New Program Helps Long Island Biotechnology Firms Obtain Funding

Biotechnology companies based on Long Island, N.Y., can now get help applying for federal research grants, thanks to a new program dedicated to forging links between scientists and industry. Called the Technical Evaluation and Partnering Program, or TEP, the five-month-old effort was launched by a pair of institutions in the area--the Long Island Research Institute and the Center for Biotechnology at the State University of New York, Stony Brook. The program is designed to match local technology businesses with experienced researchers who can assist the companies in preparing their grant applications. Ultimately, its organizers are aiming for TEP to be a springboard for promoting Long Island's nascent biotechnology industry, which is increasingly being viewed by analysts as crucial to the region's future now that the area's once-thriving defense business has shrunk. "We're trying to interest those companies whose defense contracts are drying up to develop devices for solving medical problems," says Carol Dempster, manager of technology commercialization at the Long Island Research Institute, an independent, nonprofit organization dealing with technology transfer. "We need to get more interaction going to accelerate commercialization," Dempster says. Initially, TEP's annual budget will be between $50,000 and $100,000, with funding being provided by the New York State Science and Technology Foundation, a nonprofit organization, and the New York Biotechnology Association, a local trade group. Interested companies seeking TEP's help will receive assessments of their projects' commercial feasibility from the Long Island Research Institute. Then, SUNY-Stony Brook's Center for Biotechnology will tap its 150-member science faculty to consult on the application and the overall grant process. Any biotech company from Long Island and nearby communities is eligible to apply for help in seeking federal Small Business Innovative Research Grants (SBIRs), Small Business Technology Transfer Research Grants (STTRs), or Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs). Of course, applicants must meet the government's mandatory criteria. In seeking an SBIR grant, for instance, a company must be domestically owned and employ fewer than 500 people, and the principal investigator must work at least 50 percent of the time for the company. In addition, the SBIR program, which provides a total of $850,000 over two phases, requires that at least half the work be done on company premises. By comparison, the STTR program requires only that the principal investigator have a formal relationship with the applying company; he or she doesn't have to be an employee. Outside research can account for as much as 60 percent of a project, which can receive a total of $600,000 in funding over three years, including development. "We know there's a need for help in pursuing these grants, but getting it to the right place is hard," says Glenn Prestwich, an organic chemist who is the director of the Center for Biotechnology and is overseeing SUNY-Stony Brook's involvement in TEP. "Our expertise is in doing evaluations," Prestwich says. "Companies often don't have the resources to put someone on this for two months to write a proposal." Prestwich says he is unaware of the existence of similar programs here. "We kind of dreamt it up," he says. "It's not modeled on somebody s program . . . [but] I'd be surprised if something in a similar form doesn't exist in other places." Prestwich and the Stony Brook science faculty will essentially serve as a peer review committee by doing two things. First, they'll critique a proposal as if they were reviewing it for the relevant federal granting agency, emphasizing style and substance. For those companies seeking more intensive consulting, the center will provide what Prestwich calls intellectual input. "If a one-hour critique isn't sufficient, the applicant pays a consulting fee and maybe develops a bona fide research relationship," he says. "But it will take a while before this happens. It's really wide open. Maybe we'll provide bridge loans. We're not exactly sure what to expect. Word is still just getting out there, because our solicitations just went out." For more information, contact the Long Island Research Institute at (516) 689-6300 or SUNY-Stony Brook's Center for Biotechnology at (516) 632-8521. Edward R. Silverman is a freelance writer based in Millburn, N.J.

New Program Helps Long Island Biotechnology Firms Obtain Funding

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