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iCell Gene Therapeutics Granted Orphan Drug Designation

iCell Gene Therapeutics, a CFB client company, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation for its chimeric antigen receptor engineered T-cells directed against the target protein CD4 (CD4CAR) for the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL). The Orphan Drug Designation program provides orphan status, and associated development incentives, to drugs and biologics intended for the safe and effective treatment, diagnosis or prevention of rare diseases or disorders that affect fewer than 200,000 people in the U.S. Read more about the designation and company here.

iCell

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Applications are now open for the 12th BioREACH Award Program from the Center for Biotechnology, which provides $50,000 in translational research funding for Stony Brook faculty and postdoctoral researchers to generate the evidence needed to advance promising innovations to the next stage of development.

BioREACH funds milestone-driven studies and welcomes biomedical innovations as well as platforms, tools, computational technologies, and other enabling technologies with the potential to contribute to solutions addressing unmet needs in health.

Application deadline: October 29, 2026, 5:00pm ET

For info sessions, eligibility and deadlines visit our REACH Website and FAQ.

The Center for Biotechnology (CfB) has helped advance some of Stony Brook University’s most impactful biomedical innovations, among them the yeast two-hybrid system, Xiaflex®, ReoPro®, Oracea®, and 3D virtual colonoscopy. The CfB has supported more than 475 faculty-led translational research projects and contributed to 306 license agreements generating $51 million in royalty returns to the University.

Questions? Reach out to our program contacts or sign up for office hours:

Dee Dao, PhD, Associate Director, dee.dao@stonybrook.edu
Office Hours: Monday–Friday, 2–3:30 PM | Sign up Here

Zelda Mendelowitz, PhD, Venture Associate, zelda.mendelowitz@stonybrook.edu
Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, 8–11 AM | Sign up Here

[post_title] => BioREACH: Translational Research Funding Opportunity [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => bioreach-translational-research-funding-opportunity [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2026-09-04 11:55:36 [post_modified_gmt] => 2026-09-04 15:55:36 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://centerforbiotechnology.org/?p=5065 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [1] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1592 [post_author] => 4 [post_date] => 2015-05-08 13:40:05 [post_date_gmt] => 2015-05-08 13:40:05 [post_content] => [post_title] => Long Island Bioscience Hub [post_excerpt] => The Center for Biotechnology has received a National Institutes of Health Research And Commercialization Hub award to establish the Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH) in collaboration with Stony Brook University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Brookhaven National Laboratory. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => long-island-bioscience-hub [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2015-05-12 16:30:56 [post_modified_gmt] => 2015-05-12 16:30:56 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => http://centerforbiotechnology.org/new/?p=1592 [menu_order] => 202 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [2] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 4873 [post_author] => 4 [post_date] => 2025-05-05 10:03:17 [post_date_gmt] => 2025-05-05 14:03:17 [post_content] =>

Eve McDavid and her team at Mission-Driven Tech have been named the Health Track winners of the Spring 2025 Stony Brook Venture Champions (SBV) Challenge hosted at LIHTI this past week.

The SBV Challenge is focused on identifying high-potential, impactful cutting-edge hard tech venture concepts originating from research labs and universities on Long Island, and accelerating and supporting their commercialization journey to bring impactful, equitable and sustainable solutions and products to market.

Mission Driven Tech aims to improve equity in outcomes for cervical cancers by providing a less painful medical device and raising awareness.

Prizes awarded are in the form of funds that will apply towards I-Corp support related to customer discovery, technology development, infrastructure, advice, resources, networking opportunities, and training. Awardees will complete a regional I-Corps program within four months of the challenge.

Check out all the spring 2025 winners via the LIHTI LinkedIn page here.

[post_title] => CFB Client Mission Driven Tech Tops Stony Brook Venture Challenge [post_excerpt] => Eve McDavid and her team at Mission-Driven Tech have been named the winners of the spring 2025 Stony Brook Venture Champions (SBV) Challenge hosted by LIHTI this past week. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => cfb-client-mission-driven-tech-tops-stony-brook-venture-challenge [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2026-03-16 14:26:53 [post_modified_gmt] => 2026-03-16 18:26:53 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://centerforbiotechnology.org/?p=4873 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) [3] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 1643 [post_author] => 4 [post_date] => 2015-09-15 18:44:52 [post_date_gmt] => 2015-09-15 18:44:52 [post_content] => Independently documented economic impact: $1.2 Billion Jobs created: 1,125 New corporate revenues: $812 Million Supported additional funding: $238 Million Center for Biotechnology documented economic impact over recent fifteen-year period Perhaps it is numbers like these which best illustrate the success CFB has had on the biotechnology industry and economy. And perhaps they contributed to the redesignation of the CFB as a Center for Advanced Technology for ten years by the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR) as a Center for Advanced Technology (CAT). The New York State redesignation recognizes the impact of the CFB over 30 years driving innovation toward commercial goals and resulting in accelerated product development cycles "from bench to boardroom to bedside." It recognizes the key role played by the CFB in facilitating a regional bioscience innovation ecosystem, collaborating with Stony Brook University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Brookhaven National Laboratory. The redesignation by New York State validates all of the work we have done over the last 10-year period to create the foundation for exponential growth. We would not have secured the National Institutes of Health REACH award without it, says Clint Rubin, Director of the Center for Biotechnology."The REACH designation represents an $8.1M investment in technology development, commercialization, and new company formation. Visionary's like New York State Senator Kenneth La Valle deserve the credit. They recognized thirty years ago that universities represented a largely untapped pool of innovation and economic potential. Strikingly, it validates and provides the foundation for the new Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH), a CFB-led initiative to formally bring these institutions together to foster technology development, commercialization, and new company formation. The LIBH is a bold step made possible by a partnership with the National Institute of Health REACH initiative (Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hub). The NIH award places the CFB in the national spotlight along with other elite institutions. (Read more on the NIH REACH award here) "This redesignation occurs in an interesting and changing environment, where varying elements in the regional, state, and national biotech ecosystem are aligning. There is a confluence of events and issues that are creating a unique opportunity to build the biotech economy in the region and across the State." Commented Diane Fabel, Director of Operations, CFB. "We have learned a lot about the process of moving academic innovation into the commercial sector over time. And there have been such tremendous scientific advances recently that represent new commercial opportunities and life saving technologies. There is still much to learn and do, and it is an incredibly exciting time to be doing it.     [post_title] => Center for Biotechnology Redesignated by New York State: 'Unique Time of Change and Growth' [post_excerpt] => The New York State redesignation recognizes the impact of the CFB over 30 years driving innovation toward commercial goals and resulting in accelerated product development cycles from bench to boardroom to bedside. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => center-for-biotechnology-redesignated-by-new-york-state-unique-time-of-change-and-growth [to_ping] => [pinged] => http://centerforbiotechnology.org/new/center-for-biotech-receives-nih-award-to-develop-a-bioscience-hub/ [post_modified] => 2016-03-02 17:48:17 [post_modified_gmt] => 2016-03-02 17:48:17 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => http://centerforbiotechnology.org/new/?p=1643 [menu_order] => 200 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw ) ) [post_count] => 4 [current_post] => -1 [before_loop] => 1 [in_the_loop] => [post] => WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 5065 [post_author] => 4 [post_date] => 2026-09-01 14:03:32 [post_date_gmt] => 2026-09-01 18:03:32 [post_content] =>

Applications are now open for the 12th BioREACH Award Program from the Center for Biotechnology, which provides $50,000 in translational research funding for Stony Brook faculty and postdoctoral researchers to generate the evidence needed to advance promising innovations to the next stage of development.

BioREACH funds milestone-driven studies and welcomes biomedical innovations as well as platforms, tools, computational technologies, and other enabling technologies with the potential to contribute to solutions addressing unmet needs in health.

Application deadline: October 29, 2026, 5:00pm ET

For info sessions, eligibility and deadlines visit our REACH Website and FAQ.

The Center for Biotechnology (CfB) has helped advance some of Stony Brook University’s most impactful biomedical innovations, among them the yeast two-hybrid system, Xiaflex®, ReoPro®, Oracea®, and 3D virtual colonoscopy. The CfB has supported more than 475 faculty-led translational research projects and contributed to 306 license agreements generating $51 million in royalty returns to the University.

Questions? Reach out to our program contacts or sign up for office hours:

Dee Dao, PhD, Associate Director, dee.dao@stonybrook.edu
Office Hours: Monday–Friday, 2–3:30 PM | Sign up Here

Zelda Mendelowitz, PhD, Venture Associate, zelda.mendelowitz@stonybrook.edu
Office Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, 8–11 AM | Sign up Here

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BioREACH: Translational Research Funding Opportunity

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CFB Client Mission Driven Tech Tops Stony Brook Venture Challenge

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Center for Biotechnology Redesignated by New York State: ‘Unique Time of Change and Growth’

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