Dr. Elias Sayour Named Innovator of the Year
UF Innovate Honors University of Florida Innovators at Seventh Annual Standing InnOvation Celebration
UF Innovate | Tech Licensing’s annual celebration grew to record numbers, becoming a full-day affair, in which it honored nearly 700 current University of Florida researchers who disclosed, optioned, or licensed technologies or received an issued patent in the fiscal year. One Innovator of the Year and six Inventions of the Year received special recognition.
Gainesville, FL – UF Innovate | Tech Licensing hosted its seventh annual Standing InnOvation event on Wednesday, October 30, to acknowledge and celebrate research discoveries by University of Florida innovators in fiscal year 2024.
Standing InnOvation gives innovators a well-deserved “standing ovation” for disclosing, optioning, or licensing their innovations during the fiscal year. The number of disclosures, options, and licenses coming through the UF Innovate | Tech Licensing office continues to grow annually. In the 2024 fiscal year, which ended on June 30, innovators disclosed 372 new technologies, licensed 121, and started 9 startup companies.
This year’s celebration was a full-day affair. The morning featured two keynotes and a book signing at Insights and Innovation with David S. Rose at Santa Fe College’s Blount Center. Rose is a serial entrepreneur and investor who’s known as an industry guru on the two topics he covered in his talks: Finances 101 and How to Pitch Your Startup.
Rose separately met with nearly 20 UF faculty for lunch to respond to questions they posed on starting a business. Six “speed dating” slots gave companies an opportunity to get personal feedback as they pitched their company and sought Rose’s advice.
In addition, the second InnOvation Showcase occurred concurrently with the Standing InnOvation reception. It featured 14 of the 16 University of Florida colleges and the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology, all showcasing the latest innovations from their researchers.
The 2024 Innovator of the Year
What if we could live in an era in which vaccines could not only treat cancer but potentially prevent it?
This is the research focus of the 2024 Innovator of the Year — Dr. Elias Sayour.
When selecting the Innovator of the Year, UF considers the researcher’s body of work over time, choosing one who has made significant scientific contributions that have been licensed or taken to the marketplace.
Dr. Elias Sayour, an associate professor of neurosurgery and pediatrics, and the Stop Children’s Cancer/Bonnie R. Freeman Professor for Pediatric Oncology Research, is a bold, pioneering, and widely recognized researcher for his work in cancer immunotherapy. Sayour’s development of unique mRNA vaccines could be the key to a universal cancer vaccine treatment.
Available treatment options for cancer patients involve local treatment, such as surgery and radiation, and a systemic approach such as chemotherapy, as the disease often has microscopic tentacles elsewhere in the human body. While chemotherapy can kill the tentacles, it can have debilitating side effects.
Sayour’s technology uses mRNA to educate the human immune system. RNA is the human body’s information highway. Leveraging this “human highway” could allow researchers to reprogram the immune system against cancer. Not only would the immune system be able to fight cancer, but remember it as foreign, fighting it for the rest of someone’s life.
“It is very important for patients… to have an ally like the immune system constantly working on their behalf,” says Sayour.
Sayour’s work combines cutting-edge gene therapy and immunology techniques to create personalized, targeted treatments for patients with tumors. His leadership in translational medicine enables him to bridge the gap between laboratory discoveries and clinical applications, improving outcomes for cancer patients globally.
“Dr. Elias Sayour is a tireless and driven clinician-scientist and one of the premier faculty of the University of Florida. It was my honor to nominate him for the Innovator of the Year award,” said Dr. Jackson Streeter, director of UF Innovate | Ventures.
The 2024 Inventions of the Year
Each of the six licensing teams chooses one Invention of the Year from its portfolio. Each winning technology stood out as one with great potential from the pool of 372 new ideas disclosed in fiscal year 2024.
A Revolutionary Approach to Treating Brain Disorders with a Fungal Drug Delivery Platform
Dr. Jamal Lewis, an associate professor of biomedical engineering, and his research team, including graduate student Clinton Smith, are leading a project that could transform how we treat brain disorders. These conditions affect a large portion of the US population, but existing drugs often fail due to delivery challenges.
Lewis’ lab leverages the natural abilities of the fungus Cryptococcus to navigate the body and cross the blood-brain barrier, allowing for targeted drug delivery directly to the brain.
“Our goal is to create small biomaterial particles loaded with therapeutic drugs, which can be attached to these fungi,” said Lewis. “Once injected into the body, we aim for the fungi to travel to the brain and release the drugs where they are most needed.”
A Transformative Tool for Cancer Detection Using Saliva-Based Biosensors
At the UF Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, Dr. Fan Ren, a distinguished professor in chemical engineering, is leading a project using saliva to detect diseases, such as breast and oral cancers.
“Saliva contains numerous proteins known as biomarkers that can indicate disease presence,” said Dr. Josephine Esquivel-Upshaw of the College of Dentistry.
Esquivel-Upshaw and Ren have collaborated to advance their biosensor technology, which has evolved from using basic glucose strips to detecting multiple biomarkers simultaneously with an approach that “enhances sensitivity by 100 to 1000 times,” Esquivel-Upshaw said.
The goal is to create a multi-channel strip capable of detecting six biomarkers from a single saliva sample, potentially prompting further testing such as mammograms.
“We are not trying to eliminate mammograms or imaging,” Dr. Esquivel-Upshaw emphasizes. “The biosensor is intended to complement current diagnostic techniques rather than replace them.”
Design-Manufacturing Digitalization Software for Multi-Functional Robotic Stations for Industrialized Construction
The UF College of Design, Construction, and Planning’s Dr. Aladdin Alwisy is working to make construction faster and better.
Every construction design is unique, making mass production difficult. Builders face inconsistencies with a project’s quality and costs. Alwisy, an associate professor in the M.E. Rinker, Sr. School of Construction Management, has identified a simple solution: robots.
The robotic system standardizes the construction process, ensuring consistent performance regardless of the complexity of the task. However, Dr. Alwisy takes this robotic system further and integrates software.
Early adopters of robotics have faced the challenge of modifying the design and manufacturing strategy to achieve customized building. This software links the design and transfers the manufacturing strategy to the robot, showing them how to build and design each component. This entire robotic system is flexible and multifunctional, enabling the manufacturing industry to become more automated and efficient.
“Could we call this the ‘Golden Goose’ of construction manufacturing? I would say yes,” Alwisy said.
Advancing Quantum Computing and Cybersecurity with Quantum Error Correction Codes and Quantum Circuit Modeling
Dr. Prabhat Mishra, a distinguished professor in the Department of Computer and Information Science and Engineering at UF, has a technology with the potential to revolutionize quantum computing and cybersecurity. His current research emphasizes the development of quantum error correction codes and quantum circuit modeling, both critical for protecting quantum information from errors caused by noise and decoherence.
Mishra’s invention includes understanding weaknesses and designing systems that effectively mitigate the associated risks. As cybersecurity threats become increasingly sophisticated, this work is crucial and emphasizes the growing need for protective measures.
Dr. Rick Croley, the licensing officer managing the technology, highlights the challenges in quantum electronics, particularly the need for low temperatures to minimize thermal noise.
“Noise can negatively impact the performance and reliability of quantum computations,” said Croley.
Mishra’s research includes methods for correcting thermal errors, which has already been tested on IBM quantum computers.
Additionally, this invention focuses on improved benchmarking of quantum computers, suggesting that future evaluations should include factors like initialization and measurement. By addressing thermal noise and circuit stability, Dr. Mishra’s contributions aim to significantly advance quantum computing technology, opening new possibilities for faster and more efficient computing solutions.
Natural Product ERR Ligands as Potential Exercise Mimetics
Exercise in a pill? Close, but not quite.
Dr. Thomas Burris, the director of the UF Genetics Institute and the associate chair of the Department of Pharmacodynamics in the UF College of Pharmacy, has developed an exercise memetic derived from a natural product source. These small molecule ligands target two receptor classes, ERRs and REVERBs, to facilitate many of the same physiological pathways involved in exercise metabolism.
Those living with obesity or metabolic diseases, such as diabetes, may not be able to exercise to the degree they want to or need. By mimicking the physiological adaptations our bodies experience when exercising, these naturally found molecules can be used simultaneously with existing drugs and improve health.
“I think this is going to have a really great impact on [people’s] health and wellness,” said Dr. Melissa Kuchma, who manages Dr. Burris’ portfolio of technologies.
Use of Puragel (RADA16) to Reduce Mucosal Inflammation
Sometimes the newest innovations emerge from a fortunate stroke of serendipity. The simplest observation leads to the development of a major and beneficial breakthrough in a field.
Dr. Jennifer Mulligan, a mucosal immunologist in the Department of Otolaryngology at the UF College of Medicine, and Dr. Carl Atkinson developed RADA16, a hydrogel made of amino acids to help better treat patients with chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS), an inflammatory condition affecting the sinuses and nasal passages.
Patients with CRS experience symptoms, such as having a runny nose or cold, persistently for months, if not years. This often leads to a loss of sense of smell and a poor quality of life. Common treatments are steroids, which have long-term negative consequences.
But, with RADA16, it may be possible to control inflammation by applying it directly to the mucosal site of injury or inflammation.
Initially, Mulligan was tasked with looking at RADA16’s wound-healing capabilities. To better understand these properties, she began to take a deeper dive to see if it would also be anti-inflammatory — which has never been described, despite the compound being around since the ‘90s.
Mulligan and her lab quickly found that when RADA16 combines with a mucosal surface, such as the nose, lungs, and gut, it takes on anti-inflammatory properties and becomes absorbent. It broadens its potential to serve as an anti-inflammatory agent for treating anything in the mucosal lining.
“Our goal with this is that we’ll be able to use it in reducing postoperative inflammation… and hopefully, help patients improve their odds of getting their sense of smell back,” said Mulligan.
InnOvation Showcase
This year featured the second InnOvation Showcase. The exhibition had 14 of the 16 University of Florida colleges, including the College of Veterinary Medicine, UF | IFAS, the College of Pharmacy, the College of Journalism and Communications, and more, as well as the Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology.
The colleges showcased their latest innovations, ranging from AI-enabled digital imaging to a tool for managing climate risk in agriculture to machine learning-powered language bias. Guests had the opportunity to visit each kiosk and interact with each invention while networking during the reception.
In Conclusion
Standing InnOvation is an opportunity to give UF innovators a “standing ovation” for the work they’ve accomplished in the fiscal year and the innovations they’ll continue to develop.
The Innovator of the Year and the six recipient teams of Invention of the Year received special recognition during the Standing InnOvation program.
In addition, UF Innovate | Tech Licensing honored all other inventors who hit important milestones during the fiscal year. Special awards were developed for those who disclosed new technologies and had their technologies patented, optioned, or licensed.
Inventors picked up gift bags with their awards – which might have included a commemorative pint glass for disclosing, a certificate for optioning, a license plate for licensing, or personalized patent mugs for each patient issued in the fiscal year.
The Standing InnOvation program was also an opportunity to honor the three teams who received funding through the UF Innovate | Pathway’s inaugural Innovation fund. The three teams who received funding are:
- Drs. Peter Ifju and Imre Bartos: Developing a suspended autonomous fire extinguisher
- Dr. Thomas Burris: Developing exercise mimetics
- Drs. Jiangeng Xue and David Wei: Developing photovoltaic windows
Each team received a large $50,000 check from UF Innovate | Pathways program director, Anita Rao.
Standing InnOvation is also a “standing invitation” for inventors to disclose and license with the UF Innovate | Tech Licensing office, dedicated to protecting and licensing research discoveries.
By Andrea Dautant, Marketing and Communications Manager, and Kaibry Staggs, Social Media Producer, at UF Innovate