麻豆视频

Corrie Detweiler, a professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology, eyes some samples in the lab. (Photo: CU Boulder)

The National Academy of Inventors (NAI)听 the CU system 14^th among the 鈥淭op 100鈥� institutions nationwide for recent patent activity. That prominent position reflects the strength of CU-led discoveries and their potential to be translated into society-benefiting technologies with the support of CU鈥檚 robust entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Editorial Note:听As of Feb. 15, 2024, the CU System as 30^th among the "Top 100"听institutions worldwide.

Inventors throughout the CU system were granted 115 total utility patents in 2022, according to US Patent and Trademark Office data. This new ranking from the NAI compares, for the first time, innovation at U.S. universities (the CU system was previously 36th on NAI鈥檚 list of worldwide institutions). At that level of innovation, CU surged past a dozen other domestic research institutions including Cornell, Columbia and Northwestern.

CU Boulder was itself a frontrunner accounting for over half, or 61, of the patents in 2022. Each of those patents, plus another originating from CU Denver, was managed by Venture Partners at CU Boulder, which offers a host of entrepreneur-boosting programs to support inventors with the patent process and translating their inventions into the marketplace. Of the 62 patents facilitated by Venture Partners, more than half have already been licensed to partner companies, mostly to startups formed specifically to bring CU intellectual property to market. To date, those startups have collectively raised $840 million in funding.

That exceptional efficiency and efficacy in translating inventions into both licensed technology and startups is akin to building a structure one level at a time, said Bryn Rees, associate vice chancellor for research and innovation, and managing director of Venture Partners at CU Boulder. 鈥淧atents are part of the foundation of the building which also includes having a strong research enterprise and a culture where faculty and grad students are disclosing those inventions,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he building is a thriving innovation ecosystem where the ground floor鈥攖hese patented inventions鈥攁re being used commercially. They鈥檙e bringing solutions to the world and creating economic development and impact.鈥�

From patent to impact

One of the startups supported by Venture Partners addressing a critical, unmet need, said Rees, is听.听 The company was co-founded by Corrie Detweiler, professor of molecular, cellular and developmental biology at CU Boulder, who has spent decades targeting multi-drug resistant bacteria.听Detweiler鈥檚 lab is working to understand the interaction between pathogens and their hosts and to identify compounds that can interfere with antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) infections, which have spiked in recent years, troubling health officials around the world.

the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, AMR is an 鈥渦rgent global public health threat鈥� that was associated with nearly 5 million deaths worldwide in 2019. In the U.S. alone, 2.8 million AMR infections occur each year, resulting in 35,000 deaths annually. 鈥淕lobally, we鈥檙e in a terrible position, and we need to get out of it,鈥� said Detweiler.

Most research now being done to fight AMRs is focused on tweaking existing antibiotics and, while somewhat useful, it鈥檚 not enough, said Detweiler. 鈥淭he problem is that bacteria evolve very quickly to overcome those tinkerings. So, we need whole new antibiotics.鈥� (The last novel class of antibiotics to make it to market was discovered in 1984.)

Technology developed by Detweiler and colleagues is a major step in being able to find those 鈥榥eedle in a haystack鈥� compounds that neutralize superbugs. Their SAFIRE (Screen for Anti-infectives using Fluorescence microscopy of IntracellulaR Enterobacteriaceae) platform combs through databases of substances to find compounds that interfere with bacterial replication in mammalian cells.

Detweiler credits Venture Partners with supporting Bactria through various phases of development鈥攆rom invention toward market application. 鈥淭hey have been enormously helpful with getting patents and with figuring out how to go through the licensing鈥�They helped us get IP on the [SAFIRE] method, they encouraged me to co-found a company and told me how to go about doing that,鈥� she said. Her innovation process is still underway, said Detweiler, and Venture Partners continues to lend support.

An innovation foundation for chart-topping technologies

The fact that CU is soaring up the NAI chart doesn鈥檛 surprise Detweiler because, she said, Venture Partners helps inventors 鈥渞ealize what they might be able to do with what they have. It鈥檚 an ongoing dialogue that now happens between faculty or anyone who鈥檚 a prospective inventor.鈥�

Rees also wasn鈥檛 shocked that CU Boulder is gaining ground. 鈥淥ur faculty and our graduate students see the new resources available to them for commercialization and are more likely to come and work with us and disclose their inventions,鈥� he said. 鈥淎lso, I think the university has an increasing commitment to financially supporting these endeavors. So, it鈥檚 a combination of resources and the entrepreneurial culture at the university.鈥�

In addition to its 鈥淭op 100鈥� ranking, NAI鈥檚 Fellows Program also has recognized the CU system as fertile ground for innovation. Five CU researchers, including Detweiler, are NAI senior fellows and NAI has named an additional 16 fellows from CU 鈥渨ho have demonstrated a prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.鈥�

At the end of the day, the NAI鈥檚 recognition boils down to one major force driving innovators like Detweiler. 麻豆视频ing something new that can also be useful 鈥渋s thrilling,鈥� she said.