Vikram Virdi

Vikram Virdi, Is the Scientific Co-Founder & Scientific Director at Animab. Animab is an animal health biotech company, and recently closed its series A round. Animab develops oral monoclonal antibodies against gastrointestinal targets in livestock animals. This technology is also a true alternative to antibiotic use.

Vikram’s PhD and post-doc at the VIB & Ghent University led the groundwork for 11 years of research on edible antibodies that form the solid scientific framework of Animab.

During his post-doc research at a consortium of high-profile labs in Belgium, the team discovered two surprising features. The first was that engineering the highly-simplified version of complicated secretory-IgA antibodies can be robust enough to work in the gut lumen and second, these antibodies can be manufactured at scale using microbial expression system and food processing technology. These features allow for easy administration in feed with increased efficacy.