Project Grant R44HL126285

This $568,264 Project Grant award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837), aims to develop a scalable bioprocess for manufacturing designer red blood cells (RBCs) derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The goal is to create a renewable source of RBCs with unique Rh profiles to facilitate the identification of complex Rh antibodies, which is critical for selecting compatible blood donors and...

This Project Grant award from the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB), under the federal "Discovery and Applied Research for Technological Innovations to Improve Human Health" program (CFDA 93.286), aims to develop a commercial-grade point-of-care instrument for rapid, non-destructive assessment of bone marrow aspiration sample adequacy. The $1,074,143 award to Cellia Science, Inc. will fund the transition of the instrument's control to a printed circuit...

This federal Project Grant award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837), provides $146,876 to the Coriell Institute for Medical Research to develop new methods for expanding functional hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) from cryopreserved umbilical cord blood (UCB) samples. The project aims to optimize an approach using PPAR-α agonists, which have been shown to significantly expand long-term functional UCB HSCs...

This Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program (CFDA 47.084) provides $275,000 to Dcan Biosciences LLC to develop an advanced microfluidic system for cancer diagnosis and monitoring. The system aims to isolate and assess circulating tumor cells (CTCs) and CTC clusters (CTCCs) from patient blood samples to enable highly sensitive and accurate liquid biopsies. Key objectives include designing a hybrid microfluidic device for...

Rattan Life Science Inc. received a $275,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation under the NSF Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program (CFDA 47.084) to develop a platform for generating induced pluripotent stem cell-derived naïve CD4+ and CD8+ T cells with fidelity, reproducibility and scalability. The platform employs proprietary induced thymic epithelial cells to provide biologically relevant thymic positive selection signals during T cell differentiation,...

The National Cancer Institute has awarded a $275,627 Project Grant to Link Biosystems Inc., a self-certified small disadvantaged business and for-profit organization, to develop the ONXPANSION bioreactor workflow. This workflow aims to enable efficient expansion of patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells into clinically relevant cell doses to support autologous cell therapy applications. The grant supports efforts to de-risk the utility of Link Biosystems' bioreactor technology for...

The National Science Foundation awarded Ireprogram, LLC a $256,000 Project Grant under the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program. The grant supports an STTR Phase I project to develop autologous hematopoietic stem cell production techniques to treat graft-versus-host disease. The STTR program seeks small business innovation research and development through public-private partnerships. This award will allow Ireprogram to research stem cell therapies with the goal of ending this...

This $256,000 National Science Foundation project grant supports the development of an automated chest tube to prevent clotting. Circulatech LLC will design and prototype a novel chest tube that proactively manages fluid flow within the catheter lumen to flush and drain the tube, reducing blood clot formation. Through a process called "dilutional coagulopathy," the tube will use sterile saline or anticoagulants to reduce thrombosis in the drainage space rather than relying on...

The National Science Foundation awarded Cytorecovery Inc. a $255,986 Small Business Technology Transfer Phase I Project Grant under the Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) on March 15, 2021. The grant funded the development of on-chip integration of sample preparation and monitoring capabilities with dielectrophoretic cell isolation techniques. The Engineering program seeks to improve quality of life and economic strength by fostering innovation and excellence in engineering research. This award...

This federal Project Grant award from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) under the Cardiovascular Diseases Research program (CFDA 93.837) provides $275,396 to Link Biosystems Inc., a self-certified small disadvantaged business, to develop bioreactor technologies for efficient differentiation, scale-up, and maturation of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes. The research aims to address challenges in producing clinically relevant quantities of...