UC San Diego Announces First Sponsorship Through Translational Medicine Program; Forward Ventures to Fund AnalgesiX; New Company to Focus on Pain Therapy

Business Wire, June 16, 2003

UCSD plans to solicit, screen and post for public review a second round of TransMed research proposals in the next few months.

UCSD Health Sciences

UCSD Health Sciences is committed to the improvement of patient care through its integrated clinical, research and educational missions. Ranked first in the nation in federal research funding per faculty member, UCSD's medical school is a recognized leader in basic and translational research. The Institute for Science Information has ranked UCSD 4th in the nation in the impact of its research, and 2nd in the nation in clinical research impact. More than 65 biotechnology companies have been founded by faculty or alumni, or have been based on UCSD generated discoveries.

Forward Ventures

Forward Ventures, Southern California's largest venture fund focused exclusively on the life sciences, identifies candidates for early stage investments that both accelerate the development of innovative and effective treatments for serious diseases and produce significant returns for investors. The fund's partners apply their combination of scientific and medical research, business and financial expertise and wide range of relationships to benefit its portfolio companies, participating actively in building each successful enterprise with a goal of achieving returns for investors in three to five years. For more information go to www.forwardventures.com

UCSD CONNECT

UCSD CONNECT is a UCSD-based organization fostering entrepreneurship in the San Diego region by catalyzing, accelerating, and supporting the growth of the most promising technology and life sciences businesses. Founded in 1985, UCSD CONNECT is widely regarded as the nation's most successful regional program linking high-technology and life science entrepreneurs with the resources they need for success: technology, money, markets, management, partners, and support services. CONNECT delivers targeted, high-level expertise to San Diego's technology business community by teaming up with the region's most prominent industry-specific organizations and individuals, and by partnering with world-class UCSD resources.

UCSD Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Services

UCSD Technology Transfer and Intellectual Property Services (TechTIPS) manages the intellectual property developed at UCSD and provides educational and information services on intellectual property matters to the UCSD community, with the goal of facilitating the transfer of innovations from campus to the private sector for the benefit of society. TechTIPS is responsible for the management of all new inventions, tangible research materials, and selected copyrightable materials ("intellectual property") developed at UCSD and owned by the Regents of the University of California.

UC Discovery Grants

UC Discovery Grants, awarded by the Industry-University Cooperative Research Program (IUCRP), form a 3-way partnership between UC, Industry, and the State of California, that helps advance research and education while simultaneously strengthening the competitiveness of California businesses. Up to $60 million per year in State, Industry and University funds are available to support new research projects in five emerging fields: biotechnology; communications and networking; digital media; electronics manufacturing and new materials; and information technology for life sciences. In addition, the program welcomes interdisciplinary research proposals. For more information, please visit www.ucdiscoverygrant.org