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April 23, 2008
Three companies based on Purdue research to explore venture capital opportunities in Silicon Valley
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Three Indiana companies launched from research developed at Purdue University have won the opportunity to make formal presentations for funding from venture capital firms in Silicon Valley in mid May.Moerae Matrix LLC, Kylin Therapeutics Inc., and Events 180° LLC were picked from several businesses that participated in the Fund Raising Boot Camp last October at Discovery Park's Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship. Through their selection, camp sponsor Lonergan Partners will finance transportation and other arrangements for the trip to California on May 12-14.
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"This is a tremendous opportunity for Moerae Matrix, Kylin Therapeutics and Events 180° to take this next big step in their early development as promising companies based on research and innovation at Purdue," said Julie Goonewardene, director of business development for the Purdue Research Foundation and associate director Burton Morgan Center.
The trip will kick off with a dinner on May 12 and a keynote address by Purdue's Leah Jamieson, the John A. Edwardson Dean of Engineering and Ransburg Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Meetings between the three Indiana companies and venture capital firms are planned for May 13-14.
Moerae Matrix, which is based in the Purdue Research Park, is a development-stage tissue-engineering company focused on therapeutic approaches to prevent abnormal tissue growth inhibiting recovery from surgical procedures and wound healing. Cynthia Lander is president and chief executive officer of the Indiana company.
Led by Eric Davis, Kylin Therapeutics is developing pRNA-based therapeutics to produce treatments for late-stage cancers. Kylin, also based in the Purdue Research Park, is in the preclinical stage of commercializing a technology called pRNA, which leverages the power of RNA and a natural process called RNA interference to directly target and "turn off" genes that cause disease.
Events 180° has developed a software application for the cellular communications market that provides real-time sports statistics, on-demand instant replays and venue information at football games. The information is delivered to mobile devices via a public mobile Internet application and an on-demand video capture and delivery system. Events 180° is led by Ed Coyle, James Krogmeirer, Steve Dunlop and Aaron Ault.
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"It's exciting to see the significant role that Discovery Park, the Burton Morgan Center and Purdue Research Park are playing in translating competitive ideas into commercial enterprises," said Joseph B. Hornett, senior vice president, treasurer and chief operating officer of the Purdue Research Foundation, which manages the Purdue Research Park. "Through our efforts in discovery, development and delivery, we are seeding companies and growing Indiana's economy."
Since the October boot camp, several Purdue faculty members and researchers have worked with experienced investors, venture capitalists and entrepreneurs who have served as coaches to help improve their presentations and business plans.
During the workshop, participants also gained insight into the value of intellectual property, management issues, assessing a company's value, how to develop sources of funding and grants to start and grow a business, reasonable equity expectations, and selling the company to a larger firm.
"Working with Purdue, Lonergan Partners is using this workshop to make a complex process much simpler so university faculty, students, staff and collaborators can take their ideas to the next level," said Mark Lonergan of Lonergan Partners, which has offices in Indiana and California. "These three companies now can make formal pitches to major players in the venture capital world."
The Burton D. Morgan Center is a platform to launch technology-based enterprises based on Purdue research and helps faculty, students and entrepreneurs better understand how to bring research and technology to market. The Discovery Park center also leads Purdue's Kauffman Campuses Initiative to foster entrepreneurship across non-business disciplines at the university's statewide campuses through a five-year, $1.5 million grant from the Kauffman Foundation.
Discovery Park is Purdue's $375 million hub for interdisciplinary research and is home to 10 primary centers focusing on everything from biosciences and manufacturing to oncological sciences and health-care engineering.
The 725-acre Purdue Research Park has the largest university-affiliated business incubation complex in the country. The park is home to more than 140 companies. About 90 of these firms are technology-related and another 57 are incubator businesses. The park was ranked No. 1 in 2004 for university-affiliated research parks and received the 2005 Outstanding Commercialization Award, both from the Association of University Research Parks.
Writers: Phillip Fiorini, (765) 496-3133, pfiorini@purdue.edu
Cynthia Sequin, (765) 494 4192, casequin@prf.org
Sources: Julie Goonewardene, (765) 494-8645, jkgoonewardene@prf.org
Joseph B. Hornett, (765) 496-1658, jbhornett@prf.org
Mark Lonergan, (317) 733-8534, mwl@lonerganpartners.com
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
Note to Journalists: Journalists who want to interview representatives of Moerae Matrix LLC, Kylin Therapeutics Inc., and Events 1800 before or after their trip on May 12-14 should contact Phillip Fiorini, (765) 496-3133, pfiorini@purdue.edu
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