HOUSTON, Jan. 23, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that Raptamer Discovery Group is one of only 38 companies, seven organizations and 14 individuals in the country to receive the prestigious Tibbetts Award for their accomplishments in creating cutting-edge technologies. The Tibbetts Award, named after Roland Tibbetts, the founder of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program, honors these awardees for the exceptional successes they have achieved through SBA's SBIR and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.

"I am incredibly proud that Houston's technology ecosystem assists in the conception and development of innovative businesses such as Raptamer Discovery Group. It is with great honor and privilege that we recognize their accomplishment, and continue to support their efforts," said Tim Jeffcoat, District Director in Houston of the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Raptamer Discovery Group, previously called AM Biotechnologies, leverages innovative and proprietary technology to generate Raptamers, which are next-generation DNA aptamers that have unique chemical properties to achieve higher-affinity binding and greater specificity compared to standard aptamers. The Raptamer technology, first developed by Dr. David Gorenstein's laboratory at the University of Texas Medical Branch and acquired by Fannin Innovation Studio in 2019, has commercial applications in therapeutics, and research and clinical diagnostics. To date, Raptamer Discovery Group has developed Raptamers for more than 60 global customers.

"We are delighted to have received this award for Raptamer Discovery Group which, along with the Tibbetts Award that Fannin Innovation Studio received in 2016, provides further scientific and business validation of our model and vision," said Dr. Atul Varadhachary, Managing Partner at Fannin Innovation Studio. "We are excited by the research and clinical utility of the Raptamer technology, and its broad application across therapeutics and diagnostics including biomarker discovery in several diseases, for which we currently have an SBIR grant."

The SBIR/STTR program funding has been instrumental in Raptamer Discovery Group's technical and commercial success. The funding has led to numerous innovations, including 12 patents, and has enabled the team to develop the innovative technology into a revenue-generating company with a 14-year history. The company's commercial success has also allowed it to expand into two new lab spaces and create over 16 full-time jobs – all milestones that would have been unachievable without SBIR/STTR funding.

"Commercialization of this novel technology, which combines the rapid generation of multiple lead compounds with affordable scalability, is a great demonstration of how the government, academia, and small businesses can come together to launch innovative products," added Dr. David Gorenstein, founder of the Raptamer technology.

About Raptamer Discovery Group
AM Biotechnologies, LLC (dba Raptamer Discovery Group) has developed Raptamers for more than 60 global customers, has received over $6 million in investment, and $7.5 million of non-dilutive funding from agencies, including: the National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). The company has also secured funding from organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which funded the company in an effort to help target malaria in resource-limited countries. For more information, visit http://www.raptamer.com, or email us at [email protected].

About Fannin Innovation Studio
Houston-based Fannin Innovation Studio is an early-stage life sciences development group focused exclusively on commercializing biotech and medtech technologies. Fannin creates and manages startups to develop internal and in-licensed programs. To further bridge the commercialization gap, Fannin's fellowship and internship programs provide aspiring entrepreneurs with hands-on development experience with its portfolio companies. Fannin was a recipient of the Tibbetts award in 2016 and is a 3-time SBA Growth Accelerator Award winner. For more information, visit http://www.fanninInnovation.com, or email us at [email protected]

For More Information:
Raptamer Discovery Group
[email protected]
713.966.5844

Media Contact

Serena Miggins, Fannin Innovation Studio, +1 7139665844, [email protected]

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SOURCE Raptamer Discovery Group