Blogs

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Northeastern University’s new system for understanding & addressing ethics of wearables in healthcare. This technology offers a robust framework that enables the integration of ethics into data and AI strategies, ensuring that sensitive user data is handled and used to make informed, real-world decisions through sophisticated algorithms.

This technology can be used for virtual physical therapy, orthopedic chronic disease assessment, virtual emergency visits, athlete performance enhancement, and injury prevention. This technology has great potential, with the global telerehabilitation market projected to grow from $3.32 billion in 2019 to an estimated $9.13 billion by 2027.

Northeastern University’s system for understanding & addressing ethics of wearables in healthcare is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Northeastern University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Portland State University’s selenium-based probe for early melanoma detection technology. This technology detects the presence of thioredoxin reductase, an enzyme that is commonly found in melanoma. The probe is designed to transform from colorless and non-fluorescent to red and fluorescent upon contact with melanoma tissue, offering an effective means of early detection.

This technology can be applied to detect not only melanoma but also other skin cancers, enzymes, and tissue. This is significant given the increasing incidence of skin cancer, which has fueled the growth of the skin cancer diagnostics market. As of 2021, this market was valued at $3,364.46 billion, and it is projected to grow to $5,480.45 billion by 2028.

Portland State University’s selenium probe for melanoma detection technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Portland State University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Florida International University’s new fabric phase sorptive extraction (FPSE) media technology. This media is used for analyzing trace and ultra-trace levels of organic analytes in various sample matrices. Its benefits include the ability to sample and prepare analytes without matrix modification or pre-treatment, flexibility for sampling and testing in different environments, specificity for various analytes due to the availability of a wide range of sorbent chemistries, and part per quadrillion (ppq) level sensitivity for both polar and medium polar analytes.

The FPSE media technology has a broad range of applications in different fields, including sampling and sample preparation of analytes with forensics, toxicology, national security, public health, environment, food, bio-analysis, clinical, and pharmaceuticals. The global sample preparation market was worth $7.7 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $11.2 billion by 2028.

Florida International University’s FPSE media technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Florida International University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s new high-power laser profiler technology. This technology uses non-contact radiometry to rapidly measure the distribution of laser power across an incident area, providing high precision, safe operation, and custom software.

This technology has applications in various industries, including laser manufacturing, medical, defense and aerospace, nuclear fusion, and solar power generation. The laser processing market is currently valued at $19.06 billion in 2022 and is projected to reach $38.22 billion by 2030.

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s high-power laser profiler technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Johns Hopkins University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s linker molecules for bisconjugation technology. This technology involves using a novel linker molecule to connect proteins to supports or small molecules. There are numerous advantages to this technology, including a low cost, 3-step manufacturing process, the ability to work with a wide range of proteins, increased protein activity compared to commercially available linkers, and robustness under acidic conditions. Additionally, this technology is highly effective and does not wash off supports.

With its wide range of applications, this technology has potential in various industries, including affinity chromatography for monoclonal antibody purification, cancer treatments, tumor identification, and paintable proteins. The global cancer therapeutics market is expected to reach $335.06 billion by 2029, up from $166.5 billion in 2021.

Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory’s linker molecules for bisconjugation technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Johns Hopkins University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

Drexel University has partnered with FirstIgnite to find industry collaboration for their Biomolecular Recognition Analysis Facility. This facility provides access to state-of-the-art surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology and testing, as well as expert analysis to support research and development needs. With this research center and testing/analytic facility, fundamental productivity enhancements and translational biomedical research in areas such as cancer and cancer-related diseases, infectious diseases, and biomaterials for tissue regeneration, are all possible.

The Biomolecular Recognition Analysis Facility offers a range of application areas, including protein complex formation mechanisms in pathogenesis and treatment, structure-based design of therapeutics, compound and antibody screening for drug discovery, identification of peptide and small molecule inhibitors, vaccine development and efficacy tracking, integral membrane protein interaction mechanisms, and customized assay design, data analysis, and training.

The Drexel team is seeking collaboration with companies that are interested in utilizing their advanced facilities and leveraging their research capabilities, as well as analytical expertise and services. If your company is interested in exploring a partnership or using their services, you can schedule a conversation with the Drexel University team directly through their team's calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Florida International University’s new device for assisting visually impaired patients. By utilizing the remaining functional areas of the retina in individuals with age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and glaucoma, this technology allows patients to visualize complete images of the world, similar to what a normal eye would perceive. This technology is flexible, as it can be reprogrammed to adapt to the progression of AMD and glaucoma, even as these conditions affect larger portions of a patient's visual field. With a period of training, patients can even distinguish between the central and peripheral parts of projected images.

This technology aims to improve the vision of individuals with impaired central and peripheral vision, such as AMD and glaucoma patients. Additionally, it is applicable to the military and defense sectors. Valued at $10.52 billion in 2022, the global age-related macular degeneration market is projected to grow to $17.99 billion by 2030

Florida International University’s new device for assisting visually impaired patients is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Florida International University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Drexel University’s new sternotomy patch & saw guide technology. This medical device concept is designed to provide cardioprotective patches and saw guides that enable faster, easier, and safer re-sternotomies. As a result, doctors can reduce difficulties and complications of future procedures for patients who require chest surgeries over their lifetime. Clinician-inspired and developed, this novel approach reduces the risk of organ or vessel damage and lowers the likelihood of blood transfusions during re-sternotomies. The firm yet flexible “butterfly” design of the device allows for better protection and surgical guidance, while easy anchoring ensures the patch stays in place over time.

This technology has applications in the medical field, including adult patients with acquired heart conditions who may require multiple surgeries over their lifetime, as well as adult and pediatric patients with congenital heart defects. The technology is particularly useful for assessing scar tissue formation between the sternum and heart more quickly and easily in repeat open chest surgery. Additionally, the technology can be applied to surgical saw accessories, surgical and orthopedic saws, and orthopedic cast improvements. In 2020, the global cardiac surgical devices market was valued at $2.2 billion and is projected to reach $3.1 billion by 2030.

Drexel University’s new sternotomy patch & saw guide technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Drexel University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of the University of Alberta’s new metamaterial liner for MRI excitation technology. This liner has improved receive sensitivity with fewer elements needed compared to a conventional loop array. The technology offers several benefits, including increased resolution for crisper images, reduced time for patients spent in the MRI machine, decreased claustrophobia, improved signal-to-noise ratio in images, and increased homogeneity.

This technology has applications in the field of magnetic resonance imaging equipment and resources. The global MRI equipment market is projected to experience substantial growth, with an increase from $7.12 billion in 2022 to $11.03 billion by 2029.

The University of Alberta’s MRI liner technology is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the University of Alberta team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.

The health and wellness market includes various sectors, including personal care, nutrition, physical activity, and preventative and personalized medicine. The demand for health and wellness products is on the rise, with an increasing number of consumers seeking them out. Roughly 50 percent of US consumers now consider wellness a top priority in their daily lives. This trend is further fueled by technological advancements like the Apple Watch and Fitbit, which are driving growth in this category. As of 2022, the global health and wellness market was valued at 4,886.70 billion and is expected to reach 7,656.7 billion by 2030.

Numerous companies operate in the health and wellness sector. Among the top players are L'Oréal ($38.199 billion dollar revenue as of 2021), Unilever ($63.293 billion dollar revenue as of 2022), and Bayer ($53.41 billion dollar revenue as of 2022).

The wellness technology sector, comprising wellness software, tools, and systems, is experiencing increasing investment in venture capital. In 2020, wellness tech startups received $11.4 billion in funding, which grew to $31.7 billion in 2021.

As health and wellness companies continue to grow in revenue and funding, it becomes crucial for universities to establish innovation partnerships with them to stay ahead. FirstIgnite can help your university identify and partner with the health and wellness companies you need to further your research and development.

Did you know that a professor at the University of Georgia invented Restasis? Dr. Renee Kaswan invented the topical eye treatment that improved the lives of those with dry eye syndrome.

Dry eye disease is a condition that occurs when tears are unable to lubricate the eyes adequately, causing discomfort and irritation. Before Restasis, there were no FDA-approved prescription treatments available for this condition. In 1994, Dr. Kaswan, then a professor at the University of Georgia, developed a topical treatment for dry eye in dogs called Optimmune. Following successful human trials, the medication was approved by the FDA in 2002 and sold by Allergan as Restasis. The invention of Restasis, which increases tear production, has significantly improved the lives of the estimated 16 million people in the U.S. living with dry eye syndrome.

The dry eye syndrome treatment market is on the rise, driven by the growing prevalence of the condition. In 2022, the global market size for dry eye syndrome treatment was $5.53 billion, and it is predicted to reach $10.13 billion by 2030. Restasis currently holds the largest market share in this category, accounting for 25% of sales.

Through their research and development efforts, universities have paved the way for significant breakthroughs. Keeping up with university innovation is crucial to your organization’s competitiveness as it allows you to identify new technologies that can help to give you a competitive edge in the market. FirstIgnite can help your organization identify and partner with the specific universities, laboratories, and experts you need in order to discover the next medical innovation like Restasis.

FirstIgnite is supporting the commercialization of Florida International University’s new peptide identification system. This system is a distributed design strategy to speed up database peptide search workflows in high-performance computing (HPC) environments. This system enables ultra-fast peptide identification experiments at an extreme scale, and its design model can be easily integrated into existing tools and workflows. By expediting analysis and research, this strategy offers significant benefits for researchers.

This system is applicable to mass spectrometry, proteomics, personal or precision healthcare, and commercial healthcare. The market size for proteomics is expected to experience significant growth in the coming years. In 2021, it was valued at $25.20 billion, and it is projected to reach $100.17 billion by 2030.

Florida International University’s peptide identification system is ready for collaboration (licensing, partnerships, industry feedback, etc.). Is your company the right fit? If you’d be available for a conversation with the Florida International University team, you can schedule a time directly on their team’s calendar here.