Sbir phase II: scalable synthetic mucin biomaterials

Award Details: Nomi Materials Corp received a $1.23M Cooperative Agreement from the National Science Foundation (NSF) under the Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP) program (CFDA 47.084), effective October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027.

Products and Services: The awardee will develop and commercialize scalable synthetic mucin biomaterials—engineered glycosylated polypeptides designed to replicate the structure and function of natural mucins with improved scalability, stability, purity, and customization capabilities. Phase II deliverables include: (1) at-scale synthesis processes for synthetic mucins; (2) skincare and wound healing product formulations; (3) synthetic mucins for molecular delivery applications, including mucosal barrier models; (4) anti-icing aerospace coatings utilizing synthetic mucin technology; and (5) synthetic mucin-based eye lubricant formulations. The platform leverages a common synthetic mucin polymer across multiple applications to address multi-million-dollar markets in healthcare, defense, and aerospace sectors. While subawards are planned, specific sub-awardee details were not provided in this award documentation.

Abstract

The broader/ commercial impacts of this small business innovation research (sbir) phase II project LIE in improving public health through novel solutions in skincare, wound healing, eye lubrication, and drug delivery; strengthening U.S. National defense with materials for aerospace and extreme environments; and fostering academic?industry partnerships. The core innovation is a synthetic mucin that mimics structures and functions of their animal-derived counterparts, but that is also significantly lower cost, purer, more stable, and customizable to meet the specific needs of the customer. The application areas mentioned earlier represent multi-million-dollar markets and this project can be first-to-market to address the growing need for biocompatible analogs of ubiquitous mucus biomaterials. Synthetic mucins are glycosylated polypeptides engineered to replicate the structure and function of natural mucins, but with the distinct advantages of scalability, stability, purity, and customization to meet specific customer requirements. Phase i research achieved higher-yield monomer synthesis and developed a material platform informed by structure-property relationships. Building on this, the phase II objectives are to: (1) demonstrate at-scale synthesis of synthetic mucins, (2) develop skincare and wound healing products, (3) create synthetic mucins for molecular delivery applications, including mucosal barrier models, (4) apply synthetic mucins in anti-icing aerospace coatings, and (5) formulate synthetic mucin-based eye lubricants. Notably, many of these applications utilize the same synthetic mucin polymers. A key technical challenge remaining is the removal of a toxic catalyst used in the hydrogenation step. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.- subawards are planned for this award.