NCBiotech awards $7.4M in grants, loans in FY26

The North Carolina Biotechnology Center awarded 141 grants and loans totaling more than $7.4 million to universities, life sciences companies and nonprofit organizations in the recently ended fiscal year 2026 (July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2026).

The awards, made from July 2025 through June 2026, will support life sciences research, technology commercialization and entrepreneurship throughout North Carolina. The funding will also help universities and companies attract follow-on funding from other sources.

Small Business Research Loans

Twelve life sciences companies received Small Business Research Loans totaling $3,700,000 to advance their research, product development and commercial viability.

• Enfuego Therapeutics of Morrisville received $350,000 to characterize and advance a chimeric RNAi molecule for future clinical development in the treatment of solid tumors.
• Ichor Agriculture of Raleigh received $250,000 to complete the required studies for its novel broad-spectrum fungicide, which controls a wide variety of fungi and bacteria, impacting North Carolina crops.
• iOrganbio of Chapel Hill received $350,000 to advance its human pluripotent stem cell (hPSC)-derived manufacturing platform capabilities and demonstrate the platform’s potential to manufacture pancreatic beta cells with consistent functional profiles – a transformative commercial capability.
• Junipero Therapeutics of Durham received $350,000 to further its work of harnessing the body’s own gene-regulation machinery to durably alter the expression of disease-relevant genes.
• MembraneWorks of Raleigh received $350,000 to develop high-capacity nonwoven membrane chromatography devices for biopharmaceutical purification. The project will design, produce, and validate devices for antibody and gene therapy purification.
• Olfax Medical of Asheville received $350,000 to support development of nasally delivered therapeutic formulations for neurological conditions.
• Rooted-in-Tech of Apex received $250,000 to integrate autonomous growing modules and customized environmental recipes, enabling reduced farming risks, enhanced plant quality, lower transportation costs, and boosted yields. Rooted-in-tech is positioned to supply millions of plants across multiple crops, redefining the future of plant propagation.
• Suture Tech of Durham received $350,000 to support the commercialization, through talent acquisition and sales and marketing efforts, of its flagship product, the RapidFix, a tendon and ligament repair device used in orthopedic surgery.
• Swift Cardiovascular of Durham received $150,000 to further develop and commercialize its comprehensive cardiac access technology to address current bottlenecks in the treatment of cardiac diseases. The technology will provide new options for structural heart disease treatment by providing practitioners and engineers new vantage points of care.
• Theia Imaging of Durham received $350,000 to support the initial production run of the Theia T2, a handheld coherence tomography device for use in infants, young children, and patients who are otherwise unable to cooperate with traditional ophthalmic imaging devices.
• Upstream Biotechnology of Durham received $250,000 to support the next phase of development of its SwitchBlade platform. The technology uses RNA biology and genetic engineering to fine-tune genetic circuits, precisely controlling plants’ natural broad-spectrum immune system, to deliver durable, season-long protection against diseases.
• Veil Therapeutics of Durham received $350,000 to support the development of a novel polymer-enzyme conjugate therapy for chronic refractory gout. Funding will also support expansion of the company’s North Carolina facilities that support manufacturing and development activities.

Strategic Growth Loans

Two life sciences companies received Strategic Growth Loans totaling $1,300,000 to help them reach milestones that enable follow-on equity investment and/or commercialization.

• Diorasis Therapeutics of Durham received $650,000 to advance its gene therapy for glaucoma through Investigational New Drug-enabling studies.
• Persistence Therapeutics of Chapel Hill received $650,000 to support the development of Synthnode, an implant that generates CAR T cells in the body, offering an in vivo cancer therapy that is potentially better, faster, and cheaper than existing options.

NCBiotech portfolio companies raise $89.7 million

Thirty-one life sciences companies that previously received loan support from NCBiotech raised over $89.7 million in follow-on funding from other sources in the fiscal year, according to research by NCBiotech’s Business Intelligence and Analytics staff. 

Belhaven Biopharma of Raleigh led the way by securing over $32.2 million in venture capital financing. The company is developing anaphylaxis treatments for life-threatening allergic reactions.

EpiCypher of Durham received nine research grants from the National Institutes of Health totaling $10.4 million. The company provides reagents, tools and services for studying genomic regulation and enabling epigenetics-focused drug discovery.

Phinite, based in Turkey, N.C., raised $5,827,980 in venture capital. The company converts nutrients from domestic livestock manure into environmentally friendly commercial fertilizer, freeing farmers from dependence on foreign sources of synthetic fertilizer.

Deep Blue Medical Advances of Durham raised $5,261,533 in venture capital. The company develops and sells next-generation surgical devices for optimal tissue tension, reinforcement and defect closure in soft-tissue surgeries including hernia repair.

Industrial Internships awarded

Fifty life sciences companies received $4,000 Industrial Internship Program awards totaling $200,000. The program matches students pursuing careers in life sciences with companies seeking new talent to advance important projects. 

Participating companies:

•    BioAesthetics Corp. of Durham
•    VQ Biomedical of Cary
•    Upstream Biotechnology of Durham
•    ForagR Medicines of Durham
•    Innatrix of Durham
•    Gradient Medical of Raleigh
•    Kalia Health of Chapel Hill
•    Advanced Animal Diagnostics of Morrisville
•    Mycologics of Durham
•    Quadridox of Hillsborough
•    GreenLight Biosciences of Durham
•    Verdia Diagnostics of Cary
•    Boundless Science of Durham
•    IMMvention Therapeutix of Durham
•    SeaTox Research of Wilmington
•    Divergene of Morrisville
•    Cerulean Scientific of Durham
•    Scientific Purity of Bunn
•    Mimetics of Durham
•    Cytex Ortho of Durham
•    BioCytics of Huntersville
•    Cervu Health of Cary
•    PhotoniCare of Durham
•    Tuple of Charlotte
•    Quanticision Diagnostics of Chapel Hill
•    Ummino of Raleigh
•    GrayBio of Durham
•    Plakous Therapeutics of Winston-Salem
•    Ichor Agriculture of Raleigh
•    iOrganbio of Morrisville
•    Atlantic Fish Co. of Raleigh
•    Avazyme of Durham
•    Artiam Bio of Morrisville
•    Lumius Imaging of Durham
•    Sable Fermentation of Wake Forest
•    RedBud Labs of Durham
•    SelSym Biotech of Raleigh
•    Galaxy Diagnostics of Durham
•    Cosmic Eats of Cary
•    Isosceles Pharmaceuticals of Wilmington
•    Growth Curve Bio of Durham
•    Theia Imaging of Durham
•    OpenAgBio of Research Triangle Park
•    Elysia Creative Biology of Raleigh
•    Cohesion Phenomics of Spindale
•    DNAli Data Technologies of Cary
•    InGateyGen of Research Triangle Park
•    Clarus Biologics of Morrisville
•    Soteria Formulations of Clayton
•    Vetta Solutions of Durham

University grants

Four universities received six Innovation Impact Grants totaling $617,667 to support the purchase of shared-use research equipment for core facilities, fostering innovation.

• Campbell University’s Pharmaceutical Education and Research Center received $130,568 to support purchasing new thermal analysis equipment that will expand research capabilities for university researchers and local pharmaceutical companies.
• Duke University received $150,000 to support the purchase of a high-performance computer server for use within its Protected Analytics Computing Environment (PACE), enabling the use of large language models in medical research aimed at improving healthcare delivery, patient care, population health and clinical research.
• Duke’s Microbiome Core Facility received $88,000 to support the purchase of an iconPCR instrument that automates and optimizes sample preparation for high-throughput sequencing, improving the quality and reproducibility of microbiome research.
• Elizabeth City State University received $34,119 to support the purchase of a high-performance gel documentation imaging system that will enhance the university’s biological research capacity and serve as the foundation of a centralized imaging core facility.
• The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill received $79,972 to support the purchase of an automated slide staining and cover-slipping system for the Pathology Services Core, improving the efficiency and quality of slide preparation for pathology research projects.
• UNC Chapel Hill’s Lineberger Bioinformatics Core received $135,008 to support purchasing two high-performance GPU (graphics processing units) servers that will expand the Core’s computing capacity for advanced artificial intelligence applications in cancer research and patient care.

Eight universities received 17 Flash Grants totaling $515,523 to advance innovative research ideas that show early indications of commercial potential.

• Duke:
  • $30,000 to develop and evaluate a novel irrigation fluid designed to preserve cartilage during arthroscopic surgery and improve long-term joint health outcomes.
  • $30,000 to develop a new antibiotic treatment to address drug-resistant bacteria that cause urinary tract infections.
  • $30,000 to test novel compounds to identify new therapies for age-related macular degeneration, preventing vision loss.
  • $18,571 to develop a quantitative diagnostic tool for traumatic brain injury in military service members exposed to blast injuries.
• East Carolina University received $30,000 to develop a new method to scale the production of cell-based treatments for Parkinson's disease.
• High Point University received $37,500 to develop a new cell therapy designed to improve the replacement of damaged heart cells for the treatment of heart disease.
• North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University received $37,500 to develop a novel antibacterial wound dressing for treating burn injuries.
• NC State:
  • $30,000 to develop a needle-free method of drug delivery for diabetes and obesity.
  • $27,881 to develop a novel delivery method targeting difficult-to-treat pancreatic cancers.
  • $29,842 to develop an additive symbiotic root fungus that could allow for increased nutrient absorption in plants and reduce total synthetic fertilizer use.
  • $29,874 to develop and test the efficacy of new antifungal compounds that could address emerging fungicide resistance and protect crops.
  • $29,456 to identify protective and beneficial fungi that could promote soybean plant growth and mitigate stress caused by salt intrusion in soils.
• The University of North Carolina Charlotte: 
  • $30,000 to develop a new, light-activated, nanoparticle treatment to combat wound infections.
  • $24,899 to explore how bacteria can colonize and influence fungi, possibly leading to new strategies for limiting fungal diseases in plants.
• The University of North Carolina Greensboro received $25,000 to support the development of a novel antibacterial material for infection prevention and wound treatment in challenging combat-related wound conditions.
• The University of North Carolina Wilmington
  • $37,500 to develop a biomarker-based rapid diagnostic test for the early detection of traumatic brain injuries.
  • $37,500 to discover and develop new antibiotics from coral-associated bacteria to combat drug-resistant bacterial infections.

Three universities received seven Translational Research Grants totaling $1,006,961 to support research projects that explore commercial applications or initiate the early commercial development of university-held life sciences inventions.

• Duke:
  • $143,509 to develop a novel therapeutic strategy to enhance skeletal muscle cells for the treatment of muscular dystrophy.
  • $143,966 to develop a gene-editing based approach for the treatment of glycogen storage diseases type Ia.
• NC State:
  • $144,000 to develop and manufacture a novel surgical mesh to treat surface injuries of the eye.
  • $144,000 to develop and produce a sweet potato variety that has pest resistance to nematodes.
  • $144,000 to develop a natural biomaterial-based therapeutic nanoparticle that promotes wound healing for distal limb injuries.
• UNC Chapel Hill: 
  • $143,849 to develop the first antiviral therapeutic that targets and prevents the replication of specific proteins in alphaviruses, which could limit infection rates and prevent outbreaks.
  • $143,637 to develop a vulvar applicator device that would allow for effective and discreet delivery of a dissolvable lidocaine film for the treatment of vestibulodynia.

Biotechnology Event Sponsorships

Eight universities and seven nonprofit organizations received 23 Biotechnology Event Sponsorships totaling $32,863 to support life sciences-focused events held primarily for a North Carolina audience.  

• Appalachian State University received $3,000 to support the 2025 Annual North Carolina Research Administrators Alliance (NC RAA) Conference. This conference brings together research administrators from across North Carolina to discuss topics related to research management in academic institutions, industry, and nonprofit organizations.
• Bald Head Island Conservancy of Bald Head Island received $950 to support the Fifth Annual Johnston Coastal Sustainability Symposium, which shares research and practical approaches for protecting North Carolina's coast and strengthening resilient ecosystems and communities.
• Duke:
  • $925 to support the Evolutionary Medicine Summer Institute, which provides training in evolutionary medicine and, in 2026, focuses on climate change and health through topics including climate modeling, ecological field methods, wearable devices and causal inference.
  • $1,500 to support the 2026 North Carolina Special Interest Group of the Society of Research Administrators International Conference. This conference provides professional development for research administrators on topics including proposal development, research compliance, intellectual property and industry collaboration.
• ECU:
  •  $928 to support the 7th Annual ECU Spring Pharma Conference, which brings together pharmaceutical professionals for technical sessions, industry updates and networking focused on laboratory and manufacturing topics.
  • $1,290 to support the 27th Annual Neuroscience Symposium. This symposium features presentations on current neuroscience research and clinical studies while providing professional development opportunities for students and strengthening connections among researchers, community members, and regional partners.
• Foundation for Artificial Intelligence and Health of Durham received $1,000 to support the How Artificial Intelligence is Transforming Life Sciences event. This event brings together life sciences leaders, researchers and innovators in the Research Triangle area to explore how AI is changing drug discovery, clinical research and patient care.
• North Carolina Academy of Science of Raleigh received $895 to support the 122nd North Carolina Academy of Science Annual Meeting, which brings together researchers and students to share scientific research and highlight innovative, interdisciplinary work across the biological, physical, behavioral and computational sciences.
• North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University - Center for Excellence in Post-Harvest Technologies received $3,000 to support the North Carolina Branch of the American Society for Microbiology Annual Meeting. This meeting brings together students, faculty, and professionals from across North Carolina to share research and innovations in microbiology and biotechnology.
• North Carolina Association of County Agricultural Agents of Raleigh received $950 to support its 2026 Professional Improvement Conference, which provides agricultural agents with updates in the life sciences that can be shared with farmers, gardeners, families, 4-H members and communities across North Carolina.
• North Carolina Global Health Alliance of Durham received $750 to support the 2026 Spring Event: The Global Health Workforce - An Economic Imperative, which explores how investments in public health systems and the global health workforce can strengthen economic resilience, productivity and long-term stability.
• NC State:
  • $1,500 to support the CATALYZE 2026 Commercialization and Entrepreneurship Conference, an annual event connecting researchers, entrepreneurs, and industry professionals focused on advancing the commercialization of new technologies and helping young researchers bring their research from lab to market.
  • $1,500 to support the 2026 Water Resources Research Institute Annual Conference, which brings together researchers, practitioners and community partners from across North Carolina to discuss water resource challenges and solutions, including water quality, storm water management, water supply planning and ecosystem restoration.
  • $1,500 to support the 2026 Integrative Sciences Training Grant Symposium, which brings together trainees and faculty from multiple NIH-funded T32 programs at NC State for presentations, poster sessions and a keynote highlighting interdisciplinary life sciences research.
• Organic Growers School of Asheville received $1,500 to support the 2026 Organic Growers School Spring Conference, which provides affordable, practical and hands-on education for farmers and gardeners and brings together growers, researchers, educators and extension professionals from across the region.
• UNC Chapel Hill:
  • $1,275 to support the Carolina Malaria Research Annual Symposium, which connects malaria researchers in North Carolina for collaboration and opportunities for trainee professional development.
  • $1,500 to support the 2026 Integrative Vascular Biology & UNC McAllister Heart Institute Research Symposium, which brings together cardiovascular scientists to present research and discuss advances in cardiovascular biology and medicine.
  • $1,500 to support the 10th Annual Oliver Smithies Nobel Laureate Symposium, honoring Nobel Laureate Dr. Oliver Smithies. The symposium features a keynote lecture by Dr. Jennifer Doudna, recipient of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her pioneering work on CRISPR gene-editing technology.
  • $1,500 to support the Generating Hypotheses Using AI Lecture and Workshop, a two-day event featuring a keynote lecture on artificial intelligence in research, a poster session and a hands-on workshop applying AI strategies to research questions.
  • $3,000 to support the Carolina Biophysics Symposium, a two-day meeting focused on advances in protein design and engineering, including sessions on AI-enabled protein modeling, protein therapeutics, experimental methods, and biosensors.
• UNC Charlotte received $950 to support Interior Ecologies: Translating Biotechnology-Enabled Regenerative Prototypes into Scalable Building Systems, to explore the use of biotechnology to develop healthier, low-carbon building materials.
• UNCW received $2,400 to host the Consortium of Academic Programs in Clinical Research (CoAPCR) annual meeting. This event brings together educators and professionals from across North America to strengthen clinical research training and support workforce development in the clinical research field.
• Western North Carolina Regional Education Foundation of Asheville received $500 to support the Exploring Plant Genetics Professional Development workshop, which provides Western North Carolina teachers with hands-on training in DNA extraction, genetically modified organisms and gene expression to strengthen biotechnology education in the classroom.

Biotechnology Meeting Grants

Six universities and four nonprofit organizations received 19 Biotechnology Meeting Grants totaling $62,245 to support regional, national and international life sciences-focused meetings held in North Carolina.

• Appalachian State University received $2,000 to support Navigating the Research Rapids ─ NC Research Administrators Alliance, a two-day conference focused on research administration, innovation and translating research into entrepreneurial opportunities and spin-off companies.
• Duke received $3,000 to support turING: A Gathering on Humanity, Data and AI in Research & the Life Sciences, which brings together participants to explore the role of humanity and data in the use of artificial intelligence in life sciences and clinical research.
• The Global Forum for Plant Based and Alternative Proteins received $10,000 to support the Investing in Tomorrow’s Food: The Global Plant-Based and Alt-Protein Marketplace Conference. This event convenes international leaders to discuss innovations in food technology, sustainable protein development, and opportunities for collaboration.
• The Mid-Atlantic Cannabinoid Research Collaborative received $4,500 to support the 2025 Mid-Atlantic Cannabinoid Research Collaborative Conference. This event brings together researchers studying the biological effects of cannabinoid compounds to advance scientific understanding and support the development of safe and effective medical applications.
• North Carolina Association for Biomedical Research of Raleigh received $3,000 to support the 2026 Rigor and Reproducibility in Animal Studies Conference. This conference will focus on best practices in animal research and promote education on rigor, reproducibility and responsible conduct in biomedical science.
• NC State:
  • $3,200 to support the University & Industry Consortium: Spring 2026, which brings together academic, industry and government leaders to strengthen university-industry partnerships addressing agricultural and societal challenges.
  • $3,000 to support the Green-G Conference 2026, a cross-disciplinary meeting focused on plant, microbial and fungal signaling and the technologies used to measure and understand these signals to advance agriculture, biotechnology and the life sciences.
  • $1,200 to support the workshop, Modernizing Pesticide Regulation: Integrating AI, Digital Labels, and Precision Application. This workshop will explore technologies improving agricultural regulatory science and precision pesticide application.
  • $5,000 to support the 2026 AI in Agriculture Conference, which brings together scientists, industry leaders and agricultural professionals to explore applications of artificial intelligence in farming, food production and environmental sustainability.
  • $3,500 to support the Applied AI in Biomanufacturing Conference, which features academic and industry speakers discussing how artificial intelligence is advancing biopharmaceutical manufacturing through improvements in efficiency, process optimization, and innovation.
  • $5,000 to support the 2025 Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center (CASC) Regional Science Symposium, which convenes scientists, resource managers, and regional experts to share tools, best practices, and research supporting climate adaptation and resilience.
• UNC Chapel Hill:
  • $795 to support the inaugural UNC Women's Health Research Symposium, which brings together researchers and professionals to advance interdisciplinary collaboration in women's health and provides opportunities for early career researchers to showcase their work and build collaborative networks.
  • $2,000 to support the Triangle Cytoskeleton Meeting 2026, which provides a forum for researchers to share findings, network and advance research on the cytoskeleton and its role in cellular processes.
  • $3,000 to the Nutrition Research Institute to support the Precision Nutrition for Exercise Across the Lifespan Short Course, which brings together researchers and practitioners to explore how genetics, metabolism and lifestyle influence exercise, health and performance across the lifespan.
  • $3,000 to support ACL Research Retreat X, which brings together clinicians, researchers and industry representatives to advance the prevention, treatment and long-term care of ACL injuries through research, collaboration and emerging technologies.
• UNC Charlotte:
  • $3,050 to support the 2026 Southeastern Symposium on Genome Integrity and Chromatin Regulation, which brings together researchers at all career stages to share research, build collaborations and network in the areas of genome integrity and chromatin regulation.
  • $2,000 to support the Charlotte Regional Biomedical Sciences Symposium 2026: Collaborations Driving Innovations for Impact, which brings together participants to learn about the region's biomedical ecosystem, explore research and industry-academic collaborations, and build connections.
• UNCW received $2,000 to support the 2025 Ocean Innovation Conference, which brings together researchers, entrepreneurs, industry leaders and policymakers to strengthen North Carolina's Blue Economy through commercialization, entrepreneurship and cross-sector collaboration.
• Wake Forest University Health Sciences received $3,000 to support the 13th Annual Regenerative Medicine Essentials Meeting with Public Day, which brings together the regenerative medicine community for scientific presentations, workshops, workforce development, and partnering and commercialization opportunities.

Biotechnology Event Sponsorships and Meeting Grants

Four universities received 5 Biotechnology Event Sponsorships and Meeting Grants totaling $8,795 to support life sciences-focused events and meetings held in North Carolina.

• Appalachian State University received $2,000 to support the 2026 Annual North Carolina Research Administrators Alliance (NC RAA) Conference - Navigating the Research Rapids, a two-day conference focused on research administration, innovation and translating research into entrepreneurial opportunities and spin-off companies.
• UNC Chapel Hill
  • $795 to support the inaugural UNC Women's Health Research Symposium, which brings together researchers and professionals to advance interdisciplinary collaboration in women's health and provides opportunities for early career researchers to showcase their work and build collaborative networks.
  • $2,000 to support the Triangle Cytoskeleton Meeting 2026, which provides a forum for researchers to share findings, network and advance research on the cytoskeleton and its role in cellular processes.
• UNC Charlotte received $2,000 to support the Charlotte Regional Biomedical Sciences Symposium 2026: Collaborations Driving Innovations for Impact, which brings together participants to learn about the region's biomedical ecosystem, explore research and industry-academic collaborations, and build connections.
• UNCW received $2,000 to support the 2026 Ocean Innovation Conference, which brings together researchers, entrepreneurs, industry leaders and policymakers to strengthen North Carolina's Blue Economy through commercialization, entrepreneurship and cross-sector collaboration.