University of Iowa startup company SynderBio Inc. has received $25,000 from the Iowa Economic Development Authority Board Proof of Commercial Relevance (POCR) Fund. The funding will be used to collect market intelligence and assessment and validation activities.

Incorporated this January, SynderBio is founded on technology developed at the UI and published from the laboratory of Michael Henry in 2012. Henry, an associate professor of pathology and molecular physiology and biophysics, founded the company with Sarah Vigmostad, associate professor of biomedical engineering, and Mike Cable, an experienced medical device entrepreneur. The company’s core technology platform is based on an innovative mechanical technique to discriminate benign and malignant cancer cells.

With help from the UI commercialization GAP fund, the company has developed two prototype devices to automate the original laboratory procedure. The next milestone will be development of a manufacturing-ready instrument for use in research laboratories.

“We are looking forward to developing a business and commercialization strategy, which includes talking with potential customers and strategic partners, as well as confirming our regulatory pathway,” said Vigmostad. “Our technology has potentially wide ranging applications in the cell separation/cell isolation space for both research and diagnostic applications, and the market research we do with these funds will help us to establish the best next-steps as we bring our technology to market.”

Vigmostad was featured in a recent video by the Office of Research and Economic Development: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeDmdm70KcY.

UI Ventures, part of the University of Iowa Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development (OVPR&ED), offers information and resources to help companies find funding they qualify for, including federal grants, state funding, the UI commercialization GAP fund, loans, angel investment, and venture capital. For more information, visit http://uiventures.uiowa.edu/.

The Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Development provides resources and support to researchers and scholars at the University of Iowa and to businesses across Iowa with the goal of forging new frontiers of discovery and innovation and promoting a culture of creativity that benefits the campus, the state, and the world. More at http://research.uiowa.edu, and on Twitter: @DaretoDiscover.