Rheomics Among NC IDEA Grant Winners

A Chapel Hill life science startup bootstrapped with a loan from the North Carolina Biotechnology Center has landed a $50,000 grant in the fall 2015 statewide NC IDEA competition.

Rheomics, now Redbud Labs, a 2010 spinout of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is one of six winners from a field of 22 applicants in the twice-yearly grant program.

Rheomics was started by faculty research scientists Richard Superfine, Ph.D., the company’s president and CEO, and Russell Taylor, Ph.D., vice president of technology systems. The company, which has received $325,000 in Small Business Research Loans from NCBiotech, is developing technologies to measure fluid viscosity and cell membrane rigidity. These technologies will be incorporated into biomedical instruments designed to diagnose clotting disorders and cancer metastasis.

Another grant winner was SeaChange Technologies, a new Raleigh company developing a highly efficient, sustainable desalination process that mechanically removes salt and other pollutants from water.

Dentist-designed Tom & Jenny’s Candy of Chapel Hill also got the $50,000 boost to help develop their tasty sugar-free caramels that reduce cavity-causing bacteria on the teeth.

The other winners are technology companies Brand Assurance, of Wilmington; Brim, of Durham; and MV Trak (formerly ImVere), a newly established Chapel Hill company developing an in-ear wearable technology for athletes, providing data useful for evaluating concussion symptoms.

The grants, which are up to $50,000 per recipient, support business plan research and development, reduce the risk of early failure and advance projects to the point of suitability for angel or venture capital investment. In addition to the funding, winners also benefit from mentoring by successful entrepreneurs and experienced investors; use of MBA interns; in-kind services from attorneys, accountants and marketing consultants; public recognition and access to growth capital.

NC IDEA is a private foundation dedicated to providing small early grants to help young startup companies across the state survive to raise more outside funding. NC IDEA judges chose the six winners from 130 applications received from N.C.-based startups developing software, IP-based technologies, consumer products and medical devices and diagnostics.

Since its inception in 2006, NC IDEA’s grant program has awarded nearly $4.2 million to 104 companies across the state.

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