[Vision2020] U of I news

[Carl Westberg]

Just because I thought this was kind of cool.  It doesn't a round or oval ball and the success or lack of success of our sports teams, but shows that there's still some life in the old school.  Cut and pasted from Vandal Venue....
MOSCOW, Idaho – One of the greatest perils 
in technology transfer is the Valley of Death – the place where 
innovative ideas and research go to die before they have the chance to 
arrive in the marketplace. One thing in particular makes a
 difference – gap funding. A major challenge with regards to the 
commercialization of university technology is the funding void between 
early stage research and a technology that is ready for 
commercialization. Gap funds are typically used to develop prototypes, 
proof-of-concept testing and field trials. The goal of gap funding is to
 lower the barrier to industrial licensing or investment funding of 
start-up companies. “Many great ideas die without gap 
funding,” says Gene Merrell, University of Idaho associate vice 
president for economic development. Last fall, the Idaho 
State Board of Education Higher Education Research Council (HERC) 
announced approximately $350,000 available statewide for such gap 
funding. HERC believes that to fully realize the potential of the 
technical advances of the universities, to meet the expectations of 
stakeholders, and to create opportunities for retaining students 
within Idaho, an incubation fund needed to be established from which 
technologies that meet specific criteria will be incubated to support 
technology transfer and commercialization. These will be investments in 
selected technologies with expectations that the licensing of the 
technologies will provide benefits to the universities and stimulate 
economic development. The University of Idaho submitted 
nine funding proposals, while Boise State University and Idaho State 
University both sent five. The University of Idaho recently learned that
 five of its projects were funded out of a total of seven awards. . “It’s
 something to brag about,” said Merrell. “It shows that people like the 
variety of research that is happening at the University of Idaho.” The five diverse research projects that received funding include: Kerry
 Huber’s research, entitled "Generation of Potato-Based Resistant 
Starch (RS) Ingredients for Testing within Commercial Product Prototypes
 by an Industrial Partner," addresses a need to develop potato resistant
 starch food ingredients that act as dietary fiber and help lower the 
glycemic index response to food.  The new modified potato starch will 
allow potato growers and processors to gain entry into growing market 
areas that are currently inaccessible. Additionally, people that have 
problems with diabetes, allergies to corn or wheat products, or simply 
want more potato food choices will have access to new foods that contain
 digestive health benefits. Huber is an associate professor of food 
science in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Ken
 Cain's research, entitled "Commercializing Specific Probiotic Bacterial
 Strains as Direct Fed Microbials (DFMs) to Improve Fish Health and 
Reduce Disease Related Mortality at Aquaculture Facilities," addresses 
reducing the incidence of Coldwater disease in salmonids. Coldwater 
disease is regarded as the No. 1 problem for Idaho’s trout industry, 
resulting in $9-10 million annual losses and up to a 30 percent 
reduction in yield. Cain is an associate professor of fisheries 
resources in the College of Natural Resources. David
 McIIroy's and Gustavo Arrizabalaga’s research, entitled "Nanospring 
Coatings for the Promotion of Bone Growth on Prostheses," creates metal 
coated nanosprings that enhance the growth of normal bone cells and 
deposition of bone into the pores created by the nanosprings, which 
increases integration of bone cells around and within orthopedic 
implants. This is expected to decrease the failure rate of these 
devices. U.S. orthopedic procedures cost $25 to $30 billion dollars 
annually and are projected to increase by an overall annual growth rate 
of 15 percent. The most common cause of orthopedic implant failure is a 
loosening of the bone-implant interface that this technology addresses. 
McIlroy is a professor of physics in the College of Science and 
Arrizabalaga is and associate professor in biological sciences in the 
College of Science.. Steve Love's research, 
entitled "Enhancing Propagation Capability to Accelerate the 
Commercialization of Domesticated Native Plants," creates a unique and 
valuable pool of domesticated native plant materials for use in the 
nursery and landscape industry.  These native plant materials are 
designed to fill emerging market needs driven by increased public desire
 for environmental stewardship and water conservation. Love identified 
nearly 500 different types of native plants, which translates to a 
potential $10 million dollar market over the next five years. Love is an
 Extension professor of horticulture and superintendent of the Aberdeen 
Research and Extension Center, Erik Coat’s and 
Armando McDonald’s research, entitled "Constructing a Pilot-scale 
Bioplastic Production Facility," ferments dairy wastes to produce 
polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). PHA is essentially a biodegradable 
plastic that is synthesized by bacteria. In line with an increase in 
sustainability practices and waste recycling, is an increase in the use 
PHA-based plastics. The PHA market is expected to grow from 2.7 kt in 
2007 to 72.7 kt by 2013. Erik Coats is an assistant professor of civil 
engineering in the College of Engineering and McDonald is a professor of
 forest products in the College of Natural Resources. “This
 funding helps move technology forward,” said Merrell. “It makes people 
more interested and demonstrates the value of investing in the 
university.” With another HERC submission period likely to
 be sometime in April, Merrell is hoping more faculty will submit 
proposals for the next round. “Professors thinking about 
submitting a proposal need to work with the Office of Technology 
Transfer,” said Karen Stevenson a licensing associate in OTT. “We 
partner with the professor to assess the market potential of the 
technology and its path to commercialization.” “We want to impact the people and industries of the state,” said Merrell. 		 	   		  
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