The National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI) San Francisco Innovation Conference co-hosted by Prescience International, a firm dedicated to accelerating the commercialization and global adoption of science and technology will bring together small businesses, angel investors, venture capitalists, strategic partners, and business leaders from the biotech and pharmaceutical industries onSeptember 10, 2013 at the Genentech Hall at U C San Francisco.
The conference is sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute which provides global leadership for research, training, and education to promote the prevention and treatment of heart, lung, blood, and sleep diseases and disorders and to enhance the health of all individuals so that they can live longer and more fulfilling lives. The NHBLI is the third largest research organization at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and has a 2012 budget of more than $3 billion. The NHLBI provides grant and contract funding opportunities to support small businesses performing research and development on technologies related to its mission in parynership with Prescience International, Janssen Labs, and Johnson & Johnson Innovation.
GMSBiotech’s technology streamlines sample collection and processing, to then deliver complex genotyping as a simple bench-top microarray test. The goal is to make complex genetic testing simple and inexpensive enough to be done by hand in any lab.
The GMS approach to Companion Genetic Testing is similar to serology in that samples can be analyzed, as-is, without extraction. GMS is launching its core technology – low-cost microarray testing on raw samples – as a radically-simplified way to analyze the principle components of the human immune system: the 6 HLA genes. A suite of “HLA-Chips” and companion software have been developed as our first products. GMSBiotech’s mission is to develop a new standard for HLA-typing that is inexpensive enough to be a companion test for vaccination, or small-molecule therapy, or as a public health screening test for childhood disease risk while being accurate enough to be the companion genetic test for organ and stem cell therapy.
NuvOx focuses on improving oxygenation to body tissues. Its technology is based upon a unique material that transports hundreds of times more oxygen per unit dose than any other material that has been previously studied for this application, including red blood cells. Based in Tucson, NuvOx Pharma is a biotechnology company with a novel patent portfolio allowing it to develop an innovative platform of dodecafluoropentane (DDFP)-based oxygen therapeutics to treat a host of human conditions.
Founded in 2008, NuvOx Pharma has demonstrated therapeutic feasibility in radiation-resistant cancer, hemorrhagic shock, traumatic brain injury, myocardial infarction, retinopathy and stroke. Due to inherent structure of DDFP, a very stable and relative lack of inter-molecular attractive forces, this perfluorocarbon is known to carry large payloads of oxygen in the bloodstream. The main advantage to using DDFP is that it is a liquid at room temperature, but expands to the gas state in the body. Therefore, upon intravenous injection the transition of DDFP from a liquid to a gas in the bloodstream allows for ~600 times increased oxygen transport compared to Hemoglobin.
The conference will also include company presentations by the following the NHLBI-funded companies:
AfaSci, Inc., Aronora, Inc. , Astraea Therapeutics, DRVision, Gamma Therapeutics, Inc., ELEX Biotech, LLC , Cylerus, Inc., HeartVista, Inc, Kestrel Labs, Inc., Klein Buendel, Inc., Nanoshell Company, LLC’s, Nortis, Inc., PlaSalus LLC, Silicon BioDevices, Sharklet Technologies, Inc., Syntrix Biosystems, Inc., and VPDiagnostics, Inc.
In addition, attendees will hear from industry thought leaders including:
- Stephen Flaim, PhD Special Advisor, NHLBI ,& Chairman, TCA
- Allan May Founder, Life Science Angels
- Andrew Schwab Founder & Managing Partner, 5AM Ventures
During the conference, leaders from NHLBI will share information about the NHLBI Office of Translational Alliances and Coordination, changes in the SBIR/STTR program re-authorization, and other funding opportunities and resources.
- Jodi Black, PhD Deputy Director, Division of Extramural Research Activities, NHLBI
- Kurt Marek, PhD Program Director and SBIR Coordinator, NHLBI
- Chris Sasiela, PhD, RAC Regulatory Specialist, Office of Translational Alliances & Coordination, NHLBI
NHLBI staff also will be available to provide advice to applicants and awardees.
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About the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Part of the National Institutes of Health, the NHLBI plans, conducts, and supports research related to the causes, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of heart, blood vessel, lung, and blood diseases; and sleep disorders. The Institute also administers national health education campaigns on women and heart disease, healthy weight for children, and other topics. NHLBI press releases and other materials are available online at www.nhlbi.nih.gov.
About the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs visit www.nih.gov.
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