A SAMPLING OF COMPANIES WORKING WITH UNIVERSITY RESEARCH CORRIDOR PARTNERS

University Research Corridor partners help create thousands of new jobs, working with businesses to turn ideas into commercial enterprises.

The Business Relationship Offices of Michigan State University, the University of Michigan and Wayne State University all work with businesses as do our economic development partners: Ann Arbor Spark, Lansing LEAP, and TechTown.

For more on Ann Arbor SPARK, visit: www.annarborspark.org
For more on Lansing LEAP, visit: www.leapinc.biz
For more on TechTown, visit: www.techtownwsu.org
For MSU Business CONNECT, visit: www.businessconnect.msu.edu
For U-M Business Engagement Center, visit: www.bec.umich.edu
For Wayne State’s Front Door, visit: www.techtownwsu.org/business-services/the-front-door

Here is a sampling of companies:

A - B - C - D - E - F - G - H - I - J - K - L - M
N - O - P - Q - R - S - T - U - V - W - X - Y - Z

A

AAPharmaSyn, LLC, aiding drug discovery

AAPharmaSyn is a new global contract research organization providing medicinal chemistry research and customer synthesis services for the drug discovery needs of academic institutions, small to medium-size pharmaceutical companies and biotech companies.

Eventually, the service offering will expand into chemistry-based research collaborations with academic institutions, contract synthesis services for pharmaceutical and biotech companies and research grants from the federal and state governments.

Dr. Helen Lee and Dr. Xue-min Cheng, AAPharmaSyn founders, are highly experienced and talented synthetic organic and medicinal chemists with over 35 years of combined experience working at Parke-Davis/Pfizer. The company has been working with Ann Arbor SPARK and U-M to find new lab facilities. It employs five researchers and expects to grow to eight.

Accuri Cytometers, Inc., makers of inexpensive and versatile hardware for life science research

Ann Arbor-based Accuri Cytometers has developed an inexpensive and versatile prototype flow cytometer used for analyzing the properties of cells, microbes, or other particles by analyzing the light reflected when those objects are illuminated in a fluid by a laser.

In 2006, Accuri received a $2 million loan from Michigan’s 21st Century Jobs Fund to commercialize their prototype flow cytometer for life science research.

The company was founded in 2004 with technology licensed from the University of Michigan and employs the professional services of approximately 30 individuals across the state. For more information visit: http://www.accuricytometers.com

AFID Therapeutics, Inc., pharmaceutical company works toward intervention and therapy of serious medical conditions

Lansing-based AFID Therapeutics defines and delivers advanced chemical and biochemical technologies and strategies and employs them in the design, discovery, delivery and development of new drugs.

Behind the company is an extensive web of synthetic chemistry patents and expertise covering processes and compositions that allow the preparation of very advanced small molecule drugs and new advanced materials for use in their delivery.

Diseases include bacterial and viral infections, cancer, autoimmune disorders, cardiovascular disorders, diabetes, Alzheimer's and other neurological disorders.

AFID Therapeutics was launched using technology licensed from Michigan State University. For more information visit: http://afidtherapeutics.com

Airway Innovations, LLC, medical device company aids trauma victims

Airway Innovations was formed to research and commercialize medical devices used to intubate patients and trauma victims who have presented a difficult intubation due to an upper airway abnormality, obesity, or when neck extension is not desirable. Intubation occurs when doctors insert a tube into a patient nasally or orally.

Founded in 2003 by MSU Fisheries and Wildlife associate professor John Schwartz, Airway Innovations now develops and sells medical devices used in the emergency intubation of trauma victims.

The intubation manufacturer worked with MSU’s Office of Intellectual Property to help get the company off the ground.

AquaBioChip, LLC, diagnostics company using technology to test for pathogen detection

AquaBioChip commercializes novel instrumentation and services for rapidly and accurately conducting diagnostics for pathogen identification in air, food and water.

Michigan State University professors Syed Hashsham and James Tiedje, in collaboration with University of Michigan professor Erdogan Gulari, are developing a portable, hand-held device capable of detecting up to 50 microbial threat agents in air, water and food.

The benefit is an increased ability to keep food and water safe from pathogen intrusion.

Lansing-based AquaBioChip currently has two employees and plans to eventually reach 12 employees. For more information visit: http://aquabiochip.com

Arbor Networks, reaching the ‘peak’ of IT security

Arbor Networks’ flagship product, Peakflow, is a distributed network detection system created by Arbor Network founders Farnam Jahanian, University of Michigan professor of electrical engineering and computer science, and his then graduate student, Robert Malan.

Their security platform, Peakflow, closes the gap between the detection of a threat and its resolution, protecting the availability of critical computer networks.

In the late 1990s, Jahanian and Malan decided to create a commercial version of their research prototype, originally devised to protect U-M's educational network from Denial of Service (DoS) attacks.

With funding from Battery Ventures and Cisco Systems, and the help of U-M’s Office of Technology Transfer, they officially launched Arbor Networks in February 2001.

Arbor Networks employs 163 people and is looking to expand to 201 by the end of 2007. For more information visit: http://www.arbornetworks.com

Ascenta, targeting new medicines for the treatment for cancer

Founded in 2003, Ascenta is a privately held, clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that discovers and develops targeted new medicines for the treatment of cancer.

Its technology, licensed from both the National Institute of Health, and the laboratory of Dr. Shaomeng Wang at the University of Michigan, is focused on discovering molecules that hit vulnerable targets in endogenous apoptosis pathways and shut down cell growth and proliferation in cancer cells.

The core technology was licensed from the National Cancer Institute and U-M, and involves agents designed to trigger apoptosis in cancer cells.

San Diego, Calif.-based Ascenta currently has 40 employees. For more information visit: http://www.ascentatherapeutics.com

Ash Stevens, pharmaceutical company does it all

A contract manufacturing pharmaceutical company, Detroit-based Ash Stevens develops, registers and manufactures Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs).

Ash Stevens works on organic chemistry and regulatory affairs in the Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient sector of the pharmaceutical industry.

Wayne State University professor Calvin Stevens, and WSU alumnus Art Ash, Ph.D., founded the company in 1962. Continuing the ties with the university, Ash Stevens’ president, Stephen Munk, is a WSU adjunct professor of chemistry.

The company currently has over 50 employees and continues to increase by 5 percent each year. For more information visit: http://www.ashstevens.com

Asterand, world wide provider of human tissue supply networks

Asterand maintains human tissue supply networks, with 70 donor sites worldwide.

The company provides tissue, RNA, DNA and biofluids, as well as services in functional pharmacology, biochemical and safety pharmacology, and gene/protein profiling in a wide range of therapeutic areas.

These tools and services are used in target validation to identify which targets are relevant to human disease and in compound validation, to aid prioritization of pre-clinical candidate compounds prior to entry into the clinic.

Wayne State University helped Asterand establish itself by offering high quality lab space on campus, help in identifying staff, collaboration in the collection of tissue samples, assistance in ordering lab equipment and consultancy support from WSU staff.

Asterand currently has about 100 employees. For more information visit: http://www.asterand.com

Avidimer Therapeutics, avidly working toward cancer detection and treatment

Avidimer Therapeutics develops and commercializes pharmaceuticals called avidimers, based on their proprietary nanotechnology. Avidimers are “smart drugs” designed to maximize damage to disease targets while minimizing collateral damage to healthy tissue.

Dr. James Baker invented the avidimer technology at the University of Michigan where he is the director of the Michigan Nanotechnology Institute for Medicine and Biological Sciences. Dr. Baker is an internationally recognized expert in immunology, nanotechnology and nanomedicine.

The initial focus of Avidimer is on cancer detection and treatment. The company’s lead product candidates feature low development risks, cost efficient development plans and leverage well-defined clinical development pathways.

Avidimer proposes to deliver cancer-killing drugs specifically to cancer cells in human trials conducted at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, as well as the Barbara A. Karmanos Cancer Center at Wayne State University in Detroit.

In 2006, Avidimer was awarded a three-year, $2.25 million loan from Michigan’s 21st Century Jobs Fund. The loan is being used to support clinical trials to confirm the safety and efficacy of Avidimer’s first product candidate in Phases 1 and 2 cancer clinical trials in humans.

Avidimer currently has five employees. The company expects to hire up to 10 additional employees by the end of 2008. For more information visit: http://www.avidimer.com

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BECK ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS, ADDRESSES INVERSE HEAT CONDUCTION AND PARAMETER ESTIMATION

Okemos-based Beck Engineering Consultants provides consulting services for parameter estimation and computer analysis of inverse heat conduction problems. The company offers short courses for companies who need help with inverse heat conduction and parameter estimation issues.

Computer software that analyzes temperature measurements has been developed for estimating thermal parameters and for computing unknown heat fluxes or heat transfer coefficients based on the temperature measurements.  Samples of the software packages are available for free download on the company website.

James Beck, a Michigan State University mechanical engineering professor, does research in the area of inverse problems in heat transfer. His research helps provide consulting services for the company.

Beck’s work also has application in determining thermal contact conductances in engines, brakes and electronic devices. Conductance is a measure of a material's ability to conduct electric charge; the reciprocal of the resistance. For more information visit: http://www.beckeng.com

BIOMEDICAL DESIGN, INC., INNOVATION LEADS TO INTERNATIONAL ACCLAIM IN THE PRODUCTION OF AUTOMOTIVE AND OFFICE SEATING

Jackson-based Biomedical Design was formed in 1985 by Robert Hubbard, a Michigan State University mechanical engineering professor, to influence the design of products that provide biomechanical benefits. Hubbard has achieved international acclaim for his bioengineering research on human spinal mechanics and product development.

Hubbard and his students developed biomechanical models and measurement technologies to represent human torso shape and movement that are being used to design and assess new products in automotive and office seating.

Hubbard also invented the HANS head and neck support device, which is mandated in major car racing series around the world. The company has about three employees.

BIOMEDICAL MONITORS, LLC, ADVANCEMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY HELP DETERMINE THE OCCURANCE OF HOT FLASHES

Dr. Robert Freedman and his research associate Samuel Wasson, both from the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at Wayne State University’s School of Medicine, have developed a device which determines the occurrence of hot flashes based on sensing skin moisture.

In exclusive license with WSU for commercialization, the intellectual property encompassing the technology is entitled, “Hygrometric Determination of Hot Flashes.”

Hot flashes are the most common symptom of menopause and currently affect 35 million women in the United States each year.

In the course of their research at WSU, Freedman and Wasson invented a miniature hot flash recorder that attaches over the sternum that does not use electrodes. The recorder is easy to remove and reapply and will run for at least 31 days on a single watch battery.

Detroit-based Biomedical Monitors was founded in 2006 to focus on the development of two products utilizing the hot flash technology: Flashmark Pro, for use by pharmaceutical companies and other clinical researchers, and Flashmark, for use by consumers.

BioPhotonic Solutions, Inc., ‘smart lasers’ aid homeland security and photodynamic therapy

BioPhotonic Solutions Inc. (BSI) is a privately held research and development company focusing on laser-based methods for molecular detection and identification with technologies licensed from Michigan State University.

Through its ongoing partnership with MSU, BSI has a growing patent portfolio in the fields of highly selective non-invasive imaging, microscopy and photodynamic therapy using computer-controlled pulse shaping (‘smart lasers’).

BSI’s work has applications in homeland security as well as imaging and photodynamic therapy for the biomedical market.

As a part of a team with researchers at MSU, BSI was awarded a 21st Century Job Fund grant from the State of Michigan in 2006 for the development of 'laser-scalpel' biomedical applications which are projected to create 150 high-tech jobs in the state over the next five years. For more information visit: http://www.biophotonicsolutions.com

BIOPLASTIC POLYMERS AND COMPOSTIES, KEEPING THE EARTH CLEAN IS COMPANY’S TOP PRIORITY

Bioplastic Polymers and Composites strives to provide ecologically-friendly biodegradable plastic materials that will help keep the earth clean.

The company offers biodegradable compounds for use in the production of biodegradable film and bags. These films and bags can be used for a wide range of products including: agricultural purposes, wrapping, compost bags, grocery bags and other packaging uses where biodegradability is a requirement.

The technology was developed at Michigan State University by chemical engineering and material science professor Ramani Narayan and is covered by seven patents. MSU licensed the technology to BioPlastics Polymers. Bioplastic Polymers currently has six employees.

Biopolymer Innovations, LLC, an eye sore no more

Biopolymer Innovations is a life science company specializing in the development of biodegradable, polysaccharide-based drug delivery systems. Founded in 2003, it is privately held, in partnership with Michigan State University.

The primary product under development, OcularGel, is a drug delivery system for topical ocular drugs (glaucoma, antibacterial, and anti-inflammation treatments).

Biopolymer Innovations is also working in the area of tissue scaffolding for applications to support liver function.

Acting CEO and founder Ramani Narayan is a professor of chemical & biomedical engineering at MSU and is recognized world-wide as an expert in the modification of biopolymers.

Biopolymer is based in East Lansing. It has five employees, with expectations to add more positions by early 2008. For more information visit: http://www.biopolymerinnovations.com

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C

CastAnalysis, Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) technology improves casting capabilities

Not long ago, Noel Perkins was out on the river fly fishing when he realized there was room for improvement in his casting technique. Perkins decided to use his professional talents as a mechanical engineering professor at the University of Michigan to become more skilled at one of his favorite hobbies.

Perkins developed a computer program simulating the casting motion of a fly fishing rod. In doing so, a small device was created that attaches to the rod to measure the casting motion.

MEMS rate gyro, which measures how fast the fly fisher is rotating the flyrod while casting, is the technology behind the device.

U-M applied for and earned a patent for the invention, and Perkins and U-M colleague Dan Broderick worked with U-M’s Office of Technology Transfer to receive an exclusive license in the field of fly casting.

Perkins then partnered with renowned fly casting instructor Bruce Richards, a flyline designer for 3M’s Scientific Anglers division. The two decided they had a marketable product and formed a partnership with Sage Manufacturing. For more information visit: http://castanalysis.com/screening/

Cellectar, LLC, small-molecule based treatments show universal cancer prevention

Cellectar, LLC, is an oncology company dedicated to the development of small-molecule based radiotherapy treatments that have shown universal cancer prevention and can be used to treat a wide variety of human cancers with minimal side effects.

Once in the bloodstream, Cellectar's drug identifies cancerous tumors, vividly lighting them up in a computer image. A second, more potent dose then shrinks the malignancies.

So far, the drug — known as CLTR-404 — has been shown to diagnose and treat 37 types of cancer, based on studies using mice, said Cellectar co-founder Jamey Weichert. The drug hunts for cancer cells, from the brain to the colon, ignoring benign tumors.

Weichert was part of a team at the University of Michigan that started exploring the use of the compound 15 years ago, based on studies reported in scientific journals as early as 1969.

The Madison, Wis.-based company currently has 18 employees and is looking to expand to 25-30 in 2008. For more information visit: http://www.cellectar.com

Cielo MedSolutions LLC, enabling new IT software for healthcare providers

Cielo MedSolutions is a provider of healthcare software and information technology (IT) services.

Founded in Ann Arbor in 2005 by technology industry veterans, Cielo focuses on helping physicians in both primary care and medical specialties improve quality-of-care, optimize practice efficiency and increase physician revenue.

The company’s web-based Cielo Clinic software helps drive clinical quality improvement and better management of chronic diseases.

Cielo MedSolutions signed a technology transfer license with the University of Michigan and has acquired the exclusive commercialization rights to the ClinfoTracker software developed at the University of Michigan Health System (UMHS).

The UMHS Department of Family Medicine delivers more than 140,000 patient encounter forms yearly and manages more than 70,000 patients with 284,000 chronic problems with the system.

Cielo MedSolutions currently employs five people with plans of expanding to 10 by the end of 2007. Over the next four years, it plans to create 75 jobs in Michigan. For more information visit: http://www.cielomedsolutions.com

Compendia Bioscience, Inc., new information systems working to help fight cancer

Compendia Bioscience is dedicated to the advancement of drug target and biomarker discovery through powerful molecular oncology tools, data and analysis software.

Compendia Bioscience’s flagship product, Oncomine, integrates and unifies the oncology data so that target expression across thousands of human tumors, hundreds of cancer types and subtypes, and millions of dollars of experiments can be assessed online in seconds.

Oncomine enables users to discover and prioritize potential cancer targets and biomarkers, improving efficiency, strengthening product pipelines and increasing the likelihood of success.

The company is located in Ann Arbor and was founded by University of Michigan scientists Arul Chinnaiyan and Dan Rhodes.

Compendia Bioscience currently employs 12 people and plans to add four more employees. For more information visit: http://www.compendiabio.com

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Digital Flow Technologies, Inc., spinoff works in concert with university department

Digital Flow Technologies (DFTI) works together with the Turbulent Shear Flows Lab (TSFL) at Michigan State University, focusing on the development of test equipment for the measurement and characterization of fluid flows.

DFTI was founded to take advantage of developments from TSFL and fund the students and staff of TSFL.

TSFL exists to carry out fundamental and applied fluid dynamics research for the benefit of their students, who learn how to pursue and to create new knowledge, and for the benefit of society via new technologies.

The East Lansing-based company employs three people. For more information visit: http://www.dfti-us.com

DISCERA, MICRO COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY ADVANCES SILICON RESONATOR TECHNOLOGY

Discera is a producer of Micro Electromechanical Systems (MEMS) silicon resonator technology. The company’s broad portfolio of PureSilicon resonators offers technology that is being used to create Frequency Control and RF Circuits.

San Jose, Calif.-based Discera was co-founded in April 2001 by University of Michigan engineering professor Clark Nguyen, a leading authority of MEMS technologies.

Discera holds patents and licenses from U-M and the University of California at Berkeley, including numerous resonator designs, MEMS annealing, MEMS fabrication processes, temperature compensation, packaging for clock and timing applications, RF applications, FSK transmitters, filters, and Real Time Clock frequency devices. For more information visit: http://www.discera.com

Diversified Natural Products, from healthier food to cleaner fuels, MSU professor finds ways to improve quality of life

Diversified Natural Products was formed in October 2003 to find ways of using renewable resources to replace foreign oil and to develop ingredients and products that are healthier for consumers and safer for the environment.

Diversified has a Natural Health Division to produce healthy foods to eat and to create all natural health supplements and a Bio-based Fuels and Chemicals Division to manufacture environmentally neutral components for everyday living.

Most of the technology the company uses was developed and patented by Michigan State University researchers. Fifteen of Diversified ’s patents have resulted from the research of Kris Berglund, a MSU professor of chemical engineering who is also Diversified's chief science officer.

The company has a 200,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Scottville, Michigan, employing 32 people in Michigan, and 10 others in New York, Montreal and elsewhere. For more information visit: http://www.dnpworld.com

DNA Software, using science and software to advance biological technology

Ann Arbor-based DNA Software combines science and software to enable industrial genomics through advances in technologies based on nucleic acids - the fundamental building blocks of the genome.

The company's first software platform, OMP (Oligonucleotide Modeling Platform), models in silico the folding and hybridization of single-stranded nucleic acids with great accuracy.

The company combines OMP with scientific consulting, custom software development, and custom laboratory research to deliver state-of-the-art support for designing and developing nucleic acid based technologies.

DNA Software was formed in December 2000 with an exclusive license to commercialize certain relevant intellectual property developed in the lab of Dr. SantaLucia at Wayne State University.

DNA Software has seven employees and is looking to add one or two more in 2008. For more information visit: http://www.dnasoftware.com

DPD, INC., RECYCLED MATERIALS ALTER THE THERMAL PROPERTIES OF CONCRETE

Lansing-based DPD is developing a new technology for the production of concrete masonry units using CO2-rich combustion gases produced by existing masonry plant burners to complement steam curing.

The technology was developed with the help of Parviz Soroushian, a civil engineering professor at Michigan State University.

In 2003, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) participated with DPD in the thermal analysis of buildings constructed using concrete with recycled materials. This project was part of a Phase II Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) grant to determine how the thermal properties of concrete can be ''tuned'' for use in passive solar buildings.

Consequently, DPD and MSU developed techniques to alter the thermal properties of concrete by introducing recycled materials into the aggregate. Two office/retail buildings were built in Lansing for to conduct this research.

The objective of NREL's involvement was to evaluate the effects of concrete thermal properties on the building performance through energy simulations and monitoring.

DRATHS CORP., DISTINGUISHED PROFESSOR’S WORK HAS FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS

Okemos-based Draths Corp., founded by John Frost, Michigan State University distinguished professor of chemistry, engineers microbes to produce chemical compounds like quinic acid, which is used in Tamiflu.

The Chinese spice, star anise, provides the starting material for the manufacture of the anti-influenza drug Tamiflu, which is expected to be the first line of defense in a pandemic. Frost developed a technique for making the starting material, shikimic acid, without the star anise.

Frost started a company that he says could produce huge quantities of the material.

Draths has secured license rights to 10 issued U.S. patents and nine patents pending resulting from work done in the Frost Laboratory at MSU. For more information visit: http://drathscorporation.com

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E

ECOSYNTHETIX, INC., ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY ADHESIVES MAKE IT STICK

EcoSynthetix, established in 1996, specializes in the research and development of biobased technologies, providing replacements for synthetic petroleum-based adhesives, paper coating binders, inks and other related product categories that are used in everyday products throughout the world.

EcoSynthetix has developed novel, bio-based adhesives for corrugated and laminated packaging, as well as pressure sensitive adhesives for labels.

Ramani Narayan, chemical engineering and material science professor at Michigan State University, co-founded EcoSynthetix, formerly known as Lions Adhesives in January 1996. The company was established to develop a portfolio of environmentally responsive biobased adhesives that are non-interfering in paper recycling operations and biodegradable in composting processes.

EcoSynthetix is based in Lansing with offices in Canada and Europe. The company has15 employees. For more information visit: http://www.ecosynthetix.com

EDUCOG, LLC, educational provider expands technology-enhanced educational projects

Meridian Township-based eduCog provides cost effective, affordable access to quality educational tools and services.

eduCog offers a number of services for educational institutions and textbook publishing companies including hosting capabilities for the Learning Online Network content management and assessment system, encompassing K-12 and Higher Education settings.

The company also provides on- and off- site training support, hosting of other educational sites and systems, custom programming and consulting.

eduCog was founded in 2004 by faculty members of Michigan State University who are involved in a number of technology-enhanced educational projects. For more information visit: http://www.educog.com

ERL, LLC, using technology to improve the way we sit

A spin off from Michigan State University, ERL carries out the tasks of measurement, engineering, analysis and software tool development and use pertaining to vehicle and seat design.

The company’s two major products are called ERL, an engineering tool integrated in CAD software, and FDM, a force deflection machine that measures the performance of seats.

The Lansing-based company offers its research experience with human subjects, algorithm and software development to clients. ERL provides four major services to support customers: vehicle ergonomics evaluation, vehicle measurements and scanning, seat mechanical performance and software training.

ERL’s products and services are based on patented and proprietary technology under license from MSU and other sources. For more information visit: http://www.erlllc.com

Etubics Corp., discovering ways to prevent outbreaks of influenza, HIV, herpes, hepatitis C, tuberculosis

Etubics is a biopharmaceutical company that is developing next generation vector vaccines for protection and therapeutic use. Etubic’s products will expand the storehouse of the medical community for prevention and treatment of existing and emerging infectious diseases, as well as for the treatment of patients with chronic illness.

Healthcare providers will be able to use the products produced by Etubics, in collaboration with other technology and techniques, to prevent and control outbreaks such as influenza, HIV, herpes simplex virus, hepatitis C virus and tuberculosis.

The Seattle, Wash.-based company was formed in 2003 and holds a worldwide, exclusive technology license agreement from the University of Michigan.

Etubics currently has six employees and plans to double in size by the end of 2008. For more information visit: http://www.etubics.com

EXT Life Sciences, Inc., biotech company prevents and eliminates “radical” oxygen species

Southfield-based EXT Life Sciences (EXT) is a biotechnology company engaged in the development and marketing of catalase-based compounds, designed to prevent oxidative damage to cells and tissues.

Their technologies are designed to prevent, reduce or eliminate the cellular accumulation of certain highly destructive reactive oxygen species (ROS), often referred to as “free radicals” or “oxidants”.

EXT’s technologies developed out of published discoveries made by company founders, Dr. Stanley R. Terlecky, Wayne State University School of Medicine, and Paul A. Walton, University of Western Ontario.

To bolster research capabilities, EXT has opened a new laboratory in Tech Town, located in Detroit near the WSU campus. For more information visit: http://www.extlifesciences.com

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GEMA DIAGNOSTICS, LLC, TECHNOLOGY STRIVES TO REDUCE MULTIPLE BIRTHS IN ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGY

Gema Diagnostics works to serve the Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) market by maximizing the probability of healthy, single, live births while reducing the overall process risks, time and expense.

According to Gema Diagnostics, there is a need in the ART market to reduce the incidence of a mother giving birth to more than one child, significantly reduce cost per live birth and predict the likelihood of success in difficult cases. This is important because out of 38 million women of child bearing age, 2 to 7 percent of them have fertility issues and 110,000 couples utilize ART each year.

Dr. Jose Cibelli, professor of animal science and physiology at Michigan State University, is the leader behind the human IVF optimization process. He heads the Cellular Reprogramming Laboratory in the Departments of Animal Science and Physiology at Michigan State University which focuses on two aspects of developmental biology: Nuclear Transfer Cloning and Primate Embryonic Stem Cells.

GEMA currently has eight staffers and plans on reaching 30 to 40 employees.

GENEWORKS, INC., BIOTECH COMPANY DEVELOPS INNOVATIVE WAYS TO MANUFACTURE THERAPEUTIC PROTEINS

Ann Arbor-based GeneWorks is a biotechnology company specializing in creating Avian transgenic chickens to manufacture therapeutic proteins.

Avian transgenics is a cost-effective and scaleable production method that can provide a convenient alternative for the manufacture of therapeutic proteins, including those with complex structure that can only be synthesized in a vertebrate cell.

In addition to a research laboratory and administrative complex, GeneWorks owns and operates a 156-acre farm capable of accommodating over 14,000 chickens of all ages.

The company was founded in 1996 by William MacArthur, a Michigan State University alumnus and former Wisconsin dairy veterinarian who later studied molecular biology at the University of Michigan. MacArthur was an adjunct professor at MSU when he founded the company, licensing the technology from the university.

GliaGen LLC, developer of technologies used to treat neurodegenerative diseases

GliaGen is focused on the development of novel diagnostic and therapeutic technologies specifically tailored to treat neurodegenerative diseases.

GliaGen is developing novel treatments for neuroaffective disorders including Multiple Sclerosis, Alzheimers, and Parkinsons; including neurotrauma such as spinal cord injuries.

The Quincy, Mass.-based company has secured platform technology developed by Dr. Leon Carlock and Dr. Maria Cypher at the Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University School of Medicine.

In addition to commercializing the patent pending technology, the WSU spinoff will also support further research at Wayne State.

GliaGen currently employs five people. For more information visit: http://www.gliagen.com

GlyTag, LLC, innovative drug targeting system finds new way to fight cancer

GlyTag has developed a novel drug targeting system that increases a drug’s therapeutic efficacy while reducing its toxicity to non-targeted cells and tissues. Dr. Jeff Loeb of Wayne State University has developed this technology and is working with the WSU Office of Technology Transfer as GlyTag moves forward in its operations.

The GlyTag system takes advantage of one of nature’s own methods of targeting growth factors to specific cells in the body through unique cell surface heparin-sulfate molecules.

A “GlyTag” is a polypeptide sequence specifically designed to target recombinant proteins or other macromolecules to specific cells in the body.

GlyTag is currently completing pre-clinical testing on a prototype GlyTag fusion protein for treating breast cancer. To date, this drug has out-performed the same drug without a GlyTag. For more information visit: http://www.glytag.com

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HandyLab, finding ways to improve the quality of infectious disease testing

HandyLab, formed in 2000 with the help of the University of Michigan’s Tech Transfer Office, is dedicated to the development and manufacturing of novel, clinical diagnostic testing products. HandyLab's proprietary system will reduce the time, cost, and complexity of performing infectious disease testing while simultaneously improving the quality of the test results.

The company’s first system is for testing the presence of Group B Strep (GBS) bacteria in newborns. GSB is a potentially fatal pathogen — one that is treatable if detected early — that is carried by up to 20 percent of all new mothers.

Within the next three to five years, the same technology may be widely used for diagnosing a whole range of infectious and genetically-based diseases, and for detecting airborne pathogens such as anthrax and smallpox.

The research that drives these nano-devices was developed over a period of seven years by University of Michigan chemical engineering Ph.D. students Kalyan Handique and Sundaresh Brahmasandra, and their faculty advisors, professors Mark Burns (Chemical Engineering) and David Burke (Human Genetics).

Ann Arbor based HandyLab currently has 35 employees and is looking to add 10-15 employees in the next five years. For more information visit: http://www.handylab.com

HEALTHTREAT, INC., ALTERATION OF FATS MAKES FOOD HEALTHIER

Researchers at Farmington Hills-based Healthtreat have altered fats to create a healthier, flavorful, more stable and cost effective food product. Two of the new fats created by Healthtreat are called Special Beef Tallow and Special Milkfat.

According to Healhtreat, when a food product contains Special Beef Tallow using the Healthtreat process, it has no cholesterol, no hydrogenated oil and contains less saturated fatty acids than the currently available beef tallow or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.

The Special Beef Tallow is 100 percent natural and can be used for commercial frying, cooking and baking. When a food product contains Special Milkfat using the Healthtreat process it will have all the benefits of current Milkfat, but will be 100 percent cholesterol- free with no hydrogenated oil, in addition to having 33 percent less saturated fat and no preservatives.

A technology license agreement with Healthtreat and Michigan State University helped get the company off the ground.

MSU professor Ian Gray is the principle behind the technology and he conducts research that contributes to safer, more healthful food, while developing safer products for Michigan. Gray currently serves as MSU’s vice president for research and graduate studies.

Healthtreat currently has about five employees. For more information visit: http://www.healthtreat.com

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IC Tech, Inc., developer of computer technology improves audio and visual capabilities

IC Tech develops hardware and software systems for natural means of human-machine interaction. Its current focus is on audio and visual inputs to computers and communication devices.

Technologies under development at IC Tech augment the capabilities of ordinary microphones and cameras with innovative computing techniques inspired by the workings of the eye, ear, and brain.

In 1993, Lansing resident Gail Erten and her husband, Fathi Salem, a professor of electrical engineering at Michigan State University founded the MSU spinoff based on Gail’s research.

The Okemos-based company currently has six employees. For more information visit: http://www.ic-tech.com

INCEPT BIOSYSTEMS, INC., IN VITRO FERTILIZATION TO HELP INFERTILE COUPES

Founded in 2005, Incept BioSystems of Ann Arbor has developed a microfluidic platform to culture and analyze tissue and cells.

The firm’s first set of products will address the challenges of in vitro fertilization, a common assisted reproductive technology to assist infertile couples.

Incept has developed an in vitro fertilization device platform – a combination of microfluidic technology and nanotechnology – that closely mimics the human reproductive system. The platform has the potential to revolutionize how cell researchers and clinicians grow and analyze cell tissues.

Graduate student Wei Gu from the University of Michigan took the top prize in the undergraduate division of the 2004 Collegiate Inventors Competition for creating the foundation technology of Incept’s PinFlo microfluidic platform.

Michael Crowley, Incept BioSystems’ co-founder and president, holds an MBA from the Stephen Ross School of Business at U-M. U-M professors Gary Smith and Shuichi Takayama were also co-founders of the company. For more information visit: http://www.inceptbio.com

Integrated Sensing Systems (ISSYS), leading the advancement of micro-machining technologies

Integrated Sensing Systems, a University of Michigan spinoff, develops advanced micro-machining technologies for medical devices and scientific analytical sensing applications.

ISSYS was founded in 1995 by world-renowned leaders in Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) technology — U-M professors Khalil Najafi, Nader Najafi, and Ken Wise — and is one of the oldest independent MEMS companies in the United States.

ISSYS operates a state-of-the-art MEMS fabrication manufacturing facility located in Ypsilanti, manufacturing products geared toward medical, alternative energy, and industrial markets. Currently, ISSYS is selling its sensors for portable fuel cell applications to Japan.

The company currently has 25-30 employees with plans to expand to 100 employees by 2010 as the manufacturing base grows. For more information visit: http://www.mems-issys.com

INSTRUMENTED SENSOR TECHNOLOGIES, INC., BUSTING MYTHS, ONE EXPERIMENT AT A TIME

Founded in 1987, Okemos-based Instrumented Sensor Technology (IST) develops portable, stand-alone data recorders for shock and vibration G-force data recording. IST supplies recording systems and data analysis software to leading companies throughout the world, specializing in remote environments.

In 2004, Mythbusters, a hit TV show on the Discovery Channel that attempts to confirm or deny scientific myths such as an old wives tale or popular legend, contacted IST to place a data recorder inside a dummy to test the myth of whether or not an object hitting water before a body (replicated by a dummy) would lesson the impact of the body’s fall.

For the experiment, a shipping crane was used to lift the dummy to a height of 180 feet above the San Francisco Bay. The dummy was then dropped into the bay, with the hammer immediately preceding it.

An IST data recorder and high speed cameras were used to record the results –showing the hammer had little to no effect on the dummy’s impact into the bay, busting the myth.

Roland Zapp, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Michigan State University, worked to develop the technology. IST has 16 employees. For more information visit: http://www.isthq.com

INTELLICON, INC., MAKING POWER SYSTEM VOLTAGE MORE STABLE AND RELIABLE

Holt-based Intellicon operates in the field of power system voltage stability and reliability. The voltage stability analysis company conducts research into the causes of and remedies for voltage instability and collapse.

Intellicon's consulting services assesses the where, when, why and how voltage instability occurs, thereby working to prevent voltage instability. Powerful cluster computing is used to provide the highest level of voltage stability analysis.

Intellicon utilitizes its specialized technology to deliver a complete, system-wide picture of voltage stability and voltage instability remediation.

Robert Schlueter, a Michigan State University professor of electrical and computer engineering, is an inventor of Intellicon’s technology and the company’s president and founder.

Intellicon has about six employees. For more information visit: http://www.intellicon.biz

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KeraCure, Inc., developing technology to address the way you heal

Chicago, Ill-based KeraCure was formed to commercialize a simplified cell-based dressing that has uses across a number of medical disciplines. KeraCure's unique, cell-based technology addresses one of the most pressing current and future medical challenges: effective treatment of chronic wounds.

Its leading device, the KeraPac dressing, is an interactive wound-covering comprised of living human cells to be used in the treatment of chronic wounds. The KeraPac is a medical device and consists of a non-woven fabric combined with porous microcarrier beads and human keratinocytes (skin cells).

KeraCure was founded in 1999 in order to develop and commercialize a family of wound-healing products that utilize living human cells. The core technology was developed by a team of scientists from the University of Michigan and Wayne State University and became the foundation for a strong intellectual position.

KeraCure has assignments in U.S. five patents and has filed other key applications broadening the use of the platform to add therapeutic value across a number of medical disciplines.

The company has 11 employees, and is looking to expand in 2008. For more information visit: http://www.keracure.org

KTM INDUSTRIES, INC., GOING “GREEN” WITH BIOPLASTICS

KTM Industries develops new technologies that utilize non-toxic, environmentally friendly bioplastics for consumer-based markets.

In 2003, Lansing-based KTM Industries entered into a licensing agreement with Michigan State University for "green" technology developed by MSU researchers. The biodegradable materials technology is based on research by Ramani Narayan, an MSU engineering professor.

The licensed technology advances KTM’s industrial product line of biodegradable starch foam packaging and insulation materials. The technology is also applicable in the company's established consumer products, including ecologically friendly arts and crafts  materials.

The novel industrial materials are designed to provide innovative solutions for global packaging applications, such as high-value cargo protection, electronic components protection, material handling, defense packaging and sound/vibration management.

KTM Industries has 14 employees. For more information visit: http://www.ktmindustries.com  http://www.magicnuudles.com

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LEDEBUHR INDUSTRIES, INC., MANUFACTURING SPRAYERS THAT SUPPORT ENVIRONMENTAL GOALS

Ledebuhr Industries is a manufacturer of rotary atomizers, peristaltic pumps and atomizing sprayers. The company’s products are beneficial to the environment by increasing efficiency for the user in whatever process they are applied, ultimately reducing energy use and process waste.

The ecologically friendly company uses materials that offer high performance and are energy efficient, allowing a minimum effect to be placed on the environment, in addition to lowering the user’s cost of operation.

Formed in 1996 under the guidance of Richard Ledebuhr, a specialist in Michigan State University’s Department of Agricultural Engineering, the Williamston-based company currently has seven employees. For more information visit: http://www.ledebuhr.net

LIUMAN TECHNOLOGIES, IMPROVING VEHICLE ARMOR TO HELP KEEP OUR TROOPS SAFE

The U.S. Army has been searching for ways to improve armor on vehicles that have been a prime target for improvised explosives and roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Liuman Technologies is working to improve armor technology as a designer of composite vehicle structures and armors against blast attacks, attacks which are commonly executed by improvised explosives and roadside bombs.

In 2006, Liuman was awarded a Small Business Innovation Research grant from the Defense to help improve survivability and personnel safety on manned vehicles.

Liuman’s technology was developed under the guidance of Dhasin Liu, a professor of mechanical engineering at Michigan State University. The Okemos-based company has two employees.

Lycera developing answers for psoriasis, arthritis, cancer, lupus

Lycera Corp., a spinoff of the University of Michigan, is an Ann Arbor-based pharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of small molecules that control diseases characterized by abnormal cell growth, activity and survival.

These drugs will target a novel therapeutic pathway with the potential for first-in- class efficacy without the adverse effects from current drugs. The company is developing breakthrough small molecule drugs.

The drugs will target such diseases as psoriasis, graft versus host disease (GVHD), rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and cancer. The company is based upon the work of Gary Glick, the Werner E. Bachmann Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Biological Chemistry at U-M. For more information visit: http://www.lycera.com

LUMIGEN, INC., CREATING LIGHT, NOT HEAT, FOR LIFE SCIENCE RESEARCH

Lumigen was founded in 1987 to research, develop, manufacture and market novel chemiluminescent compounds for use in life science research and medical diagnostics. The company is a supplier of chemiluminescent reagents to the clinical immunodiagnostics market.

Chemiluminescent reagents are chemical reactants that produce light, but not heat, like a firefly or glow stick. This is different than a candle’s chemical reaction, which emits both light and heat.

The chemiluminescent reagents are used worldwide in automated systems for chemiluminescent detection in the fields of life science research and human identity testing.

Former Wayne State University professor Paul Schapp's invention, "Chemiluminescent Dioxetane Compounds" was licensed to Lumigen by WSU.

In 2006, Southfield-based Lumigen entered into an agreement to be acquired by Beckman Coulter, Inc., after 10 years of partnership. For more information visit: http://www.lumigen.com

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M-Bots, maker of ultra-portable robots for law enforcement, military

Sterling Heights-based M-Bots was founded in May 2005 by two University of Michigan professors, U-M alumni, and a Ford Motor Co. executive. M-Bots designs and manufactures ultra-portable robots for law enforcement, security and military applications which can be used for hostage situations, situational awareness and border security.

The company's robots weigh less than 10 pounds, feature high reliability and easy controls and cost less than $10,000 for a robot, controller and packaging.

Ann Arbor SPARK and Hennessey Capital recently announced they had provided funding and business accelerator support to the U-M robotics startup. M-Bots plans to use this support to make a significant step toward achieving a major milestone: 50 robots made and sold.

M-Bots currently has five employees and is looking to add five to six new employees to its staff by mid-2008. For more information visit: http://www.mbotsinc.com

MC3, advancing medical technologies from early stage entities to commercialized products

MC3 advances medical device technologies from early stage concepts through product development, with the goal of producing safe and effective devices that will expand the possibilities of medical treatments.

MC3 was founded in 1991 when the company licensed blood pump technology from the University of Michigan. MC3 worked with corporate partner licensees to successfully commercialize the blood pump for adult cardiopulmonary bypass surgery.

The company has worked with universities, inventors, investors and other medical device companies to identify early-stage technologies and to advance them toward commercialization. Individual technologies have been transferred from MC3 to startup companies as well as licensed to established manufacturers.

MC3 occupies 9,000 square feet of office and laboratory space in Ann Arbor. They have an experienced scientific staff of 12 with backgrounds in chemical, material science, mechanical, and biomedical engineering, medical sciences and chemistry. For more information visit: http://www.mc3corp.com

MCCREADIE GROUP, INC., WEB-BASED SOFTWARE INCREASES ACCURACY, EFFICIENCY AND SAFETY OF HEALTHCARE SETTINGS

Ann Arbor-based McCreadie Group was founded in 2004 to provide software development, sales and support for pharmacy-related applications in healthcare settings. 

Two of the company’s software applications, WebIDS and PharmDoc.net, were originally developed at the University of Michigan Medical Center by Scott McCreadie and his colleagues.

WebIDS is web-based software for the management of an Investigational Drug Service (IDS). The software automates many of the manual processes typically seen in an IDS, resulting in improved accuracy, efficiency and safety.

PharmDoc.Net is a web-based software tool that supports clinical pharmacy services, allowing clinicians to be more productive, share information freely with colleagues and help them better manage healthcare data. For more information visit: http://www.mccreadiegroup.com

MEDHUB, INC., THE TRUSTED NAME IN SECURE, WEB-BASED APPLICATIONS

In 2003, MedHub, an Ann Arbor-based software company, signed a contract with the University of Michigan Hospitals System (UMHS) to implement its MedHub application suite to all UMHS medical programs, hospital finance and graduate medical education office.

MedHub was developed in cooperation with the U-M Department of Surgery over a two-year period.

The MedHub system is an encrypted, web-based application built to streamline the process of collecting, managing and reporting all aspects of residency accreditation and training data for reimbursement and compliance.

MedHub is the first externally hosted web-based application of its type approved for internal use by UMHS. For more information visit: http://www.medhub.com

MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE SYSTEMS, WEB-BASED TOOL ASSISTS THE ASSESSMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS

Medical Professional Performance Systems (MPPS) has developed a web-based tool providing assessment and development for resident physicians. The tool is meant to be used for annual or bi-annual assessments of resident performance.

The end result of the web-based tool is to provide valid and reliable evaluation and data- driven education tools for hospitals, doctors and nurses to help them meet requirements for accreditation and certification.

MPPS’s web-based tool features a 360-degree assessment and personalized learning curriculum based on assessment results. Similar tools are being created for use with medical students and practicing physicians.

The technology was developed by William Donohue, professor of communication at Michigan State University. Founded in 2005, MPPS currently hasfour employees and expects to grow to 10.

Meditrina Pharmaceuticals, Inc., pharmaceutical company treats women’s reproductive system disorders

Ann Arbor-based Meditrina Pharmaceuticals is a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing innovative therapies that treat women’s reproductive system disorders.

By identifying, leveraging and repurposing marketed products and product candidates at advanced stages of development, Meditrina’s novel therapies have the potential to significantly alter the way women’s health conditions are treated.

Initial product development efforts will focus on intellectual property sourced from the Wayne State University School of Medicine and University of Toronto.

In 2007, Meditrina secured $4.4 million in funding from the 21st Century Jobs Fund and from the Biosciences Research and Commercialization Center at Western Michigan University to advance the company’s initiatives.

The company currently has 10 employees and is looking to expand. For more information visit: http://www.meditrina.com

MEDSPOKE, INFORMATION SYSTEM TRANSFORMS THE WAY ORGAN TRANSPLANT’S CLINICAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE NEEDS ARE MET

Ann Arbor-based MedSpoke is a company dedicated to the field of organ transplantation and its transplant customers by delivering a state-of-the art product designed specifically for transplant centers’ clinical and administrative needs.

MedSpoke’s comprehensive organ transplant information system, OTIS-III, was originally designed and built by the University of Michigan Health System’s Organ Transplant Center.

With its extensive abilities to collect, integrate and display data that meets the specialized requirements of the field, OTIS-III incorporates an understanding of the workflow and operations needed to manage large populations of all types of organ transplant patients. For more information visit: http://www.medspoke.com

MICROBIOTIX, INC., DRUG DEVELOPMENT AIMS TO PROTECT AGAINST BIOLOGICAL WARFARE THREATS

Microbiotix is a product-focused biopharmaceutical company researching and developing novel, anti-infective drugs that address commercially significant medical markets.

Microbiotix currently has in development, MBX 500, the first antibiotic targeting the DNA polymerase of Gram-positive bacteria, including drug resistant strains.

The company has an active biodefense program, focused on novel therapeutics for Bacillus Anthraocis and Burkholderia Pseudomalli. Microbiotix is also actively involved in the discovery of inhibitors of bacterial biofilm formation and antibiotic resistance.

The technology originated from Wayne State University professor Jiri Zemlicka's invention, "Anti-viral agents development”. Microbiotix licensed the technology from WSU.

On August 2, 2006, Worcester, Mass-based Microbiotix was awarded a $5 million  Defense Department cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for development of novel broad-spectrum anti-bacterials for intracellular biological warfare threats. For more information visit: http://www.microbiotix.com

Mid Michigan Research, LLC, R&D company hard at work under the hood

Mid Michigan Research is an engineering research and design company for in-cylinder research and analysis of internal combustion engines (gasoline and diesel).

Mid Michigan Research offers a ring-pack and piston dynamics software simulation tool called Cylinder Kit Analysis Systems for Engines (CASE); optically accessible engines for research and imaging; and research services for in-cylinder imaging and engine studies.

Michigan State University automotive professor of mechanical engineering Harold Schock is the founder and CEO of the Okemos-based company.

Mid Michigan Research employees five people. For more information visit: http://www.mmrllc.com

MOBIUS MICROSYSTEMS, INNOVATIONS ALLOW MOBILE DEVICES TO BECOME THINNER AND SMALLER

Mobius Microsystems is an innovator in analog and mixed signal designs and the first to implement highly accurate frequency generators entirely in standard Complementary Metal–Oxide–Semiconductor (CMOS).

Mobius’ patented Radio Frequency Temperature Compensated Harmonic Oscillator (RF-TCHO) technology is implemented on a single piece of silicon and enables system designers to create smaller, thinner and more mechanically robust products.

Mobius was formed in 2004 under the guidance of current CTO and founder Michael McCorquodale.

Mobius’ enabling technology is based on McCorquodale’s dissertation work which he conducted under the direction of his faculty advisor, professor Richard Brown at the University of Michigan.

The company has its headquarters in Sunnyvale, Calif. with its design center based in Detroit. For more information visit: http://www.mobiusmicro.com

Monarch Antenna, Inc., breadth of wireless company’s work reaches across many industries

Monarch Antenna is a Delphi Corp. spinoff created to capitalize on the expanding wireless market for consumer, industrial, aerospace, military and homeland security related industries in addition to the automotive market.

Monarch was created to commercialize innovative Self-Structuring Antenna (SSA) technology, developed by Delphi and Michigan State University.

The benefits of the technology will provide fewer dropped calls, longer battery life, greater mobility and the ability to deliver richer content across wireless capabilities.

Monarch will be headquartered at Ann Arbor SPARK in downtown Ann Arbor, a Michigan SmartZone. The location will allow Monarch engineers to take advantage of SPARK’s incubator facilities while being relatively close to MSU’s antenna facilities in East Lansing. For more information visit: http://www.monarchantenna.com

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Nanobiologics, LLC, developer of anti-infective products and vaccines

NanoBio is a privately-held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing anti-infective products and mucosal vaccines based on its patented NanoStat technology platform.

Founded in 2000 as a spinoff from the Center for Biologic Nanotechnology at the University of Michigan, NanoBio’s lead product candidates target treatments for herpes labialis (cold sores), onychomycosis (nail fungus) and mucosal vaccines for Hepatitis B and Influenza.

Through early 2006, a total of $31 million was invested in the company's NanoStat technology platform through grants and angel investments. In August 2006, NanoBio secured an additional $30 million in private equity funding from Perseus LLC, which is being directed towards advancing the clinical programs for the company's lead product candidates.

NanoBio’s headquarters and laboratory facilities are located in Ann Arbor. They currently have 12 employees, with several new high level drug development executives beginning summer 2007. In 2008, the company plans to employ more than 20 people. For more information visit: http://www.nanobio.com

nanoScience Engineering Corp., working to enhance physical properties of nanocomposites

nanoScience Engineering (nanoSEC) was formed in late 2004 to manufacture and market nano materials produced using a SuperCritical Fluid Process (SCFP) method of exfoliating and coating nano particles. nanoSEC licensed the SCFP technology from Wayne State University for the purpose of commercialization.

The SCFP is a novel, versatile, relatively simple, and environmentally friendly method for producing exfoliated and coated nano particles dispersible in a polymer matrix.

nanoSEC's mission is to manufacture world-class advanced nano-scale fillers for enhancing physical properties of nanocomposites with superior performance results at less overall cost.

In addition to the corporate office in West Bloomfield, nanoSEC will locate laboratory space in the Next Energy Center in Tech Town, Detroit.

nanoSEC currently has five employees and is looking to add three to four more in 2008. For more information visit: http://www.nano-sec.biz

NextHop Technologies, communications leader in WiFi mobility and networking protocol software

NextHop Technologies provides WiFi mobility and networking protocol software for the wired and wireless communications market.

NextHop’s current technology portfolio includes wired and wireless software platforms sold to tele-communications and data-communications Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).

Sue Hares, NextHop’s current CTO, founded the company in 2000, as a spinoff from her work at the University of Michigan’s Merit Consortium.

Mountain View, Calif.-based NextHop currently has 85 employees and is looking to expand. For more information visit: http://www.nexthop.com

NAMESFORLIFE, LLC, NOVEL TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS INFORMATION TO BECOME MORE EASILY ACCESSIBLE     

NamesforLife is a project, a novel technology, and a Michigan State University- sponsored startup business that arises from a long-term collaboration in electronic publishing with Catherine Lyons of Explicatrix, LLC.

George Garrity, a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, and James Cole, an assistant professor in the Microbial Ecology Center, both from MSU, have worked with Lyons to develop the technology.

NamesforLife models the evolution of biological nomenclature and terminology,and provides publishers and data providers with a unique opportunity to provide their end-users with a direct path to related content, based on a name or term, even if the name or term has changed over time.

Through the use of Digital Object Identifiers (DOIs), the company’s technology can make names or terms actionable, provide a direct path through the literature, and link to a variety of data-bases and other contextually relevant services.

The Okemos-based company has three employees. For more information visit: http://www.names4life.com

NATURAL THERAPEUTICS, LLC, BIO-ACTIVE COMPOUNDS TO ADDRESS NUMEROUS PHYSCIAL AILMENTS

Natural Therapeutics was formed to exclusively market several patented bio-active compounds developed by the Michigan State University Center for Food Science and Human Nutrition.

The Ann Arbor-based company is dedicated to the development of naturally occurring bio-active compounds identified in safe botanicals, manufacturing whole supplements and pharmaceuticals.

Natural Therapeutics works to identify, develop and market naturally occurring bioactive compounds which possess therapeutic qualities. The company is currently developing treatments for fungal nail disease, inflammation/joint pain, obesity and type-2 diabetes, Alzheimers, cancers – including stomach, lung, colon and breast - and parasitic diseases Schistosomiasis, filariasis and malaria.

Natural Therapeutics is owned and operated by Muralee Nair, professor in the Department of Horticulture at Michigan State University. The company currently has three employees and is looking to expand to five. For more information visit: http://www.fungalnailrelief.com

NEOGEN, LIFE SCIENCE COMPANY PROMOTES FOOD AND ANIMAL SAFETY

Neogen Corp has grown to more than 350 employees in four U.S. and two international locations developing, manufacturing and marketing products dedicated to food and animal safety.

Neogen claims that its more than 200 diagnostic testing kits are easy to use, and provide greater accuracy and speed than other diagnostic methods currently employed.

The company is structured around a Food Safety Division, an Animal Safety Division and a Life Sciences Division, in addition to a subsidiary named Acumedia, which manufactures high-quality dehydrated culture media for industrial, biotech and life science applications.

Neogen was named by Forbes Magazine as one of the Top 200 Small Companies in America in 2000. The Michigan State University startup company was formed in 1982 based on the work of David Dilley, MSU distinguished professor of plant and soil sciences.

Neogen’s corporate headquarters is in Lansing, with offices in Randolph, Wis., Lexington, Ky., and Tampa, Fla. For more information visit: http://www.neogen.com

NEOMATRIX, NEW TEST MAY HELP DOCTORS DETECT BREAST CANCER YEARS BEFORE MAMMOGRAMS

Irvine, Calif.-based NeoMatrix focuses on early stage breast cancer detection that enables women and their Ob-Gyns to promote optimal breast health. The company's premier product, the HALO NAF Collection System, is the first fully automated, noninvasive breast disease screening device designed for use in the Ob-Gyn office.

Before HALO NAF, Ob-Gyns were limited to assessing individual breast cancer risk using models that have significant limitations or by encouraging patients to follow the standard recommendations for breast cancer screening (breast self-examination, clinical breast examinations, and mammography).

With the HALO NAF Collection System, an Ob-Gyn has the ability to implement NAF screening and provide individuals with an objective assessment of their breast cancer risk.

Unlike most screening methods, the HALO System can help detect abnormal cells that provide critical clues to a woman’s future breast health with a fast, noninvasive procedure.

Former Wayne State University professor Chandice Covington was responsible for inventing the "Nipple Aspirator for non-invasive Breast Fluid Samples & Therapy," licensed to NeoMatrix by WSU. For more information visit: http://neomatrix.com

NeuroNexus Technologies, manufacturer of neural probes aids neuroscience research

NeuroNexus Technologies (N2T) is a University of Michigan spinoff company focused on commercializing silicon probe technology developed at U-M over the past 20 years. The goal of N2T is to become the leading supplier of implantable microscale probe systems for establishing chemical and electrical interfaces to the nervous system.

N2T's proven multi-channel microelectrode technologies are the core of neural probe systems directed at providing cutting-edge solutions for treating neurological disorders and diseases, as well as pushing the envelope in the neuroscience research and drug discovery markets.

N2T designs, manufactures and distributes neural probes to scientists and clinicians around the world for research in neuroscience. The research products are expected to continue to grow and accelerate as new products are rolled out.

Ann Arbor-based NeuroNexus currently employs 12 people and plans to hire two to three additional technical employees. For more information visit: http://www.neuronexustech.com

Niowave, Inc., world leader in superconducting particle accelerators

Niowave is a high-tech research and manufacturing company that specializes in superconducting particle accelerators and their components.

The company is located in Lansing near Michigan State University, in large part due to its close collaboration with the university's National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory and Electrical Engineering Department.

MSU’s National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory is a recognized world leader in the development of superconducting particle accelerators.

Niowave itself is a spinoff from MSU’s National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory. For more information visit: http://www.niowaveinc.com

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OncoImmune, LLC, developer of therapeutic technology for multiple sclerosis, tuberous sclerosis, cancer

OncoImmune is an Ohio-based company dedicated to developing and commercializing therapeutic technologies for multiple sclerosis, tuberous sclerosis and cancer through research in functional genomics, immunology and oncology.

This biotech startup focuses on novel concepts from a strong portfolio of proprietary technologies discovered by the founders, Yang Liu, Pan Zheng, Kunliang Guan and Ming You, prominent scientists from the Ohio State University, Washington University at St. Louis and the University of Michigan, respectively.

OncoImmune has signed option and license agreements to a portfolio of technologies from OSU and U-M.

The company operates approximately 1,500 sq ft of R&D laboratory located in the Business Technology Center of Columbus, where the majority of R&D activities take place, and is planning on opening a facility in Ann Arbor.

OncoImmune currently employs four full-time scientists in the fields of immunology, oncology and veterinary medicine. For more information visit: http://www.oncoimmune.com

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals, working to discover novel antibodies that will target cancer stem cells

OncoMed Pharmaceuticals is discovering and developing monoclonal antibodies and small molecules capable of destroying cancer stem cells involved in the formation and growth of solid tumors.

The company was founded in August 2004 by University of Michigan professors Michael F. Clarke and Dr. Max Wicha, who led the discovery of “cancer stem cells”.

Cancer stem cells are a characterized type of rare tumor cell believed to seed the growth of cancers and underlie cancer's ability to take root in tissues (metastasize). OncoMed's mission is to translate the company's ground-breaking insights into novel medicines capable of eradicating these tumor progenitor cells to halt the spread of solid tumors.

The company has 51 employees and anticipates growing at a modest — pace adding up to seven additional employees by the end of 2007. For more information visit: http://www.oncomed.com

OPTEOS, INC., U.S. MILITARY PARTNER IMPROVES THE EFFICIENCY OF MICROWAVE SYSTEMS

Ann Arbor-based OPTEOS is a start-up company specializing in products and services for RF, microwave and millimeter-wave measurements and diagnostics.

OPTEOS has secured small business research and development contracts from the Army, Air Force, NASA and the Missile Defense Agency, in addition to introducing its measurement service business in 2003.

The Electro-optic field mapping and bandgap-modulation thermometry technology used by OPTEOS are patented techniques developed initially at the University of Michigan and most recently at OPTEOS, under the support of the U.S. Army Research Office.

The company’s instruments can lead to a significant reduction in product-development time and cost, as well as more comprehensive and effective evaluations of microwave systems.

OPTEOS was co-founded by U-M engineering alum Kyoung Yang, U-M research scientist John Whitaker, and EMAG Technologies, Inc. (EMAG was founded in 1994 by U-M engineering faculty and U-M alumni). For more information visit: http://www.opteos.us

ORIGINUS INC., TAKING PROTEIN ANALYSIS ONE ‘STEP’ AT A TIME

Established January 2001, Ann Arbor-based Originus has a 3,000 square foot facility located near the University of Michigan.

Originus’ proprietary technology base is STEP (Substrate Transfection and Expression Protocol), with three patents exclusively licensed from U-M and one patent pending.

STEP technology delivers a unique combination of high throughput and functional protein analysis in living, human cells, an important step in drug development and functional genomics.

Originus makes possible large-scale studies of the genome and proteome that would not otherwise be possible given the costs and limitations of previous throughput technologies. For more information visit: http://www.originusinc.com

OTO MEDICINE, NEW DRUG TARGETS TREATMENT OF NOICE-INDUCED HEARING LOSS

Ann Arbor-based OTO Medicine is a biopharmaceutical company developing medicines to prevent, treat and cure hearing loss. Its principals have more than 30 years of combined experience, forming the business after leaving Pfizer.

The company is now attempting to get its proprietary drug, Auraquell, a mixture of vitamins and minerals, into a clinical trial, anticipating FDA approval by 2010.

The new drug is a dietary supplement and its purpose is to prevent loud noises from creating hearing loss. The target population includes military, factory and recreational workers.

One major market OTO is targeting is the personnel who cannot be redeployed to Iraq and Afghanistan because of hearing loss, a problem that costs the U.S. Veterans Administration nearly $1 billion per year.

The basic technology was formed from over 25 years of research by Dr. Josef Miller at the University of Michigan’s Kresge Hearing Research Institute. For more information visit: http://www.otomedicine.com

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PBS BIOTECH, LLC, MANUFACUTURER OF DISPOSIBLE BIOREACTOR PRODUCTS

Okemos-based PBS Biotech is a startup company founded by Gregory Zeikus, professor emeritus of biochemistry and molecular biology at Michigan State University.

PBS is developing large scale, disposable bioreactors using an innovative liquid mixing technology.

Currently, the company is seeking federal or private research funds in order to optimize the prototype design and to manufacture the disposable bioreactor products which can function equally or better than the conventional stainless bioreactors for cell culture processes.

The biopharmaceutical industry has used the stainless bioreactors for microbial fermentation or cell culture processes in order to produce biologically active ingredients such as recombinant proteins, vaccines or secondary metabolites.

PBS Biotech’s simple, scaleable and economical disposable bioreactor system looks to provide more flexibility on manufacturing capacity and operation schedule without major capital investment, and to simplify the regulatory compliance requirements by eliminating the cleaning steps between the batches.

Phrixus Pharmaceuticals Inc., former Pfizer scientists start new company based on university research

Phrixus Pharmaceuticals (PPI), a spinoff of U-M research led by former Pfizer scientist Bruce Markham, was created to commercialize novel therapies for the treatment of heart failure.

PPI’s first product candidate is Poloxamer 188 (P-188), a compound with a database of over 4,000 patients. The company is repurposing Poloxamer for heart failure, which affects more than 5 million people in the US, and for which the only “cure” is heart transplantation.

While there are therapies to treat abnormal contraction, there are no therapies that target diastolic dysfunction (relaxation of heart muscle). P-188 is a first-in-class therapy that targets diastolic dysfunction by sealing microscopic tears in cardiac muscle cell membranes.

Dr. Jack Luderer, chief medical officer at Phrixus, is executive director of the Bioscience Research and Commercialization Center at Western Michigan University. The center provided initial funding and support.

PIPEX PHARMACEUTICALS, INC., DEVELOPING NOVEL DRUG CANDIDATES TO TREAT NEUROLOGICAL AND AUTOIMMUNE DISEASES

Pipex Pharmaceuticals is developing proprietary, late-stage drug candidates for the treatment of neurologic and autoimmune diseases.

Founded in February 2001, Ann Arbor-based Pipex exclusively in-licenses proprietary, clinical-stage drug candidates that have demonstrated clinical capabilities.

The Company's lead drug candidate, COPREXA, is an oral, anti-copper agent ideal for reducing toxic-free copper levels in the serum and central nervous system of patients.

Pipex Pharmaceuticals is also developing TRIMESTA (oral estriol), for relapse remitting multiple sclerosis.

TRIMESTA is a synthetic version of the mild estrogenic pregnancy hormone estriol, approved and utilized outside the United States for more than 40 years for the treatment of post-menopausal hot flashes. For more information visit: http://www.pipexpharma.com

Polytorx, revolutionizing the way concrete is manufactured

University of Michigan civil engineering professor Antoine Naaman and his then graduate student, Luke Pinkerton, developed a new kind of concrete that is less expensive and more durable than other types of concrete available. Pinkerton graduated and went to Georgia Tech for his MBA, but he came back to Ann Arbor in 2003 and helped start Polytorx. The result: Pinkerton and his former professor developed a stronger, more durable concrete that was featured on the hit television show, “Extreme Makeover Home Edition.”

They devised Helix, a toothpick-sized, triangular-shaped, twisted steel fiber, which proved to increase the tensile strength of concrete by a factor of five. With its screw-like shape, Helix works by locking into concrete like a corkscrew in a cork, and even very low dosages of Helix result in dramatic performance improvements for all uses of concrete.

The technology was developed in 1997 then licensed and commercialized by Polytorx with help from U-M’s Transfer TechStart program. Helix is now used in thousands of applications and sold in 10 countries.

Polytorx, an Ann Arbor-based company with manufacturing in Ypsilanti, has recently expanded to a new manufacturing facility and is doubling the number of machines used to produce Helix.

The company expects to create 1,800 jobs in the next five years. For more information visit: http://www.polytorx.com

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QUANTAM SIGNAL, NEW TECHNOLOGY MAKES SOLDIERS LIVES EASIER

Quantum Signal is a mathematics-based engineering company with a focus on developing state-of-the-art intelligence sensing and data analysis techniques.

Founded in 1999, the company’s work encompasses the areas of homeland defense and automotive engineering, specializing in biometrics, intelligent video analysis and simulation.

By combining computer vision algorithms, navigation strategies and video game-style interfaces, Quantum is creating next-generation controllers for small robots used by the U.S. military.

These controllers will make robots easier for soldiers to control, allowing them to spend more time concentrating on their mission and less time on guiding a robot to its destination.

In 2006, Ann Arbor-based Quantum Signal was awarded a Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II contract to develop the robotic technology.

Mitchell Rhode co-founded Quantum Signal following his graduation from the University of Michigan in 1999. Since that time, he has led Quantum Signal’s business operations and managed a number of advanced technology development projects. For more information visit: http://www.quantumsignal.com

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Rapid BioSense, biosensor technology will perform rapid and accurate tests on biological pathogens

Rapid BioSense is a biotechnology company in early stage formation that will use biosensor technologies licensed from Michigan State University.

Rapid BioSense will manufacture and market highly sensitive state-of-the-art biosensor products to detect bacteria and viruses in a liquid sample. Their products will have a wide variety of human diagnostic, food safety, bio-defense and environmental applications.

One of the critical factors in helping patients, protecting the food chain, monitoring the environment and responding to bioterrorism is the ability to perform rapid, sensitive and accurate information tests of biological pathogens. The key to pathogen detection is highly effective biosensor technology. For more information visit: http://rapidbiosense.com

RED CEDAR TECHNOLOGY, INC., ‘HEED’ING THE WAY TO TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT

Red Cedar Technology focuses on industrial consulting by using methods developed in the Computational Structural Mechanics Laboratory at Michigan State University.

Red Cedar’s technology accelerates the engineering design process with fast and comprehensive optimization software. Their software, called HEEDS, interfaces with all popular Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) applications to automate and expedite the design process.

Instead of relying on costly and time-consuming manual design iterations, HEEDS intelligently conducts a broad and efficient search for the optimal design.

Red Cedar has licensed products developed by two Michigan State University researchers, Ronald Averill, associate professor of materials science and mechanics, and Erik Goodman, professor of electrical and computer engineering.

The East Lansing-based company has about 12 employees. For more information visit: http://www.redcedartech.com

REMOTE SENSING AND GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SERVICES, MSU AFFLIATE AIDS MICHIGAN IN SEVERAL GEOSPATIAL FIELDS

East Lansing-based Remote Sensing & Geographic Information Services (RS&GIS) is a non-academic program in the Department of Geography at Michigan State University.

RS&GIS works to provide state-of-the-art remote sensing (RS), global positioning system (GPS), geographic information science (GIS) and cartographic services to the MSU campus, the State of Michigan and other affiliated agencies.

The company provides outreach instruction and technology transfer in the geospatial fields of RS, GPS, GIS and cartography, also conducting research grant and contract work for on-campus and off-campus units.

RS&GIS employs 12 full-time staff members. For more information visit: http://www.geopathway.com

RiboNovix, Inc., development of anti-infectives helps isolate, identify, and characterize mutations in RNA targets

Founded in 2003, Lexington, Mass.-based RiboNovix is a biotechnology company focusing on the discovery and development of new anti-infectives that are safe and effective and specifically address the issue of antibiotic resistance.

The company has an exclusive license agreement with Wayne State University where Dr. Philip R. Cunningham developed the technology.

RiboNovix’s platform technology integrates genomics, bioinformatics, structural biology, combinatorial chemistry, high through-put screening and rational drug design.

A novel proprietary genomics platform technology provides, for the first time, a way to rapidly isolate, identify and characterize all mutations in RNA targets that do not severely impair protein synthesis and might lead to antibiotic resistance. For more information visit: http://www.ribonovix.com

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SCICLONE PHARMACEUTICALS, PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY TREATS VIRAL AND INFECTOUS DISEASE WORLDWIDE

SciClone Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company engaged in the development of therapeutics to treat life-threatening diseases.

SciClone's lead product, ZADAXIN, is currently being evaluated in late-stage clinical trials for the treatment of malignant melanoma and hepatitis C. ZADAXIN is approved for sale in select markets internationally, most notably in China where SciClone has an established sales and marketing operation.

The company’s strategy is to leverage its advantage in China by in-licensing or acquiring the marketing rights to other products in China’s rapidly growing pharmaceutical economy. In China, ZADAXIN is one of the top-selling imported pharmaceutical products on the market.

The company’s other drug development candidate is SCV-07, currently in early clinical development in the United States for the treatment of viral and infectious diseases.

Wayne State University professor Milton Muntchnick's invention, "Hepatitis Therapeutics" was licensed into SciClone by WSU. For more information visit: http://www.sciclone.com

SciTech Development LLC, bridging the gap between research and commercialization

Grosse Pointe Farms-based SciTech Development (SciTech) is an incubator company created by scientists and business leaders affiliated with the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute (KCI) and Wayne State University (WSU).

The company strives to bridge the gaps between basic/applied research and late stage commercial licensing.

SciTech is attempting to accomplish this by using a two-fold strategy: identifying specific medical needs and conducting proof-of-concept studies that substantially increase the market value of those scientific discoveries by decreasing risk to the ultimate commercial licensee.

SciTech employs eight people and holds licensing, option and intellectual property agreements from WSU. For more information visit: http://www.scitechdevelopment.com

SENSICORE, ADVANCING WATER TESTING ONE DROP AT A TIME   

In the late 1990s, University of Michigan engineering professor Richard Brown and post-doctoral students Geun Sig Cha and Hakhyun Nam developed a hand-held chemical analyzer. Their goal: to replace the time-consuming wet chemistry used for blood analysis with a lab-on-a-chip technology capable of yielding real-time measurements.

In early 2000, with the help of U-M’s Office of Tech Transfer, Brown teamed up with Ann Arbor-based Ardesta LLC, a leader in commercializing small-tech products.

With $1 million in start-up money, Brown and Rick Snyder, Ardesta board chair and former President and COO of Gateway Inc., launched Sensicore to explore commercial applications and market the technology.

Ann Arbor-based Sensicore was founded in November 2000, in partnership with U-M researchers to explore new applications for solid-state sensors. For more information visit: http://www.sensicore.com

SensiGen LLC, providing new innovations for HPV detection

SensiGen is an Ann Arbor-based biotechnology company focused on gene-based molecular diagnostics. SensiGen is developing advanced technologies to enable the early detection of diseases, improve the standard of care and improve overall healthcare costs.

SensiGen’s technology was developed by David Kurnit, MD, Ph.D., founder of SensiGen and professor of pediatrics and human genetics at the University of Michigan Medical School.

SensiGen's lead product is a novel diagnostic test which improves the manner by which cervical cancer and its precursor lesions are identified and monitored.

The AttoSense HPV Test, developed in the laboratory of Dr. Kurnit, can identify each of the 15 unique genetic characteristics in HPV that cause cervical cancer in women. The test is superior to current standard methods because it virtually eliminates the errors that cause false negative or false positive results.

SensiGen has six employees with plans to grow to 12 by the end of 2007 and to 45-50 by 2010. For more information visit: http://www.sensigen.com

SenSound LLC: seeing is believing

SenSound licensed technology from Wayne State University’s Acoustics Vibration and Noise Control Laboratory allowing users to see where unwanted sound originates and how it travels through space and time.

SenSound software, services and integrated systems help engineers identify, understand and visualize three dimensional sound sources and their transmission paths in true 3D space and time, with greater speed, precision and resolution than any alternative acoustics diagnostic tool available.

In 2006, the company was recognized as one of Michigan’s 50 Companies to Watch, part of an awards program sponsored by the Edward Lowe Foundation.

SenSound received the recognition after having successfully launched the patented acoustical engineering technologies developed by Sean F. Wu, WSU Charles DeVlieg Professor of Engineering, into commercial operations.

Grosse Pointe Farms-based SenSound has 11 employees and is hiring at a rate of two employees a year. For more information visit: http://www.sensound.com

SM-CHEM, LLC, ORGANIC COMPOUND DEVELOPMENT AIDS PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY

DeWitt-based SM-Chem is a life sciences company focused on drug discovery and development. The technology SM-Chem utilizes was developed and patented by Michigan State University chemistry professors Robert Maleczka and Milton Smith for the synthesis of organic compounds and allied molecules.

Organic compounds are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry and also represent important building blocks for non-pharmaceutical materials, including agrochemicals, sensor materials and next-stage video screen display technology.

The goal of the MSU spinoff, founded in 2005, is to market the chemical building blocks generated by this technology to those involved in drug discovery/development and allied enterprises.

Soar Technologies, Inc., taking artificial intelligence to new heights

Soar Technologies is an artificial intelligence company that develops human-like reasoning in software used for military applications and was one of Michigan’s 50 Companies to Watch in 2007.

Established in 1998, the Ann Arbor-based company is a spinoff from the University of Michigan’s Artificial Intelligence Laboratory. Soar Tech licensed their software from U-M and has expanded and advanced the technology through its own R&D and over 80 federal contracts.

Under the direction of U-M professor John Laird, Soar Technologies was formed by current and former U-M faculty and research staff after a 1992-1997 research effort funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to capture the knowledge and decision-making of combat pilots in software that can control simulated aircraft for large-scale war games and training.

Soar Tech currently has 38 employees and has had an average annual growth rate of 40 percent over its eight-year history. The company works with 20 federal research agencies and 40 organizations, including universities, research institutes and large and small companies. For more information visit: http://www.soartech.com

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TCH Pharmaceuticals, Inc., developing MSU research in Ann Arbor to improve chemotherapeutic drugs

TCH Pharmaceuticals is an Ann Arbor-based company formed with a number of former Pfizer scientists to commercialize a mechanistically novel series of potent, orally-available and non-toxic small molecule NF-kB pathway inhibitors that have the potential for a greatly improved safety profile relative to existing therapies.

This new class of imidazolines, which was discovered by Michigan State University chemistry researcher Jetze Tepe, inhibits TNF-a production at nanomolar concentrations in cells and synergistically enhances the anti-cancer efficacy of marketed chemotherapeutic drugs in animal models.

The patents are being licensed from MSU. This new therapeutic class holds promise for the development of novel therapeutic agents to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

TECHNOVA CORP., FOCUS ON TECHNOLOGY DRIVES ENGINEERING FIELDS

The Technova Corp. is a technology-driven business focused on the development and commercialization of technologies in the field of materials science and engineering, multi-functional nanocomposites, structural engineering and electrochemistry.

The Lansing-based company has a 30,000 square foot facility that is home to laboratory facilities, production systems and offices. The laboratory’s facilities provide comprehensive, state-of-the-art capabilities for experimental and theoretical investigations.

Technova was started in 2001 with the guidance of Parviz Soroushian, a Michigan State University professor of civil and environmental engineering. The company currently has 11 employees. For more information visit: http://www.technovacorp.com

THERMAL WAVE IMAGING, INC., PRODUCING NEW ADVANCEMENTS IN THERMAL IMAGING TECHNOLOGY

Ferndale-based Thermal Wave Imaging (TWI) is a worldwide provider of thermal, nondestructive testing. The company’s thermography services are used in manufacturing, maintenance and research applications.

Since its inception in 1992, TWI has been focused on the advancement of Infrared Nondestructive Testing (NDT).

TWI develops and commercializes thermographic NDT products and services for the aerospace, power generation and automotive industries.

The company’s EchoTherm, ThermoScope and MOSAIQ products are designed to address the full spectrum of NDT applications. The spectrum ranges from microscopy to large-area inspection, and from portable systems for in-service inspection to fully automated industrial applications for quality assurance.

Wayne State University professors Robert Thomas, Lawrence Favro and Pao-Kuang Kuo's invention "A Vector Lock-in Imaging System" was licensed into Thermal Wave Imaging by WSU. For more information visit: http://thermalwave.com

THEROX, INC., NEW TECHNOLOGY HAS THE POTENTIAL TO TREAT HEART ATTACKS, STROKE, CANCER

Irvine, Calif.-based TherOx was founded in 1994 to develop, manufacture and market minimally invasive products for the delivery of aqueous oxygen to ischemic tissues. Ischemic tissues have an obstructed blood flow, depriving the tissues of oxygen.

TherOx’s core technology consists of dissolving and stabilizing hyper-elevated concentrations of oxygen in saline solution. This highly oxygen enriched saline solution is called Aqueous Oxygen or AO.

TherOx’s AO System creates and infuses AO through a catheter to oxygen deficient or ischemic tissue. Company research has confirmed in pre-clinical studies that AO delivered through a catheter can reverse ischemia and resuscitate tissue that would otherwise die.

Working with leading scientific and clinical advisers, the company is conducting a clinical trial with AO to treat a high risk group of heart attack patients.

In addition to heart attack treatment, pre-clinical research indicates that other potential applications for AO technology include ischemic stroke, cancer treatment and wound and skin healing.

Wayne State University professor Richard Spears’ inventions in the areas of  "Aqueous oxygen, Wound Cream and Water Treatment" were licensed into Therox, Inc. by WSU. For more information visit: http://www.therox.com

T/J Technologies, Inc., developer of energy storage devices for defense, aerospace applications

T/J Technologies is a privately held research and development company focusing on the development and improvement of energy storage devices.

Located in Ann Arbor, the company develops advanced materials for energy storage devices pertaining to defense and aerospace applications.

T/J Technologies’ nano and micro structured materials specifically address the concerns of performance, cost, and reliability of lithium ion batteries and fuel cells for the hybrid vehicle market.

The technology was developed out of U-M in association with chemical engineering professor and current T/J Technologies CTO, Levi Thompson.

T/J currently has 25 employees and is looking to add five to six employees by the end of 2008. For more information visit: http://www.tjtechnologies.com

Translume Technologies, Inc., micro-machining company streamlines the way data travels

Ann Arbor-based Translume Technologies, a 2001 optical parts startup, is using technology originally developed and licensed from the University of Michigan to streamline the way data travels.

The company is planning a line of products based on its micro-machining technology, including sensors, biochips and other optical components to be used in aerospace applications, biotechnology and defense.

U-M is currently a shareholder in Translume and former U-M professors work for the company as researchers. Translume currently has 10 employees and is looking to add four more within the next year. For more information visit: http://www.translume.com

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Velcura Therapeutics, developing novel therapies for osteoporosis and other bone diseases

Established in 2001, Velcura Therapeutics is focused on developing drugs that stimulate bone formation, in which adult stem cells will be used to grow human bone in tissue culture. The process is then analyzed to develop novel therapies for the more than 100 million people suffering from osteoporosis and other bone diseases.

Based in Ann Arbor, the biotechnology company received $3.3 million in funding from the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor in 2002 and more than $3.8 million from the National Institute of Health.

A spinoff of the University of Michigan, Velcura Therapeutics has an exclusive license agreement with a Japanese pharmaceutical company, Nippon Chemiphar Ltd. Velcura also participates with the U-M Ross School of Business allowing 1st year MBA students who are interested in biotechnology to work with its staff.

Velcura currently employs seven people and is planning to add three more employees in summer 2007. For more information visit: http://www.velcura.com

VETGEN, LLC, UNIVERSITIES TEAM UP TO TAKE CARE OF OUR FURRY FRIENDS

VetGen works to improve the health of all purebred animals by providing informative and valuable services to animal breeders, owners and care providers.

In 1988, a team of Ph.D. molecular geneticists from Michigan State University's School of Veterinary Medicine and University of Michigan's Department of Human Genetics collaborated in a research effort to learn more about canine genetic diseases.

VetGen was formed in October 1995 with the help of an entrepreneurial firm and is headquartered in a state-of-the-art facility in Ann Arbor.

While research efforts were maintained at the university’s laboratories, VetGen established an independent but complementary research effort in its own genetics laboratory to supplement the on-going MSU/UM efforts. VetGen also established a clinical service laboratory with the goal of providing efficient and reliable service to customers.

Since its inception, VetGen has launched a variety of genetic disease detection services which are applicable in a variety of canine breeds. The DNA detection tests provide genetic information as to whether a dog is clear, a carrier, or affected by the targeted disease.

The company has also developed informative DNA profiling which provides positive identification of tested dogs, including 10 year storage of a dog's DNA sample for future usage. VetGen, “A company run by animal lovers for animal lovers,” has 10 estimated employees. For more information visit: http://www.vetgen.com

Visca LLC, service provider uses MEMS and wireless sensing systems technology

Visca was founded in 2004 to develop products and services based on Microelectromechanical Systems (MEMS) technologies and wireless sensing systems.

Visca is a spinoff of the Smart Sensors and Integrated Microsystems (SSIM) Program at Wayne State University, with its corporate headquarters in Troy, in addition to the new laboratories opened in Tech Town, Detroit.

The company was founded to further develop, market and license tangible sensing systems, wireless sensor applications and wireless data transfer in a number of markets including biomedical, defense, homeland security, automotive and aerospace industries.

Visca has received Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II grants from the United States Army to address Multi-Power Source MEMS Packaging and Multi-Tasked Microtechnology Based Sensor for Automotive Fluidic Analysis.  For more information visit: http://www.viscallc.com

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XG Sciences, nano-additive helps plastic materials become thermally stable

When entrepreneur Mike Knox discovered technology developed by Michigan State University Professor Lawrence Drzal, Knox realized he had a new product — a nano-additive that can make plastic materials more thermally stable, such as car bumpers, or LED lighting that dissipates heat.

Knox, MSU professor Lawrence Drzal and two MSU researchers, Inhwan Do, and Hiroyuki Fukushima, formed XG Sciences to develop nanoplatelets for use in advanced composites and other materials.

Once production begins, the four person company has the potential to grow to 50 employees. For more information visit: http://www.xgsciences.com

Xoran Technologies, student talent becomes world-beater

Xoran Technologies of Ann Arbor was launched in 2001 by University of Michigan Ph.D. candidate Predrag Sukovic and his thesis advisor Neal Clinthorne with considerable financial and professional help from the U-M Office of Technology Transfer.

Additionally, Xoran’s award-winning business plan was written by Ross School of Business MBA students.

In just five years, with young energy and seed money from the Zell-Lurie Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies at U-M, Xoran has become an innovative leader in medical-imaging. The firm, which makes small, point-of-care CT scanners, announced in June 2006 that it will be making a $3.7 million expansion in Ann Arbor and adding 171 jobs to the local economy.

Xoran currently has 64 employees and is now in the process of hiring. For more information visit: http://www.xorantech.com

XTERA COMMUNICATIONS, ADVANCING MEDIA, TELECOM, UNREPEATERED SUBMARINE APPLICATIONS

Xtera Communications has established a strong intellectual property position in the optical networking field.

Xtera’s products have the potential to be instrumental in the expansion of the Internet and the ever-increasing demand for bandwidth, which is driving the need for increased fiber-optics capacity.

Xtera, founded in 1998, supplies optical transport for regional, long-haul and ultra long-haul applications as well as unrepeatered submarine applications.

Xtera is a University of Michigan spinoff company created by the work of Mohammed Islam, U-M professor of electrical engineering and computer science.

The company currently has its North American headquarters in Allen, Texas, and has additional operations around the world. For more information visit: http://www.xtera.com

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Zattoo, mobile  technology allows users to watch TV anywhere with a broadband connection

Zattoo acquires, transports, and presents quick-start, long-play streaming video in one browser for all of Zattoo’s TV channels, including CNN and Bloomberg Television, enabling users to access video anywhere that has a broadband connection.

Zattoo partners with broadcasters and advertisers to serve customers with a wide selection of content from various sources in one, easy-to-use web interface. 

The company’s real-time “mobile” viewing technology was created by U-M Associate Professor of Computer Science Sugih Jamin, his research assistant Wenjie Wang, and several U-M undergraduate students.

Zattoo is based in San Francisco, Calif. and maintains an office in Ann Arbor as well as in Zurich, Switzerland.

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