The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center has received $4 million in funding to help its scientists turn their life science research into new biotech companies. This funding will be used for establishing effective management for new biotech companies, safeguarding intellectual properties, and recruiting board members and senior executives in North Texas.
Dallas-based Lyda Hill Philanthropies and Austin-based biotech investment company Research Bridge Partners had provided the funding. And following the initial funding, additional investments will be raised through special-purpose vehicles.
Research Bridge Partners will establish its scientific discovery program at UT Southwestern. And the program will be available to support all departments within the medical center’s institution, including the Office of Technology Development at Pegasus Park.
The funding will also establish advisory sessions and ad hoc strategic support for early-stage researchers at UT Southwestern. And UT Southwestern’s investment comes at a time when North Texas is experiencing a life science and biotech boom across the region.
A recent report named Dallas-Fort Worth as a top emerging life sciences market in terms of size, institutions, talent, and rapid growth. And North Texas’ total life sciences labor pool has increased by 17% since 2019, surpassing the average national growth.
UT Southwestern and the University of North Texas Health Sciences Center in Fort Worth produced the nation’s tenth-greatest number of biological and biomedical sciences graduates in 2022. And in March, Pegasus Park announced plans to begin construction on its new space Bridge Labs this month. Pegasus Park is a 25-acre biotech campus in Dallas consisting of over 750,000 square feet of space across multiple buildings, including an 18-story office tower.
Earlier this year, the Dallas Regional Chamber set up an economic development campaign to recruit more life science and biotech companies and jobs to Dallas-Fort Worth. And the initiative is part of the DRC’s effort to build momentum in the two industries and capitalize on North Texas’ existing clout in AI, big data and software development.
KEY QUOTES:
“This partnership will support our goal of advancing the bench to bedside progression of our world-class research and will enable our faculty to optimize the value of their breakthroughs for the benefit of people everywhere.”
– Marc A. Nivet, executive VP for Institutional Advancement at UT Southwestern
“Our organization is committed to funding transformational advances in science and a focus area of ours is to augment the fast-growing biotech ecosystem in North Texas. Research Bridge Partners’ program to help advance scientific discovery and medical breakthroughs is directly aligned with our mission, and UT Southwestern is an ideal candidate to be selected for this program.”
– Nicole Small, CEO of Lyda Hill Philanthropies
