MDG Boston, Bringing University Innovations to Market, Jan 20, 2021

Join CBSET at the MDG Boston event "Bringing University Innovations to Market," January 20, 2021, 3:30 - 6:00 PM. General networking from 3:30-4:00; presentations and Q&A will be from 4:00 - 5:30 PM; networking will be from 5:30 - 6:00 PM.

Academic research is an important driver of biotech innovation and startup formation, and, until recently, a lonely endeavor with little to no guidance available to entrepreneurial researchers. The last 5-10 years have seen great strides made in the Boston area with the development of multiple innovation and translation programs for graduates and fellows as well as the formation of incubators and accelerators within and in proximity to leading universities.

This session will provide a well-rounded overview of the process of forming a company out of academic research, the academic support system available at our top institutions and the role of external industry partnerships and funding. The assembled panel includes both junior and senior academic entrepreneurs, a director from one of Harvard’s innovation support ecosystems and a Fortune 500 executive leading a local team in building, advancing, and managing the company’s External R&D portfolio of co-investments across pharmaceutical, consumer health, and medical devices.

Moderator for this event will be CBSET co-founder, president and CEO, Peter Markham, whose 25 years of management and regulatory experience in GLP contract research has helped Fortune 500 and academic entrepreneurs bring drug and device-based therapies to market since CBSET was founded in 2006.

Panelists will include:

• Natalie Artzi, PhD Assistant Professor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and founder of Biodevek, which is dedicated to transforming the field of surgical and topical adhesive materials and was originally founded out of Natalie’s postdoctoral research.
• Nicole Black, PhD Gliklich Healthcare Innovation Postdoctoral Research Fellow, MGH/Wyss, and co-founder of Beacon Bio, a venture that is designing and producing PhonoGraft, a novel device 3D-printed from a biodegradable ink, which repairs damaged eardrums and passively enhances sound conduction.
• Angelika Fretzen, Ph.D., M.B.A., Technology Translation Director, Wyss Institute Harvard. Angelika joined the Wyss Institute in 2019 with product and business development responsibilities, and she is currently transitioning into the role of the Institute’s Chief Operating Officer.
• Michal Preminger, PhD MBA Head, Johnson & Johnson Innovation, East North America. A former Executive Director of Harvard University’s Office of Technology Development, Michal now leads J&J’s Innovation Center team in building, advancing, and managing the External R&D portfolio of co-investments across pharmaceutical, consumer health and medical devices.