Member Institutions

MaRS Innovation and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre Partner to Develop Four Exciting Medical Discoveries

TORONTO (March 23, 2010) — MaRS Innovation and Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre have entered into their first set of agreements to collaboratively commercialize a novel therapeutic technology and three advances in medical imaging. These four technologies will impact diagnosis and care for epidemic chronic illnesses and have clear and broad commercial potential. MI will shepherd these opportunities through the next stages of the commercialization process.

Dr. Raphael Hofstein, president & CEO, MaRS Innovation.

“We are coming out of the gate vigorously in identifying this group of Sunnybrook technologies as commercialization opportunities,” said Dr. Raphael (Rafi) Hofstein, president and CEO of MI. “MaRS Innovation sits with academic institutions at the hub of a major North American cluster in medical devices and biomedical engineering. This agreement will enable MaRS Innovation to leverage our resources with Sunnybrook’s and generate attractive investment packages.”

CIHR Commercialization Program funds insulin-alternative stem cell technology and nicotine addiction drug therapy

March 2, 2010
Susanne Staer
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)

TORONTO (March 2, 2010) – MaRS Innovation is delighted to announce that two of its commercialization projects – notably an umbilical cord stem cell technology from Mount Sinai Hospital and nicotine…

CAMH researcher’s leading-edge therapy targets brain chemistry of addiction

December 17, 2009
Susanne Staer
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH)

CAMH and MaRS Innovation partner on innovative approach to nicotine addiction

TORONTO (Dec. 17, 2009) — Grappling with nicotine addiction is never easy, but a new drug therapy – developed by Dr. Fang Liu at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) – brings promise to one of our great public health challenges.

The experimental medication in development at Dr. Liu’s lab targets the brain chemistry associated with addiction by disrupting a specific receptor-receptor interaction.

Proof-of-concept data demonstrate that this therapy decreases addictive behavior associated with nicotine and alcohol in preclinical models.

MaRS Innovation selects University of Toronto’s Diabetic Wound Healing Technology as second commercialization opportunity

TORONTO (June 30, 2009) – MaRS Innovation (MI) and the University of Toronto (U of T) are pleased to announce that they have entered into an agreement to collaboratively commercialize a novel sustained release formulation of nitric oxide (NO) for applications in wound healing, including diabetic ulcers.

“There are 300 million diabetics worldwide, of which some 15 per cent develop troublesome foot ulcers. This wound healing technology is extremely exciting, making it an early commercialization opportunity that MaRS Innovation has identified as being a potential win for some 45 million diabetics globally,” said Dr. Raphael (Rafi) Hofstein, president and CEO of MaRS Innovation.

MaRS Innovation selects Mount Sinai Hospital’s umbilical cord stem cell technology as first commercialization opportunity

TORONTO (June 29, 2009) – MaRS Innovation and the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital are pleased to announce that they have entered into an agreement to collaboratively initiate commercialization of an umbilical cord stem cell technology for potential treatment in cardiovascular disease, diabetes and neurological disorders.

Raphael Hofstein, president and CEO MaRS Innovation — **Dr. Raphael Hofstein**, president and CEO of MaRS Innovation

“With the Toronto area identified as a world-leading cluster in stem cell research, we are extremely excited to have identified this technology as our first commercialization opportunity,” said Dr. Raphael (Rafi) Hofstein, President and CEO of MaRS Innovation.

The technology – invented by Mount Sinai scientists Dr. Ian Rogers and Dr. Robert Casper – offers a proprietary method to create multi-potent stem cells (MPSCs) from human umbilical cord blood. With preclinical data demonstrating efficacy of MPSCs in diabetes, peripheral vascular disease (a complication of diabetes that can lead to amputation) and neurological conditions, the technology has significant potential to address multiple unmet medical needs.