A Herndon-based nonprofit organization has started a new fund to aid Virginia entrepreneurs pursuing life science-based endeavors.
The Virginia Center for Innovative Technology launched its BioLife fund with $500,000; half was contributed by Johnson & Johnson then matched by CIT, managing director Tom Weithman said Friday.
“What we’re looking to do when we make an investment is for it to trip the wire that will help a company attract investors, or perhaps trigger an acquisition,” he said.
CIT sees tremendous potential for harnessing research coming out of federal labs and universities in the state, Weithman said.
He hopes to see Virginia become a major state for biotechnology development, perhaps eventually enter the same ranks as leaders such as California and Maryland, he said.
George Mason University has seen an upswing in research related to the life sciences, according to GMU Technology Transfer Program Director Jennifer Murphy.
Out of the faculty members who have approached her department seeking assistance in marketing or patenting their technology, 9 percent were in the life sciences in 2004; now 54 percent fall into that category, she said.
“We’ve got a lot of interesting research going on, and it’s just mushrooming,” Murphy said.
