News

Virginia Catalyst Awards $3.2 Million in Grants to Support Life Sciences in the Commonwealth

The Virginia Catalyst, also known as the Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corporation (VBHRC), today announced that it has awarded $3.2 million in grants to four life and bioscience projects in the Commonwealth of Virginia. These projects were awarded in Grant Round 17.

“The Catalyst works to help industry partners and academic investigators to raise follow-on funding” said Mike Grisham, CEO of Virginia Catalyst. Through this 17th round of funding, Virginia Catalyst has awarded 69 grants totaling over $36 million, resulting in over $54 million in matching funds and over $700 million in follow-on funding to date.

The Virginia Catalyst in now accepting Letters of Intent for Grant Round 18, until March 14th.
For more information visit: https://www.VirginiaCatalyst.org/apply.html

Grant Round 17 project awardees:

Project: Adenosine A2B receptor blockade for the treatment of Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) •Company: Adovate, LLC (Charlottesville, VA)
•University collaborators: University of Virginia and Virginia Tech
•Funding amount: $800,000

Project: Anti-bioflim enzyme (ABE) as a novel, non-toxic solution that overcomes antimicrobial resistance to protect human health from farm to fork
• Company: Lytos Technologies, LLC (Charlottesville, VA)
•University collaborators: University of Virginia and Virginia Tech
•Funding amount: $800,000

Project: Orthopaedic Surgical Site Infection Prevention via an Antibiotic Releasing Click Hydrogel
•Company: Pascal Medical Corporation (Richmond, VA)
•University collaborators: Virginia Commonwealth University and George Mason University
•Funding amount: $800,000

Project: Investigational New Drug Enabling Studies of STX2310
•Company: S1P Therapeutics Inc. (Blacksburg, VA)
•University collaborators: Virginia Tech and University of Virginia
•Funding amount: $800,000

 

Recent News

02/09/2026

Activation Capital Expands Frontier BioHealth and Strengthens its Continuum of Support for Life Sciences Founders

Activation Capital today announced enhancements to Frontier BioHealth, building on the program’s successful 2024 launch and inaugural cohort while reinforcing its broader continuum of life sciences entrepreneurship programs designed to help science-driven companies progress toward commercialization and investor readiness. Frontier BioHealth was created to address a critical gap facing emerging biohealth founders: access to practical

02/04/2026

Governor Spanberger Announces Expansion of Paid Internship Opportunities with Virginia Businesses

Governor Abigail Spanberger today launched InternshipsVA, a new statewide program to help Virginia employers design and launch high-quality, paid internships for higher education students in Virginia. The Commonwealth has committed $14.5 million each year to support this program. The Governor was joined by leaders of the Virginia Chamber of Commerce, the Virginia Economic Development Partnership

02/03/2026

SSI Diagnostica Group Acquires InDevR

SSI Diagnostica Group, a global company specializing in testing solutions for infectious diseases, has announced the acquisition of InDevR, a Colorado-based provider of advanced multiplexed solutions for vaccine testing and quality control. The addition strengthens SSID Group’s leadership in pneumococcal vaccine QC testing with next-generation multiplexing assays and enhanced customization capabilities. InDevR will advance the Group’s offering by