In a nice example of how universities can effectively support their start-ups, Chromatin, Inc., a biotechnology company that has occupied space in the University of Illinois Research Park since 2005 through the EnterpriseWorks incubator, is expanding operations and graduating to a 5,000-sq. ft. facility. The expansion marks the company’s continued progress in commercializing its technology, which includes mini-chromosomes that were originally developed at the University of Chicago by company co-founder and CEO Daphne Preuss, PhD. With the larger laboratory and office space, the company will continue to expand its R&D activities — which enable the development of new seed products and the delivery of multiple genetic traits in plants through gene-stacking — while widening its focus to pursue new applications, such as improved feedstocks that target the bioenergy sector.
Chromatin isn’t just graduating from UIUC’s EnterpriseWorks incubator, where the Research Park provided laboratories, equipment, and greenhouse space. IllinoisVentures, the university-affiliated VC firm, was an early Chromatin investor, and the university provided early funding for student employees to work as researchers for Chromatin and MBA students to provide commercialization consulting, according to Avijit Ghosh, vice president of technology and business development for the university. U of I also provided entrepreneurship support services. “Our current expansion is a direct result of our success in commercializing Chromatin’s technology and successfully attracting financing, both of which were greatly facilitated by the university’s resources, facilities, and significant talent pool,” Preuss acknowledges.
Since Chromatin was founded in 2000, the company has licensed its technology through commercial agreements with leading agbiotech companies, including Syngenta, Monsanto, Dow AgroSciences, and Bayer CropScience. The company now employs more than 30 people, including 11 in Champaign, and plans to hire additional staff this year.
Source: Grainnet