Project Grant R41RR032111

This Project Grant award from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training Program (CFDA 93.859) provides $364,167 to Villanova University to develop novel non-viral gene delivery methods for cell therapies. The key objectives are: The Bracaglia Lab will develop new polymeric gene delivery vehicles to improve the delivery of siRNAs and other payloads to T cells and hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Drs. Elmer and Huang will...

The National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), under the CFDA Program 93.350, awarded a $338,997 Project Grant to Mabswitch Inc. effective January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2024. The project aims to develop "LENTISAFE LIGANDS: MILD-ELUTION IMMUNOAFFINITY LIGANDS FOR ENRICHMENT AND PURIFICATION OF LENTIVIRAL VECTORS." The goal is to create switchable affinity ligands that can be used to selectively isolate and enrich functional lentiviral vectors from production...

Federal Project Grant Award Summary Cellfe, Inc. received a $314,000 Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859), awarded September 1, 2025, with completion targeted for August 31, 2026. The award supports proof-of-concept studies to validate the CellFE microfluidic transfection platform for same-day, sequential multiplexed gene editing of T...

Federal Project Grant Award Summary Gigamune, Inc. received an $800,000 Project Grant award from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) under the Cancer Treatment Research program (CFDA 93.395) on September 15, 2025, with a completion date of August 31, 2026. Under this award, the company, led by Principal Investigator David Scott Johnson, Ph.D., is developing a novel lentiviral vector platform for enhanced in vivo delivery of T cell receptors (TCRs) as a cell therapy approach for Stage IV...

The Tiny Cargo Company received a $432,000 National Science Foundation Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships Project Grant to test the scalability of an exosome isolation technology for developing an orally administered radioprotective therapeutic. The goal is to establish proof-of-concept for a safe, orally delivered drug platform capable of transporting biologic and small molecule therapeutics to treat radiation damage and related diseases. The first year of the award will determine scaling...

This $300,000 Project Grant award from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), under the Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.855), supports the development of a GMP-compliant E. coli dihydrofolate reductase (EDHFR) vector. This vector will be used to monitor the biodistribution and trafficking of investigational chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies through positron emission tomography (PET) imaging. The goals are to provide a...

This three-year, $1 million Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Biological Sciences program (CFDA 47.074) supports the development of viral vectors for gene delivery and manipulation in amphibian research. The Trustees of Columbia University will lead efforts to design new viral vectors with host specificity for amphibians. Researchers at Columbia, the Institute of Science and Technology Austria, the University of Utah, and the Scripps Research Institute will collaborate to test...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Engineering Program (CFDA 47.041) aims to develop scalable manufacturing processes for engineered extracellular vesicles (EVs) that can serve as targeted drug delivery vehicles. The $2.55M grant to Vanderbilt University, awarded on January 1, 2024, will fund research to harness cellular processes for optimizing EV production, cargo loading, and cellular uptake. The long-term goal is to establish a biomanufacturing platform for...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation (NSF) under its Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships (TIP) program (CFDA 47.084) provides $275,000 to Tectaria Bio LLC to engineer cell lines with activated proteasomes for increased biomanufacturing efficiency. The project aims to test the feasibility and application of a novel technology to significantly increase the protein production capabilities of cell lines used in the manufacture of biologics, gene therapies, and vaccines....

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program (CFDA 47.084) provides $275,000 to Targeting Systems to develop a novel intramuscular gene delivery platform capable of sustained expression and endogenous secretion of bispecific natural killer cell engager (BIKE) therapeutics to treat solid tumors like hepatocellular carcinoma. The platform aims to deliver BIKEs in a less invasive manner than current immunotherapies,...