Dr. Davis will be giving an overview of the NIH SBIR/STTR programs and providing various examples of programs that the NIH has created to support early-stage therapeutics companies. She will be covering topics such as the difference between SBIR and STTR grants, program eligibility, the types of activities supported by each phase of the program, and how investigators can appropriately prepare for grant submission.

As the Chair of the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology at UAB, Dr. Bjornsti has successfully obtained many research project grants focused on the identification of new cancer therapeutics. However, she has also served as Chair of a Special Emphasis Panel focused on the review of SBIR/STTR grants from companies developing anticancer drugs. Dr. Bjornsti will provide an overview of her experience overseeing this review process and explaining some of the most frequent pitfalls that she has seen new investigators fall into when submitting an SBIR or STTR grant for the first time.

As a university faculty member Dr. Sharlow started KeViRx, Inc., a biotechnology company which obtained NIH SBIR funding. She will discuss some of the challenges and opportunities one has being involved in a biotechnology start up while also holding an academic faculty appointment.

Dr. Neelakantan is the Executive Director of Research and Development at Ridgeline Therapeutics, an emerging biotech company that has successfully raised substantial funding (~$8 M) through non-dilutive (including SBIR/STTR) grant mechanisms. From her experience as the Principal Investigator for the NIH-funded Phase 1 and Phase 2 SBIR/STTR grants and the Department of Defense-funded drug development grant, Dr. Neelakantan will share insights on potential success strategies and errors to avoid for obtaining a SBIR/STTR award.