UB CAT announces R&D collaboration awards to eight life sciences companies

BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo’s Center for Big Data and Advanced Technology in Health Sciences ((UB CAT) To accelerate the development of innovative health science technologies in fiscal year 2024-25, UB awarded more than $495,000 to eight life sciences companies to support collaborative projects with faculty experts.

UB CAT is one of 15 centers across the state funded by Empire State Development’s Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR). Each project pairs a faculty researcher with a New York State business with the goal of enabling the growth of life and health sciences businesses across the state. Through UB CAT, businesses gain access to matching funds for collaborative product development and proof-of-concept research and development projects in four primary areas: drug development, diagnostics, medical devices, and health information technology.

“UB CAT serves as a vital resource for life and health sciences companies focused on developing new technologies and devices,” said Per Stromhaug, UB’s senior vice president for economic development. “The path to commercializing biomedical technologies is often challenging and expensive. To address this challenge for businesses, UB CAT offers access to university experts and student talent, as well as essential early-stage financing to assist with R&D efforts.”

New to the program this year is TETmedical, an Ithaca-based Cornell spinout. The company, in collaboration with Rosalind Lai and Elad Levy, faculty members in UB’s Jacob School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, will develop the first blood test for stroke that has the potential to revolutionize stroke care by speeding diagnosis and reducing missed cases to improve patient care.

“It was a pleasure to collaborate with Dr. Levy and Lai on this groundbreaking project at UB,” said David Fischell, CEO and co-founder of TETmedical. “Their leadership and the excellent reputation of the University at Buffalo Canon Stroke & Vascular Research Center make it an ideal location to evaluate the first blood test for stroke. The success of this project will also generate jobs and other benefits for New York State, where TETmedical’s facility is located.”

Others are focused on developing cancer therapies, robotic clot-removal catheters, and mRNA vaccines, among other technologies. Companies receiving UB CAT support for fiscal year 2024-25 include:

Flag Biography

Flag Bio is a Buffalo-based biotech startup pioneering proprietary mRNA adjuvant technology to improve the efficacy, safety and affordability of mRNA vaccines.
Faculty: Norma Nowak, PhD, professor of biochemistry at the Jacobs School
Project: Looking at systemic activation of the immune system in the delivery of mRNA vaccines

Immco Diagnostics, Inc.

Immco Diagnostics, Inc.. is a company specializing in advanced diagnostics for autoimmune diseases and is a UB licensee.
Faculty: Julian L. Ambrus, Jr., MD, professor of medicine at the Jacobs School
Project: Evaluation of new early markers in Sjögren’s Disease

JM Kanti

JM Kanti A global company with locations in Dublin, Ireland, Buffalo, and Phuket, Thailand, Canty develops automated intelligent imaging technologies to solve some of the most difficult problems in manufacturing process control for a variety of industries.
Faculty: Jun Xia, PhD, associate professor of Biomedical Engineering, a joint program of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Jacobs School
Project: Development of sonocrystallization control systems to improve drug production

Neurovascular Diagnostics, Inc.

Neurovascular Diagnostics, Inc. A subsidiary of UB is developing a low-cost blood test to screen for ruptured brain aneurysms in high-risk patients.
Faculty: John Kolega, PhD, associate professor of pathology and anatomical sciences at the Jacobs School
Project: Development of a blood test to detect dangerous brain aneurysms

POP Biotechnologies, Inc.

POP Biotechnologies, Inc.. is a UB subsidiary that develops cutting-edge vaccine technologies that are enabling the creation of powerful new ways to prevent infectious diseases and treat cancer.
Faculty: Jonathan Lovell, PhD, SUNY Empire Professor of Innovation in Biomedical Engineering, a joint program of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Jacobs School
Project: Development and validation of new cancer therapies using immunogenic neoepitopes

POP Biotechnologies, Inc.

POP Biotechnologies, Inc.. is a UB subsidiary that develops cutting-edge vaccine technologies that are enabling the creation of powerful new ways to prevent infectious diseases and treat cancer.
Faculty: Jun Qu, PhD, professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
Project: Development and evaluation of a new peptide vaccine against Alzheimer’s disease

QAS.AI, Inc.

QAS.AI is a UB spinoff focused on the development and commercialization of predictive artificial intelligence software to optimize neurovascular therapy by assisting in decision making during surgery.
Faculty: Swetadri Vasan Setlur Nagesh, PhD, research assistant professor of neurosurgery at the Jacobs School
Project: Developing bias reduction algorithms to improve QAS.AI prediction performance

TETmedical, Inc.

TETmedical Inc.A spinout and clinical-stage platform nanomedical company based at Cornell, TETmedical is focused on in vitro diagnostics that provide insights into high-consequence disease decision-making. TETmedical’s first product is a high-sensitivity, 15-minute blood test to prevent missed strokes.
Faculty: Assistant professor Rosalind Lai, MD, and SUNY Distinguished Professor and L. Nelson Hopkins Endowed Chair Professor Elad Levy, MD, both of the Department of Neurosurgery, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
Project: Clinical evaluation of blood test, Neuron Specific Enolase Functional Activity Stroke Test (NSE-FAST) in patients with stroke warning admitted to UB

Vicora, Inc.

Vicora, Inc.is a medical device startup that has commercialized robotic catheters that clear blood clots from the legs, lungs and brain.
Faculty: David Zlotnick, MD, interventional cardiologist and assistant professor of medicine at the Jacobs School
Project: Robotic clot removal catheters: Simulated use test with UB doctors for FDA application

For more information about the UB CAT program and the upcoming application cycle for the next funded projects, visit: https://www.buffalo.edu/partnerships/about/programs/ub_cat.html