Celdara Medical, LLC today announced that the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award to fund the company’s advancement of anti-hIAPP antibodies for the diagnosis of prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes mellitus. This project builds on the inventions of collaborator Dr. Thomas Sakmar at The Rockefeller University in New York, one of the world’s leading biomedical research institutions.
Dr. Brandy Houser, Site Head of Celdara Medical, New York, remarked, “We are excited to be launching development in collaboration with Dr. Sakmar and The Rockefeller University and are grateful to the NIDDK for their financial support. We have the opportunity to leverage innovation that has been developed in the Sakmar lab over the last decade and to advance this technology into the development of a point-of-care diagnostic for Type 2 diabetes management. The final product could be a complete game-changer for how physicians and patients manage and treat this disease.”
Dr. Thomas Sakmar, who is the Richard M. & Isabel P. Furland Professor as well as a Senior Physician at The Rockefeller University and the scientific founder of the Anti-hIAPP Therapeutics program at Celdara Medical, noted, “We are delighted to be able to join forces with the experienced team at Celdara to advance an innovative approach for early diagnosis and management of Type 2 diabetes. By focusing on the preservation of the pancreatic islets, our aim is to improve the health of millions of patients with Type 2 diabetes.”
Type 2 diabetes is an epidemic in the United States, accounting for one in seven healthcare dollars and affecting 30 million Americans. Further, 84 million Americans have prediabetes and the current diagnostic and treatment options are not sufficient for these patients. The poor glycemic control that is pervasive in Type 2 diabetes leads to a variety of chronic complications and an average decreased lifespan of 10 years.
Dr. Sakmar along with Drs. Jing Gong, Associate at Celdara Medical, Brandy Houser, Paul Guyre, VP of R&D at Celdara Medical, Vallen Graham, Co-Inventor at Rockefeller University, and Ronald Parchem, Assistant Professor at Baylor College of Medicine, is the team developing this point-of-care diagnostic.
The research reported in this press release is supported by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases of the National Institutes of Health under award number R43DK125161. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
About Celdara Medical, LLC
Celdara Medical was founded by Drs. Jake Reder and Michael Fanger in 2008, and is headquartered at the Dartmouth Regional Technology Center (DRTC) in Lebanon, NH. Celdara Medical builds academic and early-stage innovations into high-potential medical companies, identifying discoveries of exceptional value at the earliest stages and moving them toward the market. Celdara Medical partners with inventors and their institutions, providing the developmental, financial, and business acumen required to bridge discovery and profitability. With robust funding options, a diverse and high impact Programmatic pipeline, and partnerships with world-class academic institutions and industry leaders, Celdara Medical navigates all aspects of a complex industry, accelerating science to improve human health. Further information about Celdara Medical is available at celdaramedical.com.