Dr Marie Yang O’Brien, Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer at University of Liverpool spin-out company, ReNewVax Ltd., has been awarded a prestigious UKRI Future Leader Fellowship (FLF).
Marie is among 68 of the most promising research leaders awarded in the eighth round of UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRIs) Future Leadership Fellowship scheme. She is one of few researchers based in a non-academic setting to be honoured with the FLF award (business stream).
Dr O’Brien’s fellowship studies a bacterium called Streptococcus agalactiae, also known as Group B strep or GBS. This is one of the World Health Organization’s most wanted pathogens, with a disease burden estimated at 319,000 new-born cases globally, resulting in 90,000 deaths. Unfortunately, there is currently no vaccine for the prevention of GBS disease. This project aims to address two of the key technical gaps in the development of a vaccine for Streptococcus agalactiae, which includes the development of a highly sensitive and predictive human cell-based model. It also pre-empts the regulatory and ethical hurdles involved in a maternal vaccine by proposing a model with healthy volunteers in a controlled, safe environment.
Marie said: “With the support of the FLF, I am committed to overcoming the longstanding challenges that have impeded the development of a Group B streptococcus vaccine. My project was meticulously designed to encompass both scientific advancement and societal impact, and I cannot wait to embark on this journey.”
ReNewVax was co-founded by Dr Marie O’Brien and Prof Aras Kadioglu, using seed funds from Innovate ICURe follow-on funding and the University of Liverpool’s Enterprise Investment Fund. The company aims to eliminate life-threatening bacterial infections and combat antimicrobial resistance with novel, broad-coverage vaccines.
Prior to moving into ReNewVax, Marie spent over 10 years at the University as a Research Fellow and Vaccine Portfolio Senior Scientific Manager within the Centre for Global Vaccine Research (CGVR) led by Professor Neil French and Professor Aras Kadioglu.
Marie’s FLF application was supported by Dr Carolyn Horrocks, Head of Enterprise (Health), and Donna Bradshaw, Entrepreneur Coach in Residence, within the University’s Enterprise Team.
Carolyn said: “Through both her academic research and foundation of Renewvax Ltd at Liverpool, Marie is set to have a significant impact on development of vaccines for bacterial infections. This FLF business stream award recognises her achievements to date and enables her to build a platform from which new vaccines to prevent life-threatening GBS infections can be launched.”
Donna said: “Marie places huge emphasis on achieving success through people and culture. Her personal leadership shines through her work and this Fellowship is a great opportunity to show the connection between societal value, enterprise culture and personal leadership. Marie is an inspiration.”
In addition to Marie, two University of Liverpool researchers, Dr Juri Smirnov, Department of Mathematical Sciences, and Dr Jamie Wilson, School of Environmental Sciences, were awarded FLFs in the ‘university stream’. Read more here.
The call for applications for the UKRI FLF scheme (Round 10) will most likely open in early 2025.
The University of Liverpool Enterprise Team supports academic founders, and acts as the first investor, to create spin-outs and license cutting-edge technologies for a better world.
As our portfolio goes from strength to strength, with 24 spin-out companies formed in the last six years. Take a closer look at how we are creating a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem and cluster of high growth companies across the Liverpool City Region and beyond here.