Biome Australia Ltd (ASX:BIO) has ticked all the necessary boxes in its development program for biome strain Lactobacillus plantarum BMB18: completing identification, commercial validation and early-stage characterisation for the strain, which has now been lodged with German culture bank DSMZ (Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen GmbH).

The company is now preparing to receive the intellectual property for MB18, which will be transferred by one of Biome’s R&D (research and development) partners, as per an agreement announced to the market in December 2023.

The next stage for the IP program will be external characterisation of the strain.

This cluster of achievements will open the door to Biome’s commercialisation of the strain and represents an important step for the company in terms of IP ownership, the potential for development of new products, and a pipeline for research and development for the coming years.

Founder and managing director Blair Vega Norfolk said this was an important moment for Biome.

“This is a major step forward for Biome in the growth and development of the business with the further ownership of probiotic intellectual property. This new strain, BMB18, is an incredible opportunity for long-term product innovation and diversification into new health areas.

“As a Biome owned asset we expect to create significant value for the business as we continue our journey in research and development into new areas with probiotic listed medicines.”

Biome shares were down after the news: at 10:29 AEDT, they were trading at 66 cents, a fall of 1.49% since the market opened.

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