Neurologic Disease Research at UC Davis Contributes to First Treatment Specifically Approved for Postpartum Depression
Sage Therapeutics announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of its product, Zulresso™ (brexanolone), an injection for the treatment of postpartum depression in women. Initial development of an intravenous formulation of allopregnanolone (also known as brexanolone) and first-in-human clinical studies were conducted by Michael Rogawski, a professor in the UC Davis Departments of Neurology and Pharmacology. In laboratory-based and clinical research, Rogawski and his colleagues investigated the neuroactive steroid allopregnanolone as a potential therapeutic agent for neurological diseases. The University of California granted rights to Sage Therapeutics, including licenses to certain patent rights, for the commercial use of allopregnanolone. This is the first drug approved by the FDA specifically for postpartum depression. Postpartum depression is the most common medical complication of childbirth and affects approximately one in nine women who have given birth in the U.S.... Read More
Japa, Inc. Wins Capitalize Grand Prize
Japa, Inc. was announced as the grand prize winner of the Sacramento Kings Capitalize contest at the annual tech night game, receiving a $10,000 cash prize. Japa, Inc., founded by UC Davis students, is a leading smart parking company delivering data and advanced analytics to solve parking issues. The company helps cities and universities further enhance their Smart Campus or Smart City initiatives.... Read More
UC Davis Venture Catalyst Knowledge Exchange:
Utilizing Target Product Profiles to Accelerate Medical and Biopharma Product Commercialization
Featuring:
  • Andrew B. Becker MD, PhD, President, Becker Pharmaceutical Consulting

A target product profile provides a structure for the scientific, technical, clinical, and market information that is required to achieve a desired commercial outcome for a pharmaceutical, medical device, diagnostic, or other healthcare product. A properly developed target product profile is one of the best ways to obtain feedback from clinicians and investors about a novel concept by providing stakeholders with a clear vision of the product objectives. When developed early, the target product profile provides the input necessary to establish and maintain a rational research and development plan that starts with the end in mind. Dr. Andrew B. Becker will discuss several approaches to developing testable target product profiles for early- to mid-stage product concepts. His talk will be designed to be interactive, allowing audience members to address their key questions and to obtain feedback from both the speaker and other audience participants.

WHEN:
Tuesday, May 14 2019, 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

WHERE:
Join us for Lunch @
Oak Park Research Building, UC Davis Health Campus
2700 Stockton Blvd, Seminar Room 1305
Sacramento, CA 95817

EVENT COST: Free
UC Davis Venture Catalyst SBIR/STTR Grant Workshop
The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Programs, collectively known as “America’s Seed Fund”, provide nearly $3 billion in funding each year to support the development and commercialization of innovative technologies. Venture Catalyst Associate Directors Zane Starkewolfe and Ryan Sharp will provide an overview of the SBIR/STTR program and discuss all aspects of how to strategically approach obtaining funding and developing a competitive, well-written grant application. Topics will include aligning business and technology development needs with available SBIR/STTR opportunities, requirements for program participation, the general application process, commercialization considerations, proposal development, budgets, and award management.

When:
Tuesday, April 23, 2019, 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Where:
UC Davis Office of Research
1850 Research Park Drive
Davis, CA 95618
UC Davis Connects with Industry Leaders at World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit
UC Davis joined over 1,300 industry leaders at this year’s World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco with the goal of accelerating the advancement of agtech solutions to transform the food supply chain into a more sustainable, affordable and nutritious system for future generations. Attendees included business leaders, venture capitalists, technologists, startups and international organizations with a focus in the agtech arena. As the summit’s official research partner, UC Davis showcased its unique capabilities and strengths to enhance existing relationships and forged new partnerships with some of the industry’s prominent leaders.

On the day preceding the summit, attendees were invited to join a site tour of UC Davis with stops at the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science, campus livestock facilities showcasing novel approaches to reducing methane emissions in dairy cattle and the UC Davis-HM.CLAUSE Life Science Innovation Center (part of the Venture Catalyst startup incubator network). The site visit also included a panel discussion highlighting the regional agtech innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.

Sponsorship of the summit was made possible by a collaborative effort between the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Graduate School of Management, College of Biological Sciences, Innovation Institute for Food and Health, World Food Center and Office of Research.... Read More
Plant Bio Grad Student Katie Murphy Named UC Davis Grad Slam Champ
Katie Murphy, a Ph.D. candidate in the Plant Biology graduate group, won the UC Davis Grad Slam competition. Her three-minute talk on corn stress resistance earned her the title of 2019 UC Davis champion and the $2,500 prize. UC Grad Slam is an annual contest in which master’s and Ph.D. students across UC campuses – in disciplines ranging from hard sciences to humanities – compete to sum up their research for a general audience.... Read More
Meet UC Davis’ CZI Imaging Scientist
Doug Rowland, a research scientist at the Center for Molecular and Genomic Imaging, part of the Department of Biomedical Engineering, has been named a CZI Imaging Scientist. CZI is the San Francisco-based Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, which is providing $17 million to Rowland and 16 other Imaging Scientists in support of their work aimed at developing new techniques to better see and understand disease. The CZI Imaging Scientists, representing 17 imaging centers across the United States, work at the interface of biology, microscopy hardware and imaging software. Rowland, who has more than 18 years of experience in biomedical imaging, joined the Center for Molecular and Genomic Imaging in 2007 and has been responsible for collaborating with principal investigators on the design and implementation of experiments on small-animal in vivo imaging technologies, including MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and PET (positron emission tomography).... Read More
UC Drug Discovery Consortium Announces First Partnership
The University of California Drug Discovery Consortium has entered into a partnership with Astellas Pharma that provides seed funding for early-stage drug discovery research. The consortium was created in 2017 in response to the changing landscape of drug discovery and development, and the view that the University of California is well positioned to contribute to the creation of treatments for important, unmet needs. Its members include representatives from the UC campuses in Davis, San Francisco, Irvine, San Diego and Los Angeles. UC Davis professor of neurology and pharmacology Michael Rogawski is the principal investigator of the consortium.... Read More
Computer Scientists Create Programmable Self-Assembling DNA
Computer scientists at UC Davis, and the California Institute of Technology have created DNA molecules that can self-assemble into patterns essentially by running their own program. The system is analogous to a computer, but instead of using transistors and diodes, it uses molecules to represent a six-bit binary number. The team developed a variety of algorithms that can be computed by the molecules. The work was published in the journal Nature.... Read More
Mars Cocoa Hub Means More Partnerships with UCD Researchers (Davis Enterprise)
Mars Inc. is planning to establish a research and development cocoa hub in downtown Davis. The hub, which will be staffed by up to 15 Mars plant scientists and contractors, will be working in collaboration with UC Davis faculty and students on various research projects. This partnership builds on a long-standing relationship UC Davis has developed with Mars.... Read More
UC Davis Graduate, Professional Programs Shine in New U.S. News Rankings
UC Davis graduate programs made a strong showing in U.S. News & World Report’s 2020 graduate school ranking, with the School of Veterinary Medicine earning the top spot in its category and several other programs making significant gains. The new rankings rate programs in education, engineering, medicine, nursing, health specialties, law and business. The most significant gain for UC Davis in the 2020 edition was earned by the School of Medicine, which moved up nine spots since last year, from 39th to 30th on the Best Medical Schools: Research list.... Read More
Automated Shuttle Comes to UC Davis West Village
San Jose-based Shanghai Automotive Industrial Corporation’s (SAIC) Innovation Center is demonstrating its automated, all-electric shuttle around a defined loop of the solar-panel-lined West Village community as part of an agreement between the auto company and UC Davis. This arrangement provides researchers with the Institute of Transportation Studies and its China Center for Energy and Transportation with an opportunity to conduct perceptional and behavioral surveys among residents and shuttle riders at no cost to UC Davis.... Read More
Startup News
Arcadia Biosciences Welcomes Dr. Randy Shultz as Head of Research and Development
Arcadia Biosciences announced that Randy Shultz, Ph.D. has joined the company’s leadership team as head of research and development. Shultz has nearly 20 years of experience in plant science and agricultural biotechnology..... Read More
Arcadia Biosciences Receives FDA Approval for SONOVA® GLA Safflower Oil in Cat Food
Expanding on the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) 2017 approval of gamma linolenic acid (GLA) safflower oil as both safe and nutritious for use in canine diets, Arcadia Biosciences announced that the FDA has granted further approval of the ingredient for use in cat food.... Read More
Verdeca Introduces HB4® Drought Tolerant Soybeans to Growers at Argentina’s Expoagro
Verdeca, a joint venture between Arcadia Biosciences and Bioceres Crop Solutions Corp., introduced pre-commercial soybean varieties carrying the drought-tolerant HB4® trait to growers in Argentina. The soybean varieties deliver two layers of value for growers: drought and herbicide tolerance. The HB4 trait is Verdeca’s first release from a pipeline of yield and quality traits and demonstrates the company’s ability to bring innovation to soybean growers. The result of years of R&D, HB4 soybean varieties reduce yield loss when the crop is challenged by drought.... Read More
The 2019 Xconomy Awards San Diego Finalists Are (Xconomy)
PvP Biologics has been named a finalist in the “Innovation at the Intersection” category at the first-ever Xconomy Awards San Diego. The company is developing an oral enzyme for the treatment of celiac disease.... Read More
Sapience Therapeutics to Present Poster on ST101 at the 2019 American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting
Sapience Therapeutics, a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of peptide therapeutics to address difficult to treat oncology indications, presented preclinical data on its ST101 program at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) annual meeting.... Read More
Startup of the Month: Pheronym (Comstock’s Magazine)
Davis-based agriculture biotech startup Pheronym was named the Startup of the Month by Comstock's Magazine. Pheronym uses pheromones to control nematode behavior.... Read More
Davis-Based Company Raises Funds to Research Alternatives to Opioids (Sacramento Business Journal)
According to SEC documents, Expanesthetics, a Davis-based company founded on UC Davis technology, has raised $1.39 million in equity during a recent general solicitation and $445,000 through a securities offering to existing shareholders. Expanesthetics develops new and improved anesthetic and analgesic agents... Read More
Startup Career Opportunities
UC Davis Startup Career Fair
UC Davis Graduate School of Management, Internship and Career Center, and Venture Catalyst will be hosting a Startup Career Fair on May 18, 2019.... Learn More
Career Opportunities at Evolve Biosystems
Evolve Biosystems is currently hiring for several medical sales management positions and a research associate position.... Learn More
Career Opportunities at Chirp Microsystems
Chirp Microsystems is hiring for test engineer position.... Learn More
Career Opportunities at Sage Therapeutics
Sage Therapeutics is hiring for a wide range of positions from quality control internships to senior-director level positions.... Learn more
Career Opportunities at Novoheart
Novoheart is hiring for several scientist roles including two senior-level scientists and two associate scientists.... Learn More
Regional Innovation News
2019 CleanStart Progress Report Released
Since CleanStart’s last survey in 2017, over $150 million has come into Sacramento’s clean tech sector, with more companies than ever being acquired or merged. Among survey's many findings, the clean tech sector in the Sacramento region encompasses around 85 companies, employs over 5,000, and generates over $3 billion in revenue.... Read More
Israeli-Based Agtech Firm Coming to Woodland (Daily Democrat)
Saturas, an Israeli-based company that specializes in the manufacturing of high-tech sensors designed to determine future irrigation, will be locating its US operations in Woodland. The company is making the move in order to be in close proximity to UC Davis and the Central Valley at large. Saturas will be the first tenant to occupy AgStart, a local nonprofit incubator.... Read More
FCC Chairman Gets a Taste of California’s Digital Divide (Valley Vision)
Valley Vision and the Sacramento Metro Chamber hosted a visit by FCC chairman Ajit Pai to the Sacramento region to understand what the Digital Divide looks like from the perspective of America’s farers and rural residents. The chariman visited agricultural sites across Yolo County in order to hear first-hand from farmers, businesses, and community leaders about the disparities they face in comparison to the state capitol. The group also made a stop in Woodland to tour AgStart, a local agtech incubator.... Read More
Gatekeeper Innovations Developing High-Tech Pill Bottle Lock (Sacramento Business Journal)
Gatekeeper Innovations, a Sacramento-based company making the Safer Lock, a prescription bottle cap with a four-digit combination lock, received a patent for future version of product. The next generation bottle lock will include sensors, LEDs, and a microprocessor.... Read More
Innovation Insight
Employees See Wage Gains when Small Firms Win Patents (National Bureau of Economic Research)
When firms are granted high-value patents, they experience wage increases in the top quartile of the firm’s wage distribution, as well as among earners who were employed by the firm during the year of the patent application and then stayed on in subsequent years.... Read More
AgriFood Tech Startups Raise $17B in 2018 (AgFunder)
AgriFood tech startups raised $16.9 billion last year, representing 43% year-over-year growth, with deal activity increasing by 11%. The continuing maturation of agrifood tech as a venture capital asset class has contributed to this uptick, with the median size at Series D for agrifood tech reaching $73 million last year. Over the past 6 years, investment in agrifood tech startups has increased 550%.... Read More
U.S. Telehealth Startups Offer Cures To Healthcare Challenges (CrunchBase)
Over the past few years, telemedicine companies have landed significant investment capital, with startups spearheading disruptive changes in regulations across the medical industry. Given the array of logistical and administrative difficulties found throughout the healthcare system, telehealth companies are finding new ways to utilize the convenience of digital connectivity. One of the more prominent areas in the telehealth industry is linked with advances in wearable technology, with an increasing number of patients now able to accurately gather their own data with personalized medical devices and tests. ..... Read More
Female-Led Startups and Investors Face Uphill Battle in VC Industry (State Science & Technology Institute)
Though female-founded startups and female investors have seen some degree of progress over the past 10 years, women still face an uphill battle for equality within the venture capital industry. The deal count for companies founded solely by women has more than quadrupled since 2008, however, the share of venture dollar invested in these companies has continued to hover around 2%. Moreover, only 10% of VC ‘decision-makers’ today are women, and only 26% of US VC firms report having at least one female investor.... Read More
Funding Opportunities
TERRA Accelerator
Application Deadline: April 26, 2019.... Learn More
Berkeley SkyDeck
Application Deadline: April 30, 2019... Read More
UC Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship and Bay Area Council Cross-Border Tour to China
Application Deadline: April 30, 1019.... Learn More
J.M.K. Innovation Prize
Application Deadline: April 30, 2019.... Learn More
Illumina Accelerator
Application Deadline: May 1, 2019.... Learn More
Little Bang! Poster Competition
Application Deadline: May 17, 2019.... Learn More
Girls in Tech AMPLIFY Pitch Competition
Application Deadline: May 30, 2019.... Learn More
2019 Grad Innovator Fellowship
Application Deadline: May 30, 2019.... Learn More
VentureWell Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams Challenge
Application Deadline: May 31, 2019.... Learn More
Collegiate Inventors Competition
Application Deadline: June 7, 2019.... Learn More
UC Santa Cruz SVLink Accelerator
Application Deadline: Applications Accepted on the 15th of Each Month Until Full.... Learn More
IndieBio Accelerator
Application Deadline: Ongoing.... Learn More
Open SBIR/STTR Grant Topics. ... Learn More
Educational Opportunities
Data Analytics in the Real World - UC Davis Future of Work Series
Date: April 24, 2019.... Learn More
UC Davis Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship Big Bang! Business Competition Workshops and Events
Date: Through May 2019.... Learn More
CEO Crash Course
Date: May 3, 10, 17, 2019.... Learn More
UC Davis Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship - Academy 2.0
Topics and Dates:
Financing - April 30, 2019
Sales & Marketing - May 14, 2019
Staffing - May 28, 2019.... Read More
Alchemist Microenterprise Academy
Application Deadline: May 12, 2019.... Learn More
Rosenman Symposium (San Francisco, CA)
Date: June 19, 2019.... Learn More
UC Davis Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship Biomedical + Engineering Entrepreneurship Academy
Date: July 15-16, 2019.... Learn More
Regional Events
Bio in the Capital with CLSA
Date: April 23, 2019.... Learn More
TechEdge 2019
Discounted Student Tickets Available
Date: April 24, 2019.... Learn More
Cleantech Meetup: Davis Edition
Date: April 25, 2019.... Learn More
CleanStart: The Future of the Utility Business - What New Opportunities it Creates
Date: May 7, 2019.... Learn More
Startup Grind Sacramento, Pam Marrone, Marrone Bio Innovation
Date: May 14, 2019.... Learn More
Startup Grind Sacramento, Dinakar Munagala, Thinci
Date: August 13, 2019.... Learn More
Hacker Lab Hands-On Education
Date: Ongoing.... Learn More
Small Business Development Center Workshops
Date: Ongoing.... Learn More
Silicon Valley USPTO Workshops
Date: Ongoing.... Learn More
1 Million Cups
Date: Weekly (Wednesdays).... Learn More
Industry Events
AGRI Tech Venture Forum (Toronto, Canada)
Date: May 15, 2019.... Learn More
The InVision Tour (New York, NY)
Date: May 21-22, 2019.... Learn More
The Future of Food (Chicago, IL)
Date: May 22-23, 2019.... Learn More
BIO on the Bay (San Francisco, CA)
Date: May 30, 2019.... Learn More
IFT Feed Your Future (New Orleans, LA)
Date: June 2-5, 2019.... Learn More
BIO International Convention (Philadelphia, PA)
Date: June 3-6, 2019.... Learn More
TechConnect World Innovation Conference + NanoTech Conference & Expo, SBIR/STTR Spring Innovation Conference, and AI TechConnect
Date: June 17-19, 2019.... Learn More
BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology (Des Moines, IA)
Date: July 8-11, 2019.... Learn More
Seed Central
Date: Every Second Thursday.... Learn More
About Venture Catalyst 
 
UC Davis Venture Catalyst facilitates the translation of University research and technology by enabling the development of new ventures. Venture Catalyst engages with the Davis and Sacramento business, governmental and economic development community to highlight the development of technologies and ventures coming out of UC Davis that will drive tomorrow’s regional job creation. Working closely with these partners, Venture Catalyst is invigorating the technology-based entrepreneurial ecosystem of the entire region. 
The Venture Catalyst START™ Suite of programs and services provides the ABCs to equip UC Davis entrepreneurs with the tools they need to form and grow robust startups. The program gives founders the START they need to create a well-structured company and ensure the company is prepared for success. 
 
Contact Venture Catalyst 
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