Innovation Grants For 13 North Carolina Businesses Total Nearly $611,000 | Eastern NC Now

    Raleigh, N.C. — New innovation grants will assist 13 North Carolina companies in bringing new, cutting-edge products to the marketplace. Governor Pat McCrory and North Carolina Commerce Secretary John E. Skvarla, III announced the One North Carolina Small Business Fund recipients today along with awards totaling $610,997.

    The recipients are developing products that would be used primarily in the fields of medicine and technology.

    "These grants help small businesses to innovate and expand, producing high-paying jobs for North Carolina's future," said Governor McCrory. "This early stage funding is especially important for developing new technologies and processes that will be transferred to commercial applications."

    One North Carolina Small Business Fund grant recipients must have been awarded a highly competitive federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) or a Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) award. Federal funders of these awards for this round of grantees include the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Army and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The state matches up to half the federal money, with a $50,000 maximum per grant. The budget for this program is $2.5 million for fiscal year 2015.

    "It is clear that part of our state's bright future lies in high-tech, high-paying jobs," said Secretary Skvarla. "These funds are a smart step towards realizing this future."

    Grant recipients include:

• 3-C Institute for Social Development, Inc. in Cary: $50,000 to build an interactive Internet program that aims to increase employment for students with intellectual disabilities.
• Baebies, Inc. of Durham: $50,000 to produce a new test for coagulation issues related to blood clots in newborns, thereby improving treatment for such conditions.
• Bioptigen, Inc. of Durham: $50,000 for the creation of software and hardware for a new imaging system used during eye surgery, providing clearer three-dimensional cross sections of the eye structure.
• Curl Bio, LLC of Durham: $50,000 for development of new drugs to treat metabolic diseases, including type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, fatty liver disease, and cancer.
• Eno River Technologies Co., LLC of Chapel Hill: $50,000 to develop a low-cost, high-speed true random number generator using off-the-shelf components, with possible applications in data encryption, machine learning, financial risk management, and big data.
• Innovation Research and Training, Inc. of Durham: $50,000 to create an interactive, multimedia web-based program to educate children about the advantages of participating in clinical trials.
• Integrated Laboratory Systems, Inc. in Research Triangle Park: $50,000 for developing new tests to screen chemicals for their potential damage to human DNA.
• Kyma Technologies, Inc. of Raleigh: $31,500 for growing, fabricating, and testing new semiconductors for radio-frequency devices.
• Nocturnal Product Development of Cary: $42,000 to develop a new generation of catheters for treatment of irregular or abnormal heart beats associated with a lower quality of life and a higher death rate.
• NovaTarg, Inc. of Research Triangle Park: $50,000 for development of a new drug for Hepatocellular Carcinoma-the most common type of liver cancer and the third-leading cause of global cancer deaths.
• Qualiber, Inc. of Durham: $50,000 to develop nanoparticle formulations for treating leukemia and other cancers while reducing the toxicity of existing drugs.
• Symberix, Inc. of Durham: $50,000 for improving chemotherapy results by minimizing harmful activity of beneficial intestinal microbes without harming these microbes.
• Vadum, Inc. of Raleigh: $49,999 for development of efficient, high power, and versatile mechanisms to detect metal in battle situations.

    For more information about the One North Carolina Small Business Fund and how to apply and qualify for the grants, visit the N.C. Board of Science and Technology's website at http://www.nccommerce.com/sti/

• Contact: Crystal Feldman
•     govpress@nc.gov