Accelerating the development of biomedical technologies

The Center for Biotechnology at Stony Brook University, on behalf of the Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH), has announced the recipients of the second round of funded projects under the Hub’s technology development and commercialization initiative. Funding for ten projects totaling $600,000 was awarded to applicants from the Hub’s partner institutions. Partner institutions include Stony Brook University, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and the Feinstein Institute at Northwell Health Systems.

The technology development awards made available by the LIBH are specifically aimed at growing a pipeline of commercially promising biomedical technologies that can be out-licensed for further development or serve as the foundation for new company formations in the region. There are two tiers of funding, each with the goal of accelerating technology development to reach a critical development inflection point. Feasibility awards ($50,000) are designed to rapidly test the feasibility of new ideas in a “fail-fast-or-proceed” format, or to add value to existing intellectual property leading to new market applications. Proof-of-Concept Awards ($100,000) provide targeted, milestone driven support for further development, testing, and analysis of existing intellectual property.

A wide range of disciplines are represented in the project awards this cycle including biomedical engineering, chemistry, biochemistry, psychiatry, molecular genetics and microbiology, and pathology and dermatology.  Eight Feasibility awards and two Proof of Concepts awards have been funded this cycle. The recipients of this round of awards are:

Feasibility Awards

Therapeutic for Clostridium difficile antibiotic-associated diarrheal disease – Dr. James Bliska

Device for rapid, simple and highly parallel single-cell processing – Dr. Eric Brouzes

Developing a small molecule drug to treat systemic C. albicans infections – Dr. Nick Carpino

Next generation hedgehog inhibitor for invasive basal cell carcinoma – Dr. Jiang Chen

A Novel Strategy for Recombinant AAV Vector Production for Gene Therapy – Dr. Patrick Hearing

A tandem-integration-based multi-barcode method for high-throughput combinatorial screening – Dr. Sasha Levy

Novel CAIX Targeted Combination Inhibitor/PET tracer to treat patients with solid tumors – Dr. Peter Smith-Jones

Substrate-Assisted Tethered Inhibitors of LigA to Treat MDR Gonorrhea – Dr. Peter Tonge

Proof of Concept Awards

fMRI Dynamic Phantom for Improved Detection of Resting-State Brain Networks – Dr. Lilianne Mujica-Parodi

Development of SMASH technology as a next-gen sequencing diagnostic for congenital heart disease – Dr. Michael Ronemus

​“The announcement of this second cycle of awards from the Long Island Bioscience Hub under the NIH-REACH program is exemplary of the increasing commercially relevant research taking place in the region” said Clinton T. Rubin, Ph.D., Distinguished Professor, Chair, Department of Biomedical Engineering, and Director, Center for Biotechnology. “Coupled with the recent expansion of the Hub to include the Feinstein Institute and the announcement of our third “request for proposals,” the LIBH is steadily working toward its goal of accelerating the translation of these technologies from the bench to the bed side.”

The main goal of the LIBH is to foster the development of therapeutics, preventatives, diagnostics, devices and research tools emerging from LIBH partner institutions that address diseases within the NIH’s mission.

Download a PDF of the press release here.

Stony Brook University-led initiative to accelerate commercialization of biomedical discoveries

STONY BROOK, AND MANHASSET, N.Y. – April 21, 2016 – The Center for Biotechnology at Stony Brook University and the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, the research arm of Northwell Health, announced that the Feinstein Institute will be joining the Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH).

Established with a National Institutes of Health grant in 2015, Stony Brook’s Center for Biotechnology is the lead administrative institution for the LIBH, an NIH-designated Research Evaluation and Commercialization Hub (REACH). It is one of three such Hubs in the country, the mission of which is to accelerate the translation of biomedical discoveries into new drugs, devices, and diagnostics to enhance health and improve patient care. The Feinstein Institute joins LIBH members Stony Brook University, Brookhaven National Laboratory and Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. The addition of the Feinstein Institute fulfills one of the Hub’s goals of coordinating comprehensive technology commercialization efforts across all four major bioscience research institutions on Long Island.

“We look forward to working with the Feinstein Institute, and their involvement in the Long Island Bioscience Hub further enriches the region’s burgeoning innovation economy and entrepreneurial ecosystem,” said Clinton Rubin, PhD, Director of the Center for Biotechnology. “The Feinstein Institute is a world leader in multiple areas of biomedical research, and their expertise will complement the groundbreaking work being done at Stony Brook, Brookhaven Lab, and Cold Spring Harbor.”

“The Feinstein Institute’s focus is on advancing science, treating disease, and bringing healthcare innovations to patients,” stated Dr. Kevin Tracey, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Feinstein Institute. “Our partnership in the Long Island Bioscience Hub will help ensure that scientific breakthroughs emerging from our research enterprise progress into the commercial sector where they can ultimately impact patient care. We see the Long Island Bioscience Hub as a great opportunity to accomplish our mission.”

The LIBH is connected to a network of National Institutes of Health-designated “proof of concept” centers that include the three REACH centers and three additional National Centers for Accelerated Innovation. Collectively, they are developing best practices for the commercialization of academic innovations. The Hubs & Centers also have access to resources at the federal level including the US Patent & Trademark Office, Food & Drug Administration, and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to provide guidance at the earliest stages of technology development.

The LIBH will provide funding for feasibility and proof of concept studies at the four Long Island partner institutions, and coordinate access to expertise in areas required for early stage technology development, including scientific, regulatory, business, legal, and project management. The Hub will also facilitate introductions to strategic industry partners and early stage investors.  The LIBH announced its first round of technology development awards in December 2015, committing approximately $900,000 to thirteen projects. The second round of funded projects is expected to be announced in April 2016.

In addition to the Long Island Bioscience Hub’s institutional partners, support for the initiative has been provided by the Research Foundation of SUNY and Empire State Development. Total investment in the Hub over the next three years exceeds $8 million.

Download a PDF of the press release here.