April 8, 2010 - BioSurfaces, Inc. was awarded supplemental funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for two high school student internships under the program entitled “Research Assistantships for High School Students (RAHSS).”  This award supplements funding for the ongoing NSF Phase II Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) Grant entitled “Localized Gene Delivery from Implantable Arterial Devices (Grant Number 0923674).”  The goal of this program is to enrich the educational science experience of high school students.  This program encompasses many different facets of scientific discovery that will be beneficial to these students, from chemistry (polymer and textile) and biology (cell and molecular) to implant science and pathology.  Students will be guided by several mentors who each have expertise in these respective fields.  Two sophomores from Ashland High School have been selected as the first candidates for the program.

March 9, 2010 - BioSurfaces, Inc. has agreed to terms on a new 6,700 sq. ft research facility in Ashland, MA.  The company is slated to move into this newly renovated facility by the end of April 2010.  This facility offers expanded office and research space over the company’s current location and will permit the company to expand their work force over the upcoming years.  Additionally, the facility’s layout provides the company flexibility to incorporate small scale production facilities or clean-room technologies as the company’s bench top technology progresses.

August 15, 2009- BioSurfaces, Inc. was recently awarded a two year, Phase II Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) Grant from the National Science Foundation (Grant Number - 0923674).  This Phase II grant, with a total award amount of $479,601, is focused on developing a new nanofibrous biomaterial capable of directing the healing processes of native tissue at the implant site via localized delivery of selected genetic compounds.  

There continues to be an increase in vascular disease driven largely by an aging population and the increased incidence of diseases such as diabetes and arteriosclerosis.  Using a patient’s own vein to bypass an area of diseased artery (autologous bypass) still remains the first option of care when a patient has been diagnosed with disease affecting the circulatory system. Unfortunately, this is not an option for many patients 1) who may have already utilized all existing veins for previous procedures; 2) where a vein is required for an alternative procedure for which there is no substitute, 3) where increased surgical time required to harvest vein may also increase their chances for complications and 4) in which viable veins may no longer be available due to disease progression.  Thus, development of an “off-the-shelf” novel biomaterial that would direct healing processes of native tissue at the implant site would decrease patient death and disabilities associated implantation devices such as stents and artificial blood vessels.  The annual projected market for improvement of stents alone is $3.2 billion.    

The principal investigator in charge of this program is Mr. Matthew D. Phaneuf, President and CTO at BioSurfaces, Inc. For questions or inquiries, please contact Mr. Phaneuf at: biosurfaces@verizon.net.

June 1, 2009 - BioSurfaces, Inc. was recently awarded a two year, Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Contract from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health (Contract Number - HHSN268200900024C).  This Phase II grant, with a total award amount of $738,779, is focused on developing a new artificial blood conduit for heart assist devices using our proprietary technology that would prevent infection and clotting within the conduit (BioSpun-VAD). 

Heart failure affects over 4.7 million Americans, with 550,000 new cases diagnosed each year.  Of these cases, approximately 50,000 to 100,000 patients are in late-stage heart failure with only 8% of these patients surviving two years without undergoing a heart transplant or implantation of a ventricular assist device (VAD).  Although VADs have improved the quality of life for patients in late-stage heart failure, only 2,000 patients receive VADs each year due to the high morbidity and mortality associated with these devices.  The annual healthcare cost for this major disorder is estimated at $10 to $40 billion.  Significantly reducing these adverse complications would shift VAD use from “bridge to transplant” to “destination therapy”, increasing the potential market from the current $100 million annually to $2.5 billion. 

The principal investigator in charge of this program is Mr. Matthew D. Phaneuf, President and CTO at BioSurfaces, Inc. For questions or inquiries, please contact Mr. Phaneuf at: biosurfaces@verizon.net.

August 19, 2008 - BioSurfaces, Inc. was awarded patent protection by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for technology related to development of a new biologically-active artificial blood vessel, one of the core technologies of the company.  This technology was developed in conjunction with Dr. Martin J. Bide at the University of Rhode Island and Dr. Philip J. Brown at Clemson University.  The patent entitled “Nanofibrous Biocomposite Prosthetic Vascular Graft” was issued patent number US 7,413,575 B2 by the USPTO.  For questions or inquiries, please contact Mr. Matthew Phaneuf at: biosurfaces@verizon.net.