Biolocity is proud to be named a 2020 Capital Challenge Grant recipient. This award from the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) provides us with the opportunity to launch a new, early-stage life science fund that can bridge the critical gap in technology development from bench to scalable business. We aim to help entrepreneurs build successful businesses and create sustainable jobs in the region by funding technology-driven start-ups in the life sciences.
Recent News
Innovations Selected for Biolocity Launch
Focused Cryo: David Prologo, MD, FSIR, Emory University and Yogi Patel
Five research innovations from Emory University and Georgia Tech selected for Biolocity Launch.
The Biolocity team is excited to announce the faculty-lead innovations selected to participate in the newest cohort of Biolocity Launch! In addition to receiving funding to support commercialization milestones, awardees join a year-long collaboration with consultants and business advisors for project management and longitudinal coaching to accelerate the development of their patient-impacting technologies.
Each year, Biolocity opens an intensive, multi-stage application process that provides applicants with the opportunity to receive pitch coaching, market assessments, and competitive analysis needed for commercial success. Faculty work with entrepreneur advisors to de-risk their technology at each application stage before final acceptance into the program by an oversight committee comprised of venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, clinicians, biomedical engineers, and university technology transfer experts.
Below are the select projects included in this year’s cohort:
- Dynamic Sampling Platform: This platform technology aims to provide simple, accurate, and low-cost quality monitoring for cell therapy bioreactors. Principal Investigators: Andrei Fedorov, PhD, Georgia Tech, Edwin Horwitz, MD, Emory University, and Mason Chilmonczyk, PhD, Georgia Tech.
- Focused Cryo: A cryoablation system designed to aid in targeting peripheral nerves in a highly precise manner. The platform has applications in metabolic syndromes, obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and chronic pain. Principal Investigators: David Prologo, MD, FSIR, Emory University.
- NanoCliq: A vaccine technology that leverages protein nanoparticle platform to prevent the onset of Leishmaniasis, a fatal disease that currently has no vaccine available. Principal Investigator: M.G. Finn, PhD, Georgia Tech.
- New Therapeutic for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD): The development of an LRH-1 agonist drug which increases innate steroid production specifically at the site of inflammation in the gut. Principal Investigators: Nathan Jui, PhD, Emory University, Eric Ortlund, PhD, Emory University, and John Calvert, PhD, Emory University.
- Twice Therapeutics: A two-step method that can deliver long-lasting gene therapies to diseased tissues without re-engineering viruses. Principal Investigators: James Dahlman, PhD, Georgia Tech and Eric Sorscher, MD, Emory University
“We are fortunate in this current climate to continue to be able to provide funding that will assist the commercialization of these promising technologies,” says Manuel Kingsley, interim director of the Biolocity Program. “While research may look different this year, the passion these innovators have for improving healthcare delivery is unwavering as is our team’s commitment to their advancement. We look forward to working with each awardee to support their technology development.”
Funding and commercialization support provided by Biolocity is used to bridge the gap in development between early-stage university research and its path to the market. If you are interested in commercialization guidance for a device, therapeutic, or platform technology with the ability to positively impact human health, schedule a meeting here.
To learn more about Biolocity’s funding and partnership opportunities, visit www.Biolocity.org.
Legal Office Hours Now Available!
Biolocity’s newest offering in partnership with Emory School of Law and Professor Nicole Morris provides complimentary counseling and materials to Emory University and Georgia Tech innovators and startup companies.
Schedule an appointment or view the full list of areas of support using the below link.
Southeast COVID19 Innovation Showcase
The Biolocity team recently teamed up with fellow Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) DRIVe Network Accelerators New Orleans BioInnovation Center and First Flight Venture Center to host the Southeast COVID-19 Innovation Showcase. This event highlighted BARDA’s current funding opportunities along with pitches from technology teams providing solutions related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about the event and related funding opportunities here.
Please note that the areas of interest for BARDA DRIVe’s funding opportunities change over time. Please visit https://drive.hhs.gov/ for the most up-to-date areas of interest.
Shawna Khouri Named Georgia Tech 40 Under 40 Honoree
Congratulations to Shawna Khouri, Biolocity Managing Director, for being selected from a pool of over 400 applicants for a new program designed to recognize the achievements of Georgia Institute of Technology alumni who are improving the human condition.
ATLANTA, JULY 15, 2020 — The Georgia Tech Alumni Association has announced 40 distinguished honorees who have innovated industries and positively impacted communities across the globe. In its first year, more than 250 individuals were nominated by colleagues, peers, and Georgia Tech faculty this April.
Shawna Khouri is a life science entrepreneur and funder who has catalyzed and grown Atlanta’s life science start-up ecosystem. Khouri shares that “Being a Georgia Tech alumna is something to be proud of, but being included amongst such an impressive list of peers is simply humbling.”
In its inaugural year, the 2020 class includes Olympian and breast cancer survivor Chaunté Lowe; founder of the Algorithmic Justice League (and one of Shawna Khouri’s freshman dorm-mates), Joy Buolamwini, whose research on algorithmic bias in artificial intelligence (AI) has led to policy and industry changes in addressing AI harms; and Maithili Appalwar, who founded Avana to address the alarming rate of suicides among farmers in Yavatmal, a district in Maharashtra, India by working with more than 10,000 farmers to conserve more than 50 billion liters of water.
“I am amazed and humbled by the accomplishments of these innovators and trendsetters. They epitomize the focus that our Georgia Tech alumni have to make the world a better place,” shares Dene Sheheane, president of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association.
Those nominated must have completed at least one semester at Georgia Tech, be under the age of 40 as of June 30, 2020, and have made an impact in their profession or community, spanning all industries and sectors. A committee of 26 faculty, staff, and volunteer leaders, who collectively represented all Georgia Tech colleges, scored each nominee using a 25-point rubric. Selection Committee member Bert Reeves, MGT 2000, State Representative in the Georgia House of Representatives, expressed that, “I was blown away at the nearly impossible task of scoring the applicants. These are folks who are not just impacting their community and state, but in some cases, their country and the entire world. It is truly inspiring to see the innovation and passion that our alumni are contributing to many of the greatest issues our world faces today.”
A list of all 40 honorees is available here.
About the Georgia Tech Alumni Association
The Georgia Tech Alumni Association, chartered in 1908, is an exclusive network of more than 172,000 worldwide tied together by their experience at Georgia Tech. Through the Association, Tech alumni gain immediate access to its extensive, global alumni network, as well as numerous alumni programs and services designed to enrich both careers and lives. The Georgia Tech Alumni Association is a participation-driven non-profit corporation governed by a board of alumni volunteers. Since 1947, the Association’s Roll Call program has raised money to financially support Tech’s academic mission, a tradition that has transformed the Institute into the place it is today. Learn more at www.gtalumni.org.