November 17, 2017

This week, the Charleston Regional Development Alliance (CRDA) is attending the MEDICA tradeshow in Düsseldorf, Germany, for the fourth consecutive year. We’re meeting the world’s leading medical technology companies to share Charleston’s value proposition for life science companies.

While most of the meetings are with new contacts, several are with companies we’ve built relationships with over the years. By expanding South Carolina’s presence at the show and adding new partners like SCBIO, our life sciences story is constantly evolving.

An example is the growing number of medical technology companies starting and successfully scaling in Charleston thanks to a supportive ecosystem

The Zucker Institute of Applied Neurosciences (ZIAN) is a partnership model with Charleston-based Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) and its Foundation for Research and Development (FRD). Its mission is expediting the transfer of the university’s neuroscience research into the commercial marketplace. It has licensed three new medical technologies, with a fourth in the works, since its founding in 2012.

One of these new technologies formed by a MUSC clinician and supported by ZIAN is the world’s first patented device that provides fast, objective data on brain function using the blink reflex -this data helps medical personnel with concussion diagnosis, keeping athletes and patients safer. There are 3.8 million concussions per year and over 50% go unreported or undiagnosed. Blinktbi’s technology addresses a major diagnostic challenge. This startup has leveraged the local network to find talent/expertise, capital, and institutional support to develop this solution. Over the next year, Blinktbi will be working with the South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) and others to bring its product to market. You can read more about them here.

SCRA’s SC Launch program has supported 60+ South Carolina-based life science companies (Check out the list of companies here) and, in early January 2018, legislation to double the budget to support startups will be brought to the floor of the SC Senate.

The future is full of opportunity for life science companies and talent in Charleston | South Carolina.

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843.767.9300 | [email protected]