The University of North Carolina Wilmington has received one of the first three Technology Enhancement Grants awarded by the North Carolina Biotechnology Center. This new grant program, introduced in 2008, is designed to fund research studies at North Carolina universities and other research institutions that will enhance the ability to license specific research discoveries and technologies that have the potential to be marketed commercially.
At UNC Wilmington, the grant will be used to conduct a preliminary safety study for β-naphthoyl brevetoxin, a modified natural product from the sea, at the Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute, one of the prominent contract research organizations conducting aerosol toxicity and efficacy. Developed through MARBIONC, a biotechnology-based economic development program administered through UNCW’s Center for Marine Science, this brevetoxin has potential applications in the treatment of cystic fibrosis and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD).
MARBIONC has been in contact with a significant number of pharmaceutical companies to discuss potential drug candidates using brevetoxin. Although there has been significant interest from these companies to work with MARBIONC on further drug development, most pharmaceutical companies want to see additional data demonstrating the effectiveness of the drug and its ability to be well-tolerated.
“We have excellent animal efficacy data demonstrating the drug’s potential effectiveness at extremely low doses, but the expense related to conducting the preliminary safety study under our current grant programs has been prohibitive,” said Dr. Daniel Baden, Director of the Center for Marine Science.
UNCW Chancellor Rosemary DePaolo noted that this type of grant program is extremely beneficial in assisting universities in bringing promising discoveries to market and fueling North Carolina’s continued growth in the biotechnology industry.
“This program offers North Carolina universities an exceptional opportunity to continue development of innovations created within our institutions, and brings us one step closer to providing a tangible benefit to our citizens,” she said.
Funding resources to demonstrate the commercial potential of an unlicensed academic invention are few and far between, according to Dr. Rob Lindberg of the Biotechnology Center. Although data from such studies are often essential in order to move forward with licensing discussions, the studies themselves are typically ineligible for funding from academic grants and other sources of research funding. This makes it difficult for universities to move potentially beneficial discoveries closer to market.
“The Technology Enhancement Grant program provides universities and research institutions with a way to achieve an important early commercial milestone, and thereby improve their ability to license a promising technology to a commercial interest,” said Lindberg. “The project presented to us by UNCW represents exactly the type of industry-driven study that the TEG program was designed to support.”
Media contacts:
Dana Fischetti, manager of news and media relations, UNC Wilmington, 910.962.7259 or fischettid@uncw.edu
Daniel Baden, UNCW Center for Marine Science and MARBIONC, 910.962.2408 or baden@uncw.edu
Steven Fontana, UNCW Center for Marine Science and MARBIONC, 910.962.2014 or fontanas@uncw.edu
More about MARBIONC
MARBIONC is a North Carolina economic development program established in 2004. Through its association with the Center for Marine Science at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, MARBIONC, discovers, develops and markets new products and technologies from living organisms found in the sea. It identifies niche markets, assembles optimal teams and assembles the necessary infrastructure to bring marine biotechnology products and processes to market. For more information, visit www.uncw.edu/cmsr/marbionc.html
