Led · Grant · Nov 2025

AvantGuard is developing Avantamine™, a patented antimicrobial platform that enhances biocompatible chemistry to provide broad-spectrum, long-lasting protection against bacteria, fungi, and viruses without contributing to antimicrobial resistance. The company’s product portfolio includes AvantSept, AvantGel, and Avant24, targeting indications from ringworm to MRSA and applications across skin, mucosa, wounds, and surfaces. Target markets include infection prevention, wound care, dermatology, and healthcare environments, as well as defense and transportation. AvantGuard has been supported by more than $9 million in NIH, NSF, and federal grant funding and states its platform can be incorporated into products representing over $60 billion in annual sales. The company is moving from scientific validation toward manufacturing readiness by establishing cGMP manufacturing capabilities for its monomer and polymer components. AvantGuard is a Cornell University spin-off and IndieBio alum founded in Ithaca, New York.

Led · Grant · Jul 2025

Quiver Bioscience is developing ASO therapeutics aimed at reducing excess UBE3A gene expression in patients with Dup15q syndrome. The company integrates large-scale human neuronal datasets with artificial intelligence and machine learning to model disease biology and optimize ASO candidates. Its lead ASO program has completed rodent toxicology studies and generated promising candidates slated for further safety and tolerability testing. The recent targeted investment from the Porta family will fund preclinical safety studies and support development candidate selection, with a final development candidate expected in the second half of 2026. Quiver is collaborating closely with the Dup15q Alliance and frames the investment as a community-driven step toward delivering a potential disease-modifying therapy for a condition that currently has no such treatments.

Participated · Grant · Jul 2025

Syntis Bio is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing oral therapies that harness the small intestine’s biology via its SYNT™ (SYNthetic Tissue-lining) platform. The SYNT platform delivers a transient polydopamine polymer coating in the small intestine to control nutrient uptake, sustain gut-restricted enzymes, and increase oral drug absorption for up to 24 hours. The company’s lead program, SYNT-101, is being developed as a once-daily pill for obesity and has shown preclinical weight-loss and muscle-preservation data as well as early human evidence of nutrient redirection, satiety-hormone modulation, and favorable safety. Syntis is also advancing SYNT-202, a first-in-class oral enzyme therapy for the rare pediatric disorder homocystinuria, and plans Phase 1 studies for both programs. Data from over 100 preclinical pig studies conducted by MIT and Syntis indicate SYNT can block glucose, improve enzyme activity, and increase oral drug bioavailability. The company is headquartered in Boston, MA. Syntis Bio is advancing a portfolio of oral therapies engineered to exploit the small intestine’s biology for metabolic control, digestion and drug absorption. Its lead program, SYNT-101, is a once-daily pill that transiently blocks nutrient absorption in the duodenum to mimic gastric bypass; a formulation is in human trials with a full data readout expected by the end of 2024 and plans to use those data to support an IND filing with the FDA in 2025. The company’s SYNT™ (SYNthetic Tissue-lining) platform delivers a transient polydopamine coating to the duodenum that persists up to 24 hours and, in more than 100 preclinical pig studies, has demonstrated up to 70% glucose blocking, 20x improved enzyme activity, and 4–10x increased oral drug bioavailability. In April 2024 Syntis acquired engineered enzyme programs from Codexis and is developing SYNT-202 for homocystinuria and SYNT-203 for maple syrup urine disease; both completed non-human primate studies and an IND for one candidate is anticipated in 2025. The company is also developing next-generation formulations and discovery-stage programs targeting pancreatic insufficiency and peptic ulcers. Syntis is headquartered in Boston and has raised $15.5 million to date from life-sciences and strategic investors.

Led · Grant · Apr 2025

SonoMotion is a clinical-stage medical technology company focused on non-invasive, ultrasound-based treatments for kidney stones. Its two main products, Break Wave and Stone Clear, are designed to fragment and clear stones using low-pressure ultrasound while patients remain fully awake, eliminating the need for anesthesia and a surgical suite. Stone Clear secured FDA 510(k) de novo clearance in October 2024, and Break Wave has now finished enrollment in a 64-patient pivotal SOUND trial that will support an upcoming 510(k) submission. Together, the devices share a common platform aimed at offering a complete, first-line solution for stone management in office or clinic settings. Kidney stones affect roughly one in ten Americans and drive more than 750,000 procedures annually, representing a $10 billion U.S. market opportunity. Venture capital–backed SonoMotion continues to advance its regulatory and commercial roadmap, recently bolstered by non-dilutive NIH funding to reach key milestones.

Led · Equity · Nov 2024

Novel Microdevices is a Baltimore, MD–based clinical diagnostics company whose flagship Novel Dx device is a rapid, portable, multiplexed point-of-care RT‑PCR platform that detects RSV, Influenza A, Influenza B, and COVID-19 in about 15 minutes. The company completed critical performance milestones under the NIH RADx Tech program and is positioned to deliver laboratory-quality molecular testing directly in clinical settings. It initially received $1.4M in Phase 1 funding in August 2023 to support development of its next‑generation diagnostic platform. Following milestone completion, Novel Microdevices received an additional $2.68M follow‑on award to accelerate commercialization efforts and speed market entry. Led by CEO Andrea Pais, the company aims to achieve near-term commercialization within the RADx-established timeframe. The project is funded in part with federal funds from NIBIB/NIH/HHS under Contract No. 75N92023D00001.