POP Biotechnologies (POP BIO), a University at Buffalo spinout, has developed a novel vaccine adjuvant, POP BIO SNAP™, used to make vaccines and drug treatments more effective against diseases including Alzheimer’s and cancer. The technology was initially developed by Jonathan Lovell, a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and one of POP BIO’s co-founders. It was then exclusively licensed to POP BIO by UB Business and Entrepreneur Partnership’s Technology Transfer Office.

One of POP BIO’s first successes was winning the Henry A. Panasci Jr. Technology Entrepreneurship Competition (Panasci TEC), a student entrepreneur competition created by the UB School of Management and hosted by UB’s Startup and Innovation Collaboratory powered by Blackstone LaunchPad. Panasci TEC awarded POP BIO the top prize of $25,000 in startup capital and in-kind services valued at up to $40,000. That win attracted the interest of America Online co-founder Steve Case, who along with local investors awarded POP BIO $100,000 during Case’s Rise of the Rest business plan contest.

“That early UB funding allowed for foundational research that was too early-stage for grants,” explains POP BIO co-founder Jonathan Smyth. “It really supported essential work.”

After winning Panasci TEC, POP BIO moved into the BEP Incubator @ Baird to advance their technical R&D efforts. “The Incubator at Baird is perfect for a biotech startup,” says Smyth. “It has wet labs, it’s a very reasonably priced space with a comfortable environment, there’s easy parking and it’s within walking distance to our colleagues on campus. It feels like home to us.”

In its early days, POP BIO operated out of a single all-purpose lab at the incubator. As the startup and its needs grew, so did its footprint at Baird. Today, POP BIO operates three labs, each with specialized spaces and functions: one for manufacturing, one for characterization and a one for protein production.

With specialized facilities bolstered by BEP support, POP BIO has achieved several significant development and funding milestones.

The company has grown to six employees, all with ties to UB. POP BIO’s funding to date includes several rounds of UB Center for Advanced Technology in Big Data and Health Sciences (UB CAT) funding, $4 million in equity investment and over $9 million in NIH funding. Notably, POP BIO was recently recognized by the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and received a $1.5 million grant to leverage their platform for enabling rapid responses for future epidemics and pandemics.

POP BIO’s vaccine platform, which was proven effective for COVID-19 in Phase 3 testing, is advancing through clinical trials in other diseases including RSV and shingles. The company is currently developing an influenza vaccine, HaNaFlu, using the platform, and exploring additional applications including novel therapeutics to combat a host of diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer.