Bruce Weintraub is a cofounder and chief executive of Trophogen, a biotech startup in Rockville, Md., that develops protein therapeutics. Weintraub, a former chief of the National Institutes of Health's Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology Section, invented platform technologies for glycoprotein hormones with colleague Mariusz W. Szkudlinski, while at NIH and later at the University of Maryland.
While seeking to license the technology, Weintraub sought financing from individuals of high net worth, or so-called angel investors. But the investors he met weren't comfortable with the licensing fees, Weintraub says, and the deal didn't work. In 2000, while attending a university reception, Weintraub found himself seated next to Linda Powers, managing director and cofounder of Toucan Capital, a venture capital (VC) firm in Bethesda, Md.
"By the end of the program we had begun to develop a relationship that, after months, culminated in a serious offer from Toucan to start the company," ...
