reduced dosing and greater therapeutic effect for mRNA and DNA-based therapies in infectious disease (next generation pan-viral vaccines), immuno-oncology, and protein replacement.
We are very happy to introduce Thomas Folliard, CEO and Founder, of ExcepGen. and learn more about his journey from Oxford to founding a biotech startup revolutionizing nucleic acid therapeutics.
What did you study at Oxford?
I completed a DPhil Biochemistry at Oriel College.
What is your most important takeaway from time at Oxford?
I was extremely lucky to spend my time between three departments at Oxford (Engineering, Biochemistry, Plant Sciences). I learned that an impossible problem in one department could be easily solved with a different set of skills and knowledge that were commonplace in another department. This stuck with me and formed the backbone of my interdisciplinary principles.
Did you always think you would be an entrepreneur?
I don’t see myself as an entrepreneur, I see myself as a scientist who discovered something that fitted best into starting a company.
What motivated you to start ExcepGen?
After I finished my DPhil I became obsessed with the potential of nucleic acid based medicines. These medicines are more akin to an instruction than a traditional drug. I saw a key limitation in that cells responded negatively to the delivery of these instructions. This limited what instructions we could deliver, if the kinds of instructions weren’t limited we could program cells to do all kinds of new jobs, produce vaccine antigens, kill cancer, slow their aging. This vision was limited by the rejection of these DNA and mRNA based instructions by the cells they were delivered to. By solving this problem I felt I could unlock an entire new generation of nucleic acid medicines and I saw such demand in the market that I felt I should dedicate the next few years to developing the technology and the company around it.
What is the problem the company is solving?
Unlocking the power of nucleic acids for a new era of medicine. Cells have evolved to reject foreign mRNA and DNA, which limits their potential when delivered as a vaccine or a therapeutic.
Why is this an important problem to solve?
The biotech and pharma industry is investing heavily in creating mRNA and DNA therapies. The potential of these technologies is vast across all areas of medicine, including: infectious disease (e.g.COVID mRNA vaccines), immuno-oncology, and protein replacement. ExcepGen’s technology overcomes one of the key roadblocks to making mRNA and DNA medicines. By improving tolerability and expression, ExcepGen hopes to enable all of these application areas.
How is the company solving the problem in an innovative way?
ExcepGen makes an additive mRNA that creates a protein that slows down, in a tunable fashion, the natural cell processes that detect and react to foreign and anomalous mRNA and DNA. Other companies are primarily working on other aspects of the problem (improving delivery of nucleic acids, improving nucleic acid stability and potency via chemical modifications)
Why is the Oxford Angel Fund excited about this investment?
mRNA and gene therapy markets are estimated at $50B+ and growing, and with only a select group of commercialized products. We believe ExcepGen is poised to unlock a handful of nucleic acid products, applying its potent RNAx to develop vaccines, cancer therapies, and rare disease therapies. We are very impressed by the founding team and see opportunities for ExcepGen to commercialize successful products directly, license their platform to other biotech or pharma companies, and form strategic partnerships to bring new products to market. To learn more visit excepgen.com.
ExcepGen
Revolutionizing mRNA therapeutics
Founders: Thomas Folliard, Barbara Mertins
Founded: 2018
Stage: Seed, Sept 2023
Notable Investors: RA Capital
ExcepGen is a biotech company revolutionizing nucleic acid therapeutics. ExcepGen’s technology makes mRNA and DNA dramatically more powerful enabling reduced dosing and greater therapeutic effect for mRNA and DNA-based therapies in infectious disease (next generation pan-viral vaccines), immuno-oncology, and protein replacement.