HUMABS BioMed
Bellinzona is home to the future of scientific research in the healthcare sector: the development of vaccines and antibodies from the blood of people who have recovered from specific illnesses.
Company profile
Year founded
2004
Number of employees
5-25
Activities
Analysis and research in the field of immunology, using technology developed on site which identifies and produces antibodies using human blood. These are isolated and treated so they can be used to attack and neutralise the specific viruses, bacteria or molecules that cause infectious illnesses such as flu, Ebola, rabies and dengue fever
Premises in the region
HUMABS BioMed's offices and laboratories have been located in Bellinzona since 2004, the year the company was founded
Links with Ticino
- HUMABS BioMed began life as a branch of the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) in Bellinzona;
- the President and CEO Alcide Barberis, originally from the Blenio valley, studied and worked in Zurich, Boston and Milan before returning to Ticino to run the company.
Interesting facts in numbers
- 5: the number of weeks it takes to extract a useful number of antibodies from the blood of a patient who has proved to be resistant to an infection or illness;
- over 400: the number of fully-functional monoclonal antibodies that HUMABS BioMed has managed to develop in just over ten years.
Results and achievements
HUMABS BioMed works in partnership with four global pharmaceutical companies, and takes part in international clinical development programmes. This research brings the world of medicine closer to discovering treatments to fight contagious illnesses, viruses and certain types of cancer. The company's results have been published in major scientific journals, including the American publications Science and Nature.
Further details
- Il Quotidiano alla HUMABS (in Italian)
(17.02.2015, RSI)
Employee experiences (Italian only)
(company profile updated in April 2015)
