CFB Operations Director Inducted into SBU Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors

CFB Director of Operations, Diane Fabel, has been inducted into the Stony Brook University Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI-SBU) as an honorary member. At the chapter’s Annual Meeting on May 1, 2017, 16 new members and 2 honorary members were inducted into the Academy. Ms. Fabel and her fellow inductees join 30 stony brook faculty members, including CFB Director Clinton Rubin, who were inducted as inaugural members to the SBU-NAI in 2016.

Read more on the chapter and this year’s inductees here.

Commercialization Fellowship for High School Students & Undergrads

The Center for Biotechnology is seeking one or more qualified and motivated high school /undergrad students interested in learning about and supporting technology development and commercialization of new biomedical innovations on behalf of the Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH). The LIBH is a National Institutes of Health-designated Research, Evaluation, and Commercialization Hub (REACH), one of only three such centers in the country. The LIBH supports the development and commercialization activities of its partner institutions including Stony Brook University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, and Brookhaven National Laboratory. Candidates for the Fellowship will have completed their sophomore year in high school through junior year in undergraduate studies. Candidates should have a GPA of no less than a 3.0, and have an interest in exploring careers in a biomedical field. Interested candidates should send a one-page statement of interest detailing their academic accomplishments and describing what they would like to gain from the Fellowship experience, along with a transcript to: Kristina Duryea kristina.duryea@stonybrook.edu.

Selection Process:
Deadline for application materials is May 1 – June 2, 2017.
Additional admissions procedures (including interviews, by telephone or in person) may be required.

Notification:
Applicants will generally be notified by June 9, 2017. One-two applicants are expected to be selected.

NIH-REACH: Lowering the Barriers that Slow Translation Research

The Center for Biotechnology’s Clint Rubin and Diane Fabel recently co-authored a STAT article on the NIH-REACH proof-of-concept program. In 2015, The Center for Biotechnology received one of three national NIH-REACH designations, through which the Long Island Bioscience Hub was established.

The article, co-authored by all of the REACH center directors, discusses the importance of REACH-type programs and the impact REACH has been able have in a relatively short amount of time. In just over two years, the three REACH institutions have evaluated over 400 promising product development projects, funding more than 60 experimental treatments and tests that target a wide range of health issues.

Read the full text here: https://www.statnews.com/2017/04/17/nih-reach-biomedicine-treatments/

Celmatix unveils Fertilome


New York City based start-up Celmatix has unveiled “Fertilome”, a DNA-based fertility test. The company describes Fertilome as the “first genetic screen that examines a woman’s genetic signature and how it may impact her reproductive health and ability to conceive, today and in the future.”

Fertilome looks at 49 variants in 32 genes associated with a broad spectrum of female reproductive conditions. Information derived from the test could allow women to see a broader picture of their fertility, allowing for a more proactive approach to planning their family and overcoming fertility issues. Click here to read more about Celmatix and Fertilome.