Wednesday, August 2, 2017
Stephen Pradarelli

University of Iowa startup company SynderBio Inc. was the winner of a pitch competition held July 18 as part of the UI Ventures-sponsored Iowa Connect: Medical Technology Symposium.

 

SynderBio's Michael Henry accepts check from Dan Reed and Jordan Kaufmann
The half-day event focused on the challenges of developing university research-based medical products, providing talks and networking opportunities. The event included a panel discussion featuring business leaders and investors in the medtech space, as well as a keynote talk by Boston Scientific CEO and University of Iowa alumnus Mike Mahoney, who discussed the ever-changing landscape of medtech.

 

Incorporated in January 2016, SynderBio is founded on technology developed at the UI and published from the laboratory of Michael Henry in 2012. Henry, Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and Deputy Director of the Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center, founded the company with Sarah Vigmostad, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, and Mike Cable, a medical device entrepreneur.

 

The company’s core technology platform is based on an innovative mechanical technique to discriminate benign and malignant cancer cells.

 

Henry gave the winning pitch on behalf of SynderBio, beating out three other presenters. He accepted a $1,500 check from University of Iowa Vice President for Research and Economic Development Dan Reed and UI Ventures Director of Startups Jordan Kaufmann.

 

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.