Gm Brazeryens. Coming to you live from Vegas.
[Welcome to Issue Number 16 of The House Brazeryen, where we break down the latest Brazen Bio, Brazen Capital, and bio-startup-related news for you fortnightly, in roughly 5 minutes.]
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RE: Reflecting on the âAmerican Nobelâ
by Shawn Carbonell, MD, PhD âLast week, a day I had been waiting forâfor nearly 20 yearsâfinally came:
The 2022 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award honors three scientists [Richard Hynes, Erkii Ruoslahti, and Tim Springer] for discoveries concerning the integrins, key mediators of cell-matrix and cell-cell adhesion in physiology and disease.
The drug I invented⌠that inspired me to leave my neurosurgery aspirations behind⌠that no VC wanted to fund⌠that many leaders in the field believed would not be safe as a therapeutic⌠that contributed in part to the demise of my marriage⌠that passed FDA IND review in 4 months⌠that is now in a phase I clinical trial⌠TARGETS INTEGRINS (specifically the beta1 integrin subunit first cloned by Hynes)!
Ten years ago, when I was trying to convince people to fund my startup, I became so frustrated by the fact VCs had no clue what integrins were or why they were important that I began using the older term âCD29â rather than beta1 integrin. My rationale was that people were already familiar with other âcluster of differentiationâ (CD) antigens like CD47, CD19, CD4, and CD8 (letâs just forget about CD28, shall we?).
Of course, that was just as flawed because most people had never heard of CD29 either.
BRAZEN BREAKDOWN
Ultimately, it didnât matter at all that the importance of the integrins was lost on the early VCs I pitched. It also didnât matter at all that many eminent scientistsâespecially those hired to diligence our dealâdidnât think targeting beta1 integrin would be safe.
The point isâas a scientist-CEOâI knew my beta1 integrin research better than anyone else in the world. Critically, I had the internal convictionâbacked by years of experience, data, and guidance from mentorsâto believe that it could be a translational game changer over a decade before most people would even hear about integrins for the first time.
The Lasker Award is considered the âAmerican Nobelâ and, perhaps appropriately, often predicts the actual Nobel Prize winners. What that means for the field is dwarfed only by what it may mean for patients.
[To all the founders and would-be founders out there just remember: the only person you need to convince is YOURSELF. The rest is just finding your community.]
Deadline Approacheth: FREE Lab Bench!!
Apply now for the Amgen Golden Ticket! The winning startup gets a FREE, no-strings laboratory bench at BioLabs LA at the Lundquist Institute for an entire year! This is the very same facility Brazen Bio and Brazen Capital call home. We love the people here and we highly recommend it!
Past winners include our friends at Karma Biotechnologies (Andrew Gray, PhD) and Diadem Biotherapeutics (Mickey Pentecost).
BRAZEN BREAKDOWN
Applications are now being accepted online through November 4. Five finalists will pitch virtually in December and one will be awarded the Golden Ticket! LFGGGG!!!
HEADS UP: â¨IRL⨠Biotech Events
Brazen Bio will be in San Francisco next week for two exciting biotech startup events! The first is one I'm not sure we can talk about yet so apologies lol. The second is Y Combinatorâs first Health and Bio Summit!
Also, wanted to shout out Pillar VCâs two Founder-Led Happy Hours coming up next month. The first is in Boston on 01NOV2022 and the second will be in San Francisco on 04NOV2022.
VC CORNER: Permission Grant(ed)
Contributed by Scott Alpizar, PhD â Weâre finally on the last of my three main types of startup funding for early-stage biotech companies. Iâve broken down equity financing and debt, so letâs talk about grant funding!
Grant funding is a great way to obtain additional funds for your startup. These grants are typically provided by the government, non-profits, or corporations. Grants from these groups are like academic grants in that they support research and require a strong experimental plan with measurable objectives.
Two of the most common and most successful government grant programs are the SBIR and STTR, both of which are available through both the NIH and the NSF. These grants enable small businesses to explore their technological potential and conduct R&D. Though partnerships are allowed (and required through an STTR), the startup obtains the fundingâand also maintains their IP ownership and commercialization rights.
These programs were recently reauthorized by congress, underscoring their value. But these are also not the only type of government grants! Other government organizations such as the DoD also have grant funding available for startups. Check out grants.gov for a full list!
And, like I mentioned, established biotech companies like Pfizer, suppliers like Millipore Sigma, and larger non-profits/advocacy groups such as the Michael J. Fox Foundation also provide grant funding.
But is grant funding worth it? I think so! Hereâs why theyâre advantageous:
BRAZEN BREAKDOWN
Theyâre Non-Dilutive. Since there is no impact to the cap table, the founders, any existing investors, and employees wonât experience any dilution.
They Can Offer Big Money. SBIR/STTR grants are usually phased, with increasing amounts into the millions as you go along. Iâve also seen grants nearing $10MM dollars!
Theyâre Validating. Receiving a grant shows that someone believes in what youâre doing. While not a guarantee, this may make it easier for you to receive other grants or even venture capital funding in the future.
They Have Known Requirements and Deadlines. Youâll know exactly what theyâre looking for and exactly when you need to apply by. This makes it much easier to understand if itâs a fit and worth the effort.
Speaking of effort, I do want to mention the disadvantages as well. Applying for grants is time consuming. Itâs easy to be distracted from the day to day of your startup and making progress on your development if youâre always working on grant applications. Additionally, much like academia, these grants can be highly competitive, so thereâs no guarantee that all that extra effort will even amount to anything. [Even worse, you typically wonât even know the outcome of the application for up to a YEAR. âed] Finally, these grants may not be as flexible. They usually need to be used on specific, pre-determined budgets which arenât always comprehensive to everything your company needs.
There are also cases where grant funding alone may just not be enough. Iâve mentioned over and over again how capital-intensive biotech is. This is why grants should be used to supplement equity or debt funding. But if itâs a fit, you have the time, and you have a project in mind, go for it!
đ Brazen Snax
đŠ Interning in a lab with shitty culture? Find a less shitty lab!
đŚ New Ebola outbreak in Uganda with species NOT covered by vaccine
𫣠Editor-in-Chief of Science smacks the shit out of research universities
đ Cofounder of 7 biotech startups wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry
đ¤đ˝ Nature is metal: vegan mosquitos start as head launching carnivores
đ How to optimally time your omicron vaccine booster
âđ˝ Men are worse allies to women and the underrepresented than they think
â° TikTokCrak: The 5th person to win Nobel Prize TWICE
đŞ Carveout
Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist (4th ed) by Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson is the textbook we use to teach venture to our Junior Venture Fellows (JVFs) and interns. This is not the first time weâve spotlighted this fantastic book and it will not be the last time!
đđ˝ A Dose of Gratitude
We are grateful for friend of Brazen, âTKâ, who made Brazen House possible.
đ Brazen Meme
âď¸ Feedback
If you like, please like. Feel free to tweet all other thoughts, questions, and insults to us @brazenbio. Bring it. No, really. COMEđđ˝ATđđ˝USđđ˝BROđđ˝