ImmunoSensation entrepreneurs successfully pitch an innovative approach to fight respiratory viruses with an immunostimulatory nasal spray

A team of researchers in the group of Gunther Hartmann at the Institute of Clinical Chemistry and Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital Bonn, and the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSensation² successfully pitched their start-up idea of Coldex, a nasal spray that provides protection from viral infections, at the Pitch4Med Contest at the Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf and the 2^nd Medical Pitch Contest of the Medical Faculty, University of Bonn. 

At the Pitch4Med Contest in Düsseldorf in October 2023, Dr. Christine Wuebben and her co-entrepreneurs first presented their innovative idea in a ten-minute pitch in front of a top-class jury consisting of Dr. Jan Engels, Investment Manager High-Tech Gründerfonds, Rolf Fellmann, Chairman of the business angel network Angel Engine and Lars Gussen, Investment Manager TechVision Fond, who gave the young researchers valuable feedback.

The Coldex team then entered the 2^nd Medical Pitch Contest during the MIB Future Panel at the Medical Faculty Bonn with a refined five-minutes pitch. The distinguished jury, consisting of Dr. Laura Pedroza (Investment Manager, Hightech Gründerfonds), Dr. Christopher Jahn (Investment Manager, TechVision Fonds), Maximilian Erb (VC Department, NRW.Bank) and Dr. Alexander Zink (Head of Technology & Innovation, Xlife Sciences) was convinced by the innovative concept and awarded Coldex the shared first place in the competition.

Thanks to its promising approach, the Coldex team recently received prototyping grants from the transfer center enacom of the University of Bonn.