Next Phase Newsletter

By Momo Yamamoto, Investor Research Analyst, LSN

Life Science Nation(LSN)’s research team has been inviting investors to attend the upcoming RESI South conference and there are some exciting new life sciences, early-stage focused investors who will be joining the RESI South conference.

	MSL Investment

Some new investors attending RESI South include Caduceus Capital Partners, a venture capital firm based in Nashville, TN that invests in early-stage digital health companies across the US. A managing partner of the firm will also be speaking on the Digital Health panel. Joining that panel is another managing partner from Bullet Partners, a private equity and advisory firm headquartered in Atlanta, GA that focuses on digital health and SaaS companies. Monday Capital, a venture capital firm headquartered in New York that invests in biotechnology and digital health companies focused on longevity, blockchain infrastructure, and AI in Seed and early venture rounds, will also be attending for the first time and will be on the AI in Healthcare panel. Pier 70 Ventures, a venture capital firm based in Seattle, WA that invests in digital health and therapeutics companies in seed and early growth rounds will also be joining the discussion on the AI in Healthcare panel as well. GRA Venture Fund, a public-private venture capital fund investing in research-driven, Georgia-based startup companies will also be attending RESI South for the first time in-person. Boyd Street Ventures, a venture capital firm headquartered in Oklahoma that invests in life sciences and healthtech and is preparing to launch its second fund later this year, will be attending in-person. Catalyst by Wellstar, a fund affiliated with Gerogia’s largest healthcare system, and MSL Investments, an early-stage investment firm focused on early-stage medtech and digital health companies, will be attending virtually. Ajinomoto Corporate Venture Capital (Ajinomoto CVC) is the corporate venture arm of Ajinomoto Co., Inc., a leading global company well known for its food products and amino science businesses with over $10B revenue. Ajinomoto CVC was launched in 2020 and has a US office based in Palo Alto, CA. The firm seeks to make equity investments in promising early-stage biotech companies developing therapeutics of novel modalities companies, in mostly Seed and Series A rounds.

By Erika Wu, Business Development Manager, Global Tech Hubs, LSN

EW: Please introduce us to Bio Alabama. Such as mission statement and brief overview of the services offered. 

BIO Alabama is the leading advocate for Alabama’s bioeconomy. We represent the state on a national and international stage, promoting the intellectual and innovative capital that make our state a premier place to invest, start, and grow in bioscience.  

We represent Alabama’s bio related industries, research scientists, clinicians and business professionals who are working together to foster, develop and support the life sciences in Alabama. BIO Alabama is the state affiliate in Alabama of the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), the preeminent national association for biotechnology companies.  

Our mission is to promote biotechnology innovation by creating a favorable scientific, business and legislative environment that will facilitate the growth of emerging and existing companies while attracting new biotechnology opportunities to Alabama and to increase public awareness regarding the potential impact on quality-of-life and the state’s economy. 

EW: Please introduce us to the # startups that are presenting at RESI South in Atlanta on March 25th: 

1: Gulf Sterilization – Michelle Scott – President and CEO of Gulf Sterilization

Gulf Sterilization, offers an environmentally conscious sterilization
option to the life sciences and advanced manufacturing industries via
cutting edge gaseous chlorine dioxide. This technology, developed by
an offshoot of Johnson and Johnson, is provided in a state of the art,
5400 square foot facility housing multiple chambers for sustainable
sterilization services. In December, Gulf Sterilization was
recommended for ISO:13485 certification ensuring the highest quality
and regulatory compliance. Recently, they accepted one of only 75
invitations extended worldwide to the Global Industry Scientific
Exchange on Alternative Sterilization held in Munich, Germany. Active
in the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation
(AAMI), Gulf Sterilization also values the opportunity to foster regional
growth in the life science ecosystem through their membership in
FMMC and Bio Alabama. 

2: ResBiotic – Vivek Lal – CEO

ResBiotic is a Biotech CPG Company based in Birmingham, AL. ResBiotic stands for Restoration Biotics where we make a new class of wellness supplements – ones that are actually science backed. Physician-developed, with your health in mind, our supplements designed to restore your microbiome and foster whole body wellness and resilience. With multiple product lines, ResBiotic® offers supplements for every body. Our hero seeks to improve symptoms, like low energy or breathing challenges and understands the value of investing in supplements to support healing or general well-being. They most value proactive, holistic, and science-backed wellness approaches to gut, lung, and immune health.

3: SynVivo Inc – Gwen Fewell – President and CEO

SynVivo Inc. is a commercial stage Organ-on-Chip company in the Life Sciences Research Tools market. Our patented platform offers 3D Tissue and Organ-on-Chip models for Neuroscience,Oncology, Inflammation, and Toxicology drug development and personalized medicine applications. The company’s vision is to  establish a new standard of predictive tools for understanding human responses in drug development, bridging the gap between pre-clinical drug testing and human clinical trials towards transformative advancements in personalized
medicine. SynVivo’s microfluidic platform allows accurate modeling of both the morphology of human tissues and organs and the physiology of blood flow and shear stress to create more predictive models for preclinical testing of drugs. Complex in vivo microvascular environment including scale, morphology, hemodynamics of blood flow and cellular architecture are re-created in
vitro. SynVivo’s Organ-on Chip models feature a side-by-side architecture enabling real-time visualization and quantitation using standard analytical instrumentation.

4: Chonex – Michael Lynch – President and CEO

  Chonex is at the forefront of regenerative agriculture innovation with StrongSoil, a transformative product designed to rebuild and regenerate topsoil. This allows farmers to achieve higher profitability through reduced chemical use and increased crop yields. Priced to enable cost-effective implementation, StrongSoil enhances soil microbiology, thus promoting profitable farming with less risk from external threats like droughts and diseases. Comprising a comprehensive mix of beneficial microorganisms, micronutrients, and enzymes, StrongSoil is proven to significantly boost soil health and plant resilience. With five years of comprehensive research behind it, StrongSoil’s innovation is packaged in a user-friendly, water-soluble format compatible with almost all agricultural fertilizers and chemicals, marking a significant milestone in the advancement of sustainable farming.

EW: What are your initiatives and strategic goals in 2024 for Bio Alabama? 

BIO Alabama has three strategic growth pillars that include economic development, workforce initiatives and connectivity life science efforts across the state.   In 2024, BIO Alabama is offering a couple of new services to our members to support our growth pillars.   The first is an M&A assessment methodology that Dr. Blanks has used previously during his decade of work in private equity.   The goal of this assessment is to identify weaknesses in company plans, strategies, IP, financial plan, capex, etc and correct those weaknesses in order to improve the value of the company’s equity when they go in front of investors.   The second is to support SBIR/STTR applications for members through a review process to catch mistakes or missed steps in the application process.   The goal of this effort on grant applications is to increase the number of applicants that receive a full review of the scientific value of the application.   Both of these services are offered at no direct cost to our members. 

For any questions, please reach out to  Erika Wu,at e.wu@lifesciencenation.com