Penn State is working to commercialize more of its research breakthroughs, such as LionGlass. Andrew Read, senior vice president for Research, said the University is entering into a new partnership with an Italian glassmaker, Bormio Luigi, to perform research and development with the goal of scaling up, manufacturing and ultimately commercializing LionGlass. Credit: Adrienne Berard / Penn State.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — At its Sept. 5 meeting, the Penn State Board of Trustees Committee on Research and Technology heard from Andrew Read, senior vice president for research, about the mission of the Penn State Research Foundation, as well as an update on its activities.
The Penn State Research Foundation (PSRF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit created in 1934 to foster and advance scientific research. As the holder of intellectual property (IP) created by Penn State’s researchers, PSRF is charged with overseeing the management and licensing of rights for inventions, designs and other IP.
According to Read, who serves as the president of PSRF, the foundation does this by supporting researchers to commercialize their discoveries, providing industry partners opportunities to implement innovations in their businesses, enabling government agencies to realize the tech transfer of their investments, and offering new ventures valuable guidance, growth, and investment opportunities.
Ultimately, Read said, the PSRF supports Penn State to be a leader and innovator in commercializing advanced research.
“We have an enormous research operation, among the biggest in the country, absolutely fantastic in its impact at local scales, but also nationally and globally,” Read said.
He explained that many of these positive impacts are due, in part, to the commercialization of Penn State-created technologies, facilitated by PSRF. For example, he discussed Penn State’s work to develop antibodies used to create a human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine to prevent cervical cancer.
“Our antibodies are the standard across the world,” he said. “They were used to develop the vaccines that are eradicating cervical cancer in Australia and are now being used to develop vaccines in India and China. There are many millions of people who are not going to get cervical cancer as a result of the work that was done in the College of Medicine in the late 80s and early 90s.”
Read noted that while commercialization can create a significant revenue stream for the University, a desire to serve the public good is what drives commercialization activities.
Read also described a more recent development: a new partnership between an Italian glassmaker, Bormio Luigi, and Penn State to perform research and development with the goal of scaling up, manufacturing and ultimately commercializing LionGlass.
“[Bormio Luigi] was chosen out of about 50 companies that were interested in being the first industry partner,” he said, explaining that the partnership will provide an opportunity to refine the technical processes before expanding into the many other applications for the glass.
Updating the board on PSRF’s activities over the last year, Read explained the PSRF plays an important role in bridging the gap between an idea generated by a researcher and the marketplace. To that end, Read noted that four projects recently were selected for funding by Penn State’s Commercialization GAP Fund.
Supported by the PSRF, the Commercialization GAP Fund accelerates the development of promising research across the campuses by helping to advance proof-of-concept research projects toward a stage sufficient to attract a commercial licensee or investor looking to build a company around the technology.
Read noted that beyond the four projects that received funding, many others have great potential and may be reevaluated in the future.
The strategic direction of PSRF is informed by an independent Board of Directors composed of experts, both internal and external to the University, in the areas of research commercialization, entrepreneurship and technology investing.
The PSRF is supported by the Office of Technology Transfer, which identifies promising intellectual property developed at Penn State and facilitates the translation of Penn State technologies from bench to marketplace; the Office of Entrepreneurship and Commercialization, which provides programs and support for Penn State innovators, affiliated startups, and small businesses; and Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Central and Northern PA, which provides startup funding and business support services to tech-based startups and small manufacturers located in Pennsylvania.
The Committee on Research and Technology was one of six board committees to hold public meetings in September. The next full board meeting will be held on Nov. 7-8 at the University Park campus.