SUNY Downstate’s Incubator Program Launches Company Revolutionizing Bone Marrow Transplant Process
Oct 5, 2017
HemoGenyx Receiving International Acclaim, Now Public on London Stock Exchange
Brooklyn, NY – A biotech start-up company supported by SUNY Downstate Medical Center’s Biotech Incubator has created a revolutionary new process for conditioning patients to receive bone marrow transplantation. In recognition of its technological advances, HemoGenyx is now the only Brooklyn-based company publicly listed on the London Stock Exchange.
While at the biotech incubator, HemoGenyx developed bi-specific antibodies for preparing patients for bone marrow transplantation making the process less invasive and safer than traditional chemotherapy and radiation treatments. This new process may be used to increase success of bone marrow transplantation as a method to treat blood diseases such as leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and diseases of the immune system.
“Downstate’s Biotech Incubator provides medical and research facilities where small companies can flourish right here in Brooklyn while tapping into local assets affording growth into independent businesses with significant impact in health care,” said SUNY Downstate President Dr. Wayne J. Riley. “We are very proud of HemoGenyx’s efforts in improving health care for patients across the world, and look forward to new start-ups joining our community, diversifying local industries, and boosting our local economy.”
As part of SUNY Downstate’s Biotechnology Initiative, the biotechnology incubator offers start-up biotech companies space and resources near the Downstate campus. Participants have access to Downstate Medical Center resources including clinical scientists and PhD students, the medical and scientific library, clinical trials, and specialized research facilities and equipment.
“The SUNY Downstate Biotech Incubator provided the high-quality facility we needed for the life sciences research that led to this treatment breakthrough,” said Dr. Vladislav Sandler, the founder of HemoGenyx, LLC. “Instead of focusing on pulling together all the resources needed for this important research, our team was able to rely on SUNY Downstate, its facilities, and its experts to create a safer approach to bone marrow transplants.”
HemoGenyx issued their Initial Public Offering on the London Stock Exchange on October 5.
Dr. Sandler and HemoGenyx began their work at University at Buffalo through a state-funded program before moving to the SUNY Downstate Biotech Incubator in 2016. HemoGenyx is also a participant in STARTUP-NY. The Downstate Biotechnology Incubator was developed with strong support from the Brooklyn Borough President, the New York City Council, New York State, and the Federal government.
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About SUNY Downstate Medical Center
SUNY Downstate Medical Center, founded in 1860, was the first medical school in the United States to bring teaching out of the lecture hall and to the patient’s bedside. A center of innovation and excellence in research and clinical service delivery, SUNY Downstate Medical Center comprises a College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, a School of Graduate Studies, School of Public Health, University Hospital of Brooklyn, and a multifaceted biotechnology initiative including the Downstate Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT for early-stage and more mature companies, respectively.
SUNY Downstate ranks twelfth nationally in the number of alumni who are on the faculty of American medical schools. More physicians practicing in New York City have graduated from SUNY Downstate than from any other medical school.