Therapeutics

VivoSphere’s mission is to revolutionize therapeutic development by leveraging cutting-edge tissue engineering technology to advance safer, more effective treatments. Founded in June 2022, VivoSphere LLC is located in the New Venture Accelerator at Auburn University, Alabama. The company originated as a spin-off from the Lipke Lab at Auburn University, based on the patented VivoSphere technology co-invented by Drs. Tian and Lipke. Currently, VivoSphere employs one full-time and one part-time staff member, with plans to expand the team in 2025.   

Current drug discovery is inefficient, slow, and costly; only a transformative approach to de-risk and economize discovery will deliver novel cancer therapeutics to suffering patients. To this end, Empath Biosciences has developed a process which will lead to a three-fold increase in optimized leads, each with >50% improvement in the probability of technical and regulatory success (PTRS) over standard small-molecule based discovery.

Currently hemophilia A patients must either infuse Factor VIII (FVIII) clotting factor 2-3 times per week or take weekly injections.  30% of hemophilia A patients develop inhibitors (neutralizing antibodies) to their missing clotting factor. FVIII gene therapies that were in development or Roctavian, which was recently approved are not durable, meaning they fail to deliver the promised single infusion treatment for hemophilia.  Worse still, patients with inhibitors were ineligible for these gene therapies.

Annate Bitherapeutics is fundamentally reengineering a natural component of the human innate immune system to target and destroy cancer cells. Our approach focuses on Relapse Refractory Multiple Myeloma (RRMM), a difficult stage where patients become resistant to all available therapies, leaving them with few options and no cure.  Rather than relying on traditional drugs, stem-cell transplants, or T-cell activation, our approach harnesses Apolipoprotein L1 (ApoL1), a protein that naturally protects humans against the parasite Trypanosoma brucei.

Verdant Scientific is an early stage biotech startup developing a first-in-class, first-in-approach small molecule (VDT-002) for the treatment of atopic dermatitis (AD), more commonly known as eczema.  Eczema is a chronic inflammatory skin condition which significantly impacts the lives of more than 200M people worldwide.  There is no cure for the condition, and current treatments seek to reduce the symptoms of the disease by modulating the body's immune response.

Azome Therapeutics was founded by the University of Florida’s Chair of Pediatrics, Dr. Rashmin Savani, and former pharmaceutical executives with a mission to revolutionize the treatment of inflammatory diseases. Azome’s patented technology is based on a significant body of research, some of which was published in Nature Communications. 

RNA technology thus has the potential to revolutionize medicine with life-saving and even curative treatments for previously unmet clinical needs, including cancers, autoimmune disorders, and neurodegenerative diseases. The primary bottleneck in the translation of the 1300+ early-stage RNA programs in existence has been the biological delivery system, not the RNA drug payload itself, due to toxicity, immunogenicity, and the inability to target specific cells, tissues, and organs, leading to off-target effects.

Globally, more than one billion individuals suffer from neuropsychiatric and mental health disorders, leading to an increased demand for medical help. Approximately 77 million individuals in the U.S. are on antidepressants, anti-anxiety, antipsychotics, and mood stabilizers, and 30% to 60% are treatment-resistant to these drugs.