Startups
Biotechnology / Funding / Marketing

Gemstone Biotherapeutics receives $225K from ‘America’s Seed Fund’

The Small Business Innovation Research award from the National Science Foundation will help the Baltimore startup further develop its wound-healing technology.

Gemstone Biotherapeutics. (Photo by Flickr user r. nial bradshaw, used under a Creative Commons license)

With federal funding, Gemstone Biotherapeutics is eying development of the next generation of its wound-healing technology.
The Federal Hill startup is developing treatments that enable skin regeneration without scars.
Recently, the company received a $225,000 Small Business and Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Science Foundation. The Phase I grant from the program dubbed “America’s Seed Fund” will help further development of the startup’s technology, which was licensed from Johns Hopkins University, toward commercialization, said Gemstone CEO Emily English.
The startup is looking to develop a synthetic treatment for wounds that are irregularly shaped, so that the material conforms to an injury’s unique size, shape and depth. It would mark an expansion of the product pipeline for the company beyond an initial treatment that it is working to bring to market. The first product is designed to heal wounds where the site of the wound is of a pre-determined size.
“Because that is really well planned at this point and we’re executing against our plan, it gives us a little bit of space to think about our pipeline in more detail,” said English.
Along with funding, English said the startup will also benefit from access to mentors in NSF’s network.
“The award process through NSF is highly competitive, so we are honored and excited to be recognized among those leading scientific discovery,” English said. “The funding, as well as the guidance and expertise of the NSF, will be critical in moving our technology to market.”
The company has offices in South Baltimore, and utilizes lab space at Johns Hopkins’ FastForward 1812 innovation hub at the university’s East Baltimore hospital campus.

Companies: Gemstone Biotherapeutics, LLC
Engagement

Join the conversation!

Find news, events, jobs and people who share your interests on Technical.ly's open community Slack

Trending

How venture capital is changing, and why it matters

What company leaders need to know about the CTA and required reporting

Why the DOJ chose New Jersey for the Apple antitrust lawsuit

A veteran ship's officer describes how captains work with harbor pilots to avoid deadly collisions

Technically Media