Four CU companies receive commercialization grants from state

Four companies formed around technologies developed at the University of Colorado recently were selected to receive funding from Colorado's Bioscience Discovery Evaluation Grant Program. The company grant program (BDEG-Co), launched in 2007 by the state's Office of Economic Development and International Trade, provides early stage matching "seed" grants to enable the development and commercial validation of promising technologies that are licensed from Colorado research institutions by Colorado-based start-up companies.

CU-based companies receiving funding in this round:

• 2CTech Corp. – The company's proprietary SeeQ technology, based on research by CU Denver researchers Jeffrey Olson and Naresh Mandava, uses intraocularly delivered photoactive nanoparticles (particles that convert light to electrical energy, similar to a conventional solar cell but on a sub-cellular scale) to advance the treatment of ocular diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa, retinal detachment, diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration, which lead to diminished sight and eventually blindness.
• BioAMPS International - Focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of proprietary antimicrobial peptide therapeutics for the treatment of systemic infectious diseases because of drug-resistant bacteria. The company's proprietary technology platform, based on work by CU Denver researcher Robert S. Hodges, utilizes novel designs of D-conformation peptides (a type of peptide with increased half-life inside the body) to create unique drug candidates.
• Mosaic Biosciences - Advancing a fundamentally new class of synthetic materials to support native tissue regeneration. With its proprietary platform technology based on the work of CU-Boulder researchers Christopher Bowman and Kristi Anseth, Mosaic expects to significantly impact the field of tissue regeneration, including applications in wound healing, bone regeneration, cartilage repair, stem cell therapy, and dermal fillers.
• Suvica – A drug discovery company that uses a novel screening technology developed by CU-Boulder professor Tin Tin Su, which employs mutant Drosophila (fruit flies) to identify and develop compounds that enhance the efficacy of standard cancer treatments and have the potential for use in combination therapy against cancer.

"We are delighted that these CU licensee companies have received these matching grants," said David N. Allen, CU's Associate VP for Technology Transfer. "They represent technologies coming from CU's Boulder and Anschutz Medical campuses, and highlight opportunities for improving human health through drug and medical device products."