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We invite you to attend this online info session led by Curtis Keith, Chief Scientific Officer of the Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator at Harvard University, a program of Harvard's Office of Technology Development (OTD). Find out how to apply for funding and strategic advising, and how to make the most of this suite of resources for translational biomedical research at Harvard.

Featuring additional perspective from David Scadden, MD, PhD, who is the Gerald and Darlene Jordan Professor of Medicine in the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology and codirector of the Harvard Stem Cell Institute.

Prof. Scadden has a project currently funded through the Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator (developing bone marrow cryogels for hematopoetic stem cell transplantation) and will speak to how his lab is benefiting not only from that support but also from the strategic connections to specialized consultants and industry contacts facilitated by the Accelerator.

Previously, with support from the Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator over two years, Prof. Scadden's lab developed a mild method of carrying out the bone marrow conditioning that patients must undergo in advance of hematopoetic stem cell transplantation. As a result of that project, Prof. Scadden cofounded Magenta Therapeutics, a startup which launched in Cambridge with a $48.5M Series A and licensed the technology from Harvard. The licensed portfolio of innovations has the potential to transform blood stem cell transplants from a “treatment of last resort” into a safer, more efficient therapy for patients with blood diseases and immune disorders.

About the Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator

The Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator guides Harvard scientists toward translational impact by providing strategic, monetary, and advisory support for well-defined research projects. Our work is expressly aimed at hastening the pace of scientific progress, developing a shared vision with partners in industry, and ensuring that lifesaving technologies born at Harvard will become new products that impact the world for the better.

The Accelerator seeks to support innovative, investigator-initiated research, and to develop preliminary observations into robust intellectual property positions. Its primary goal is to advance technologies to the point where an industry partnership can commence.

Currently in its 14th year, the Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator has provided more than $22 million in direct research support to 122 projects from across the University. Almost half of all completed projects have been partnered with industry through licensing transactions with existing pharmaceutical and biotech companies, through the formation of new startups, or through the establishment of new research collaborations.

How to Apply for Funding

The 2021 Request For Proposals is now available. Please read the full guidelines by downloading the PDF from OTD's Blavatnik Biomedical Accelerator website. Pre-proposals are due January 8, 2021, for funding in July 2021. Anyone with rights as a principal investigator (PI), whose employer is Harvard University and who has an obligation to assign intellectual property rights to Harvard, is eligible to apply.