Bioartificial organ-based device developer Innovative Biotherapies won $1.6 million from the FDA through a grant to boost the development of products for patients with rare diseases, according to the federal watchdog.
The $1.6 million, distributed over 4 years, will aid Innovative Biotherapies in a Phase 2 study of selective cytopheretic device for the treatment of pediatric patients with acute kidney injury, according to the FDA.
“The FDA is in a unique position to help those who suffer from rare diseases by offering important incentives to promote the development of products, one of which is our grants program. The grants awarded this year support much-needed research in 17 different rare diseases, many of which have little, or no, available treatment options,” FDA orphan product development director Dr. Gayatri Rao said in prepared remarks.
The grant was 1 of 18 that went to different groups, mostly pharmaceutical companies, for developing treatments for rare diseases, according to the federal watchdog.
Innovative Biotherapies was founded in 2003 to commercialize technology developed out of a lab at the University of Michigan. The company is focused on bioartificial organ based devices using adult progenitor cells, biomaterials and MEMS technology.