Global Forum for Plant-Based and Alternative Proteins: “The Startup-Driven Protein Economy”

UNC-Chapel Hill’s Ronit Freeman leads IMPEDE, a consortium backed by up to $24.8 million from ARPA-H to catch protein-misfolding diseases like Alzheimer’s and pulmonary fibrosis before symptoms appear. 

During a fireside chat, UNC Carolina Chief Innovation Officer Tommy Sowers will talk with Freeman about forming the consortium, why she paired a brain disease with a lung disease, how AI is tackling “undruggable” proteins, her path toward a pulmonary fibrosis venture, and how Carolina’s innovation ecosystem moves discoveries toward patients.

More than six decades ago, a group of leaders made a bold bet that a research park in the pine forests between three universities could transform North Carolina’s economy. That bet became Research Triangle Park, and its success reshaped the region and the state. The program will cover where the park came from, what it has meant for North Carolina, and where it goes next.

Durham-based Upstream Biotechnology Inc. has secured seed financing to advance its plant biotechnology platform, which aims to protect crops and strengthen resilience by activating gene regulation in response to environmental stress.