GeoVax Labs

The story of GeoVax Labs began not in a garage, but in a university lab. The foundational work for the company's approach was laid by Harriet Robinson at Emory University between 1992 and 2002. This research became the scientific bedrock for GeoVax, which was officially formed in Atlanta, Georgia, in 2001. The company's core technology is a vaccine platform called MVA-VLP, which uses a modified, safe virus (MVA) to deliver instructions into the body. These instructions cause the person's own cells to produce non-infectious virus-like particles (VLPs), mimicking a natural infection and training the immune system to fight the real thing. Initially, GeoVax focused its energy and newly acquired lab space on a monumental challenge: developing a vaccine for HIV. By 2006, the company had advanced its work from the lab into human clinical trials, a critical milestone for any biotech firm. The journey was a marathon, not a sprint. A significant event occurred on September 25, 2020, when GeoVax uplisted to the Nasdaq Capital Market, raising $12.8 million in a public offering. This move provided crucial capital and visibility as the company expanded its pipeline to tackle other pressing infectious diseases like Ebola, Zika, and a then-emerging global threat, COVID-19. Under the leadership of Chairman and CEO David A. Dodd, who joined the board in 2010, GeoVax has continued to evolve. The company is now a clinical-stage entity, advancing its next-generation COVID-19 vaccine through multiple Phase 2 trials and developing immunotherapies for cancers. GeoVax's story is one of scientific persistence, built on a university discovery and fueled by the long, patient process of clinical development and public funding.