Lab Bench to Commercialization announces 2025 grant recipients
Five projects led by researchers in the Eberly College of Science have been selected to receive Lab Bench to Commercialization (LB2C) support in 2025. This competitive program provides guidance, training, and funding for researchers in the college, equipping them to advance the societal benefit of their work. Participants gain skills to translate their discoveries into real-world applications.
Phil Hanoian, assistant research professor of chemistry, and Stephen Benkovic, Atherton Professor and Eberly Chair in chemistry, are designing an AI-based tool for developing small molecule therapeutics. This award for this project is also supported by the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences.
Jonathan Kuo, assistant professor of chemistry, and Karli Sipps, a chemistry graduate student, have developed a new way to add functionality to non-polar polymers. This could have implications for creating new kinds of plastics with improved performance across many industries.
Wenrui Hao, associate professor of mathematics, and collaborator, Zi-Kui Liu, Dorothy Pate Enright Professor of Earth and Mineral Sciences will be developing a digital twin framework – a computer model that can be used for simulation and testing –that will enable biomedical implant device development and decision making. This project was awarded through the Center for Biodevices seed grant program with support from the Lab Bench to Commercialization program and the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences.
Sudha Veturi, assistant professor of biobehavioral health and of statistics, has developed a large language model for predicting disease outcomes. The award for this project is also supported by the College of Health and Human Development.
Yingwei Mao, professor of biology, and Jennifer Mott, a graduate student in biology, are advancing a potential gene therapy for TAR Syndrome, a rare pediatric disease.
Application criteria and awards
The Eberly College of Science is committed to supporting its researchers in translating their research for the benefit of society. The Lab Bench to Commercialization Grant Program offers structured guidance, hands-on training, and competitive seed funding for college researchers and their collaborators to translate their research, for example by testing a novel idea, generating a proof of concept, and identifying practical applications. The program intends to support a culture of ideation and translational research, provide hands-on training to participants, identify adoption paths for technologies, and grow a pipeline of projects well suited for tech transfer or external translational funding opportunities.
Recognizing that innovation can reach society in many ways, the LB2C supports both conventional and unconventional pathways to impact. Projects may pursue commercial, university-based fee-for-service, open-source, non-profit models, or 3rd party sponsorship. Examples of eligible projects include, but are not limited to, work with biotechnologies, materials, algorithms, methods, software, devices, or educational tools—all with potential for meaningful societal benefit. Projects are evaluated on the market need, proposed adoption plan, technical scope of work, and alignment with the LB2C program’s target stage of development. Successful applicants receive one year of support to advance their project.
During the award period, researchers will work with the college’s Office for Innovation and the Technology Advisory Board, to critically evaluate their technology, navigate their adoption plan, and demonstrate the key performance milestones to derisk their project. These services, along with the funding, provide inventors with the opportunity to take their inventions from the university to society where they can see real impact.
Eberly College of Science researchers who are interested in learning more about the opportunities available through the Office for Innovation should contact Emily Kuhns, Director of the Office for Innovation.