From the Hallway to the Laboratory to Product – How Science and Innovation Meet?

Working closely with a large industry partner Applied Biosensors, LLC (AB) is working on technology that may be an integral piece in moving the biopharmaceutical market from the large stainless steel tanks used today for manufacturing drugs to disposable, smaller volume fermentation.  Brining about a responsive, agile manufacturing aspect to pharma production.

The technology involves rapid sensing of various constituents of fermenting material.  Typically bacteria transfected with DNA code where the DNA holds the blueprint for a biologically active molecule make up the soup in a biopharmaceutical fermenter.  

The use is cool and the technology even cooler, but not what this post is about.  This post is really celebrating the origin of this technology. The sensor system is a mix of electrical engineering, nanotechology, biotechnology, and high levels of time and energy.   Take the insight of USTAR professor Dr. Carlo Mastrangelo, a full professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) and the genius of a young and energetic scientist working on an interesting problem, mix the ingredients in a hallway discussion in the USTAR Sorenson Molecular Biotechnology Build (SMBB), incubate for six-seven years and voila, a new technology that may change the way drugs are made and delivered in global markets and, ultimately, change the way we live.  

And, of course, should Applied Biosensors, LLC find funding, market demand, hire the right personnel, and on and on and on….  we may even witness a new company, created using new UofU IP and producing jobs in Utah.  Applied Biosensors is currently funded through an SBIR grant and research and development funding and work orders from a Fortune 500 strategic partner.  From all I can see they are managing the early work extremely well.  A very impressive team technically led by Prashant Tathireddy  and with Rohit Sharma and Rich Barra holding down the business development leadership.

 The path to commercial success for many of the technologies is long and arduous, no doubt.  But the beginning of the technology – a hallway discussion between a gung-ho junior researcher with a senior researcher leading to a unique and valuable solution is the objective that USTAR program was designed for.  Chalk one up to USTAR…

A great example of public programming's role in the innovation sphere.