$8.4 million awarded in bioscience innovation grants

BISMARCK – Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring announced that 25 grants have been awarded totaling $8.4 million to foster the growth of the bioscience industry in North Dakota.

“Advances in bioscience have already transformed many sectors including agriculture and medicine,” Goehring said. “These grants will help North Dakota stay on the forefront of bioscience innovation.”

Organizations receiving grants are:

• Agathos Biologics – $300,000 to develop medicines and services that utilize and expand access to other genetic material that can significantly impact patients with unmet medical needs
• Biomed Protection North Dakota - $100,000 to investigate the therapeutic potential of antioxidant-rich honey in improving health and well-being
• BRAINTX Inc. - $310,000 for the development of new classes of medicines to treat neuronal health
• CamBioGene - $80,000 for field trials and commercialization of a new Camelina variety and traits
• Checkable Medical LLC – $232,300 for app-based information and content; and testing of an at-home rapid strep test
• CorVent Medical Inc. –$750,000 for development, Federal Drug Administration section 510(k) clearance and manufacturing of the RESPOND II Ventilator
• Cotasys Inc. - $125,000 for development of an end-to-end transportation solution
• FamGenix – $240,000 to establish an integrated digital platform to collect family history such as hereditary data and information
• Genovac Antibody Discovery LLC – $642,667 to support the development of efficient testing of engineered antibodies for research tools, diagnostic agents and human therapeutics
• Imricor Medical Systems – $1,158,000 for the final steps in commercialization of a new technology for cardiac ablation procedures in the United States
• Lilium Therapeutics - $200,000 to support the development of gene therapy for cancer and cardiac diseases
• Lincoln Therapeutics - $136,000 for further development of intranasal ketamine as a safer, fast acting, non-addicting analgesic to improve pain management with a military application for battlefield
• National Agricultural Genotyping Center - $109,065 to develop a commercialized test to strengthen quality assurance programs and variety preservation of durum
• PEACENQUIET Inc. – $250,000 for the development and commercialization of a tinnitus treatment solution
• Poiesis Medical – $480,000 for catheter development and manufacturing in North Dakota
• SafetySpect – $600,000 for development and market analysis of spectroscopy technology for food and agricultural product analysis
• Silverberry Group Inc. – $25,000 for marketing and commercialization of an AI-driven health coach for post op and patients with chronic disease
• Singularity Energy Technology – $150,000 to assess the technical and economic viability of the Sandwich gasifier to produce biofuel and biomaterials that have a significant application for municipalities and landfills
• TailWind MedTech Inc. - $750,000 to develop technologies and test the feasibility of a chemically energized blood and fluid warmer
• TheraTec Inc. - $100,000 for software improvements and North Dakota manufacturing development of a remote physical therapy patient monitoring wearable device
• Thermasolutions – $700,000 to establish a medical device sterilization facility
• Thin Air Surfaces LLC – $500,000 for the commercialization of a pressure redistribution medical device
• Thrixen LLC – $180,000 for development of rapid multiplex pathogen testing kits for military medicine
• TWL Pharma Pac LLC – $110,000 to establish a pharmaceutical packaging manufacturing facility
• WalkWise Inc. – $175,000 for validation, integration and commercialization of patented mobility technology

Grant applications were reviewed and scored by a committee made up of Goehring, a representative from the bioscience association of North Dakota and a representative from the North Dakota Department of Commerce.