Odds are that a portable super-resolution fluorescence microscope won’t be on your child’s Christmas list. But, the device could be key to diagnosing diseases like malaria. And, thanks to Patents2Products, it's being developed in the Bluff City.
Patents2Products is a partnership between the University of Memphis and Epicenter that hires post-doc fellows to start businesses using patented intellectual property developed both in Memphis and across the U.S. With the cost split between the U of M and Epicenter — it’s about $1 million — the organizations provide researchers with two-year funded positions, along with resources to launch startups.
For example, participants get a salary with benefits, an on-campus lab, space at the University of Memphis Research Foundation's research park — a coworking facility for startups — and mentorship. Right now, there are six people in the program.
“What we set out to accomplish with Patents2Products has been true: intentionally connecting University intellectual property and resources with the broader Memphis entrepreneurial ecosystem can significantly accelerate tech startup creation, which is critical to our region’s economic growth,” Jan Bouten, chief investment officer at Epicenter and a partner at Innova Memphis, said in a press release.
In fall 2020, the skin care company Nuvelus Inc. became the first of the six startups to officially launch, and now, the U of M has announced the kickoff of two more.
One of these is MakeScope, which is developing the portable super-resolution fluorescence microscope to more effectively diagnose certain diseases.
According to the release, fluorescent microscopes are considered the best tool to diagnose malaria, which still causes roughly 409,000 deaths a year. But, the resolution limit and general design of the existing fluorescence microscope can lower the accuracy of a diagnosis, so MakeScope’s product has drastically increased resolution — thereby improving its accuracy. The startup is also looking to make it portable, so it will be easier to use.
The company was founded by Dr. Cong Van, who came to Memphis two years ago to work on the product in U of M’s Computational Imaging Research Laboratory (CIRL), along with Dr. Chrysanthe Preza (one of the inventors of super-resolution microscopes). In 2020, when Van realized the product had commercial potential, he joined the Patents2Products program.
Launching alongside MakeScope is PopCheck Technologies Inc., an early-stage medical device startup that focuses on post-operative evaluations.
PopCheck's goal is to help patients recovery from surgeries without stress by using AI-enabled remote biosensors that detect potential post-operative problems. This can lead to the prediction of surgical complications, like blood clots, early in their development, and that can help prevent readmissions and unplanned healthcare visits.
“As a Memphis native who trained in our local academic institutions, founding PopCheck serves as a testament of what we as a community can achieve by taking advantage of the many resources the Memphis entrepreneurial ecosystem provides,” Erika Dillard, PopCheck’s founder, said in the release. “One lesson the ongoing pandemic has taught us is that we cannot just survive but actually thrive with less costly and less invasive health care strategies. With heightened attention in addressing health care disparities, we will soon realize how very essential remote technologies will be in meeting patients where they are and emphasizing the importance of access despite geographic and socioeconomic barriers."
