Innovate UK Business Connect's Sustainable Chemicals Innovation Network champions businesses developing cleaner, more sustainable alternatives to fossil fuel-derived chemical processes. Synthetic biology company ErebaGen is a great example that uses cutting-edge biology to transform how chemicals are made and have highlighted how chemicals and engineering biology form part of the pharmaceutical supply chain, illustrated through a project funded by the Sustainable Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Programme (SMMIP).
A spin-out from the University of Warwick, ErebaGen specialises in unlocking hidden microbial pathways to discover new enzymes and biocatalysts. These can be used to replace conventional chemical processes with biological alternatives – reducing energy use, eliminating hazardous substances, and improving efficiency.
“We use processes that microbes have evolved to do chemistry,” says Dr Fiona Marston CEO of ErebaGen. “Our speciality is accessing chemistry that isn’t normally switched on when you grow bacteria in the lab and harnessing it for use in drug discovery, chemical development and also now in sustainable manufacturing.”
Where biology meets chemical manufacturing
ErebaGen’s current Innovate UK-funded project (Sustainable Medicines Manufacturing Innovation Programme (SMMIP) tackles one of the most widely used – and hazardous – processes in pharmaceutical manufacturing: aromatic nitration. This has traditionally called for high temperatures and concentrated acids, but ErebaGen is developing a biological alternative that works at room temperature in water.
“The aim is to replace a high-energy, high-risk chemical process with a bacterial one, making it safer and more sustainable,” says Dr Fiona Marston.
This research highlights how investing in groundbreaking innovation can unlock new approaches to long-standing industrial challenges.
Targeted support at a critical moment
Innovate UK support has played a key role in helping ErebaGen accelerate its R&D at a critical stage of growth as it moves towards sustainable manufacturing. For an early-stage company, having the right support at the right time can make all the difference.
“The funding has been pivotal for us,” explains co-founder and CSO, Dr Doug Roberts. “It’s allowed us to carry out much more substantial research and really focus our efforts. Raising private investment is particularly challenging at the moment, so grant funding has enabled us to continue our work and develop our technology and build momentum.”
Alongside funding, Innovate UK Business Connect provided targeted support at critical stages in the project.
“If you have a question, something that you want to advance or a challenge that you’re facing, they’re very good at helping us to network and connect,” Dr Fiona Marston explains.
Building partnerships and capability
The Business Connect team also introduced Erebagen to the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) and Sterling Pharma Solutions. These collaborations are key in helping the company build a better model of the process, scale its technology faster and generate the robust data needed for commercialisation.
“We can do a lot in the lab,” says Dr Doug Roberts, “but the real challenge is scaling up. Working with partners, such as CPI, allows us to take what we’ve developed and move it towards industrial scale.”
The project is also opening up exciting new opportunities across sectors. While ErebaGen’s initial focus is pharmaceuticals, its technology has applications in a whole range of areas, including chemicals, cosmetics and materials.
“What we’re developing is fundamentally a platform,” says Dr Fiona Marston. “It can be applied wherever there’s chemistry that could be replaced by a biological process – opening up opportunities across multiple industries.”
Next steps: scaling and commercialisation
ErebaGen is currently halfway through a two-year programme. By the end of the project, the team aims to demonstrate a scalable, versatile technology, validate its sustainability and cost benefits, and build the evidence needed to attract further investment.
Looking further ahead, the company plans to expand its partnerships, strengthen its intellectual property, and explore new applications for its technology across multiple industries.
The long-term goal is to move from solving the individual chemistry problems that people come to us with, to proactively developing biological solutions for industry, and building that intellectual property. That’s where we can create the most value.
– Dr Fiona Marston, CEO of ErebaGen