About the Therapeutic & Medical Device Accelerator

The Therapeutic & Medical Device Accelerator (TMDA) is a groundbreaking initiative, a one-stop resource within Boston Children’s Hospital’s Technology and Innovation Development Office (TIDO). Led by Nadine Beauger, PhD, MBA, this program fast-tracks the development of new therapies and medical devices, ensuring cutting-edge BCH research reaches patients as quickly and efficiently as possible.

Mission

To transform innovative projects from BCH into therapeutic and medical device solutions to significantly improve patient care. The Accelerator supports BCH faculty in the development of translational research towards commercialization in line with BCH’s core values. This support is done through cash and in-kind contributions by the Accelerator. We de-risk selected projects to either facilitate partnerships with industry or create new companies.

Internal Funding Program

The Internal Funds support early-stage academic BCH projects to bring them to their next value inflection point. In addition to funding, the Accelerator team members provide industry-level support (milestone-based project management, drug discovery and development expertise, intellectual property, business development) to the selected research teams to help drive the value of their projects.

A recording of the TMDA’s launch event can be found here. Please contact TIDOAccelerator@childrens.harvard.edu with any questions.

Award Types and Funding Levels

Therapeutic projects will be managed according to the project plan and funded in line with the activities required to complete predefined milestones, including Go/No Go decision points.

  • Target validation activities: up to $150,000 for up to 12 months
  • Hit identification activities: up to $300,000 for up to 18 months
  • Hit to lead activities: up to $500,000 for up to 18 months
  • Lead optimization and + activities: up to $1,000,000 for up to 24 months

Medical Device/Diagnostic projects will be funded at a maximum of $150,000 per project for a period of up to 18 months.

Full information about program eligibility, award types and funding levels, and our funding process can be found funding guidelines.

Funding Applications

To apply to the Therapeutic & Medical Device Accelerator, please review our guidelines, and then submit your application package in PDF by email to TIDOAccelerator@childrens.harvard.edu.

Please contact TIDOAccelerator@childrens.harvard.edu with any questions about the application process and for the application materials.

Strategic Alliance Partnerships

TMDA also supports TIDO’s mission is to advance novel therapeutics developed at Boston Children’s Hospital from the laboratory bench to the patient’s bedside through Strategic Alliance Partnerships. We have several multi-year strategic alliances with industry partners to significantly reduce the administrative and resource hurdles that can hinder collaborative scientific progress. Our partners include:

  • Autobahn Labs
  • Gondola Bio
  • ElevateBio
  • Sanofi
  • Takeda
  • Blackfan Circle Innovations

Deerfield has pledged up to $65 million with the goal of facilitating the translation and commercialization of novel biomedical research at Boston Children’s Hospital through a new collaboration called Blackfan Circle Innovations. Through Blackfan Circle, Boston Children’s Hospital scientists have the opportunity to submit therapeutic proposals for potential funding.

Deerfield will provide research funding and operational support in product development and commercialization to co-develop the jointly-selected research therapeutic candidates with the goal of achieving Investigational New Drug (IND) readiness. Successful projects that reach IND-enabled status may receive additional funding.

We would like to invite BCH investigators to begin the submission process to Blackfan Circle Innovations, the newly established entity created to accelerate research at BCH.

Areas of Interest:

  • Broad interest across all therapeutic areas and modalities
  • Early-stage projects with potential to progress to IND-enabled status, early clinical development, and human proof-of-concept

Proposal Process:

  • Proposal Concept Sheet
  • Letter of Intent
  • Full Proposal and Presentation

In order to engage initial interest with Blackfan Circle Innovations, TIDO encourages BCH investigators to submit one or more Proposal Concept Sheet(s), each of which will constitute a brief overview of the proposed project focusing on the areas listed below.

  • Genetic Evidence
  • Biologic Rationale
  • Preclinical Execution
  • Unmet Need
  • Clinical Development (if applicable)
  • Novelty/ Differentiation

A Proposal Concept Sheet submission template will be provided by TIDO. For more information on proposal submission to Blackfan Circle Innovations, a copy of the Proposal Concept Sheet, or questions related to the application process, please contact Sabrina Kamran, Strategic Alliance Manager at Sabrina.Kamran@childrens.harvard.edu.

If your Proposal Concept Sheet is selected for advancement, you will be asked to complete a Letter of Intent with a more detailed description of the proposed project. Finally, at the Full Proposal stage of evaluation, you will be asked to submit a detailed research plan and budget and meet with the Deerfield review team to discuss your proposal. Deerfield Discovery and Development experts will be available to consult with you on your proposal throughout the entire evaluation process.

Who Can Apply:

  • Full-time BCH Principal Investigators
  • Principal Investigators with faculty appointment who are subject to Boston Children’s policies regarding the conduct of research and ownership of intellectual property

Submissions:

Proposal Concept Sheets submitted to Blackfan Circle Innovations will be considered on a rolling basis, with operational and scientific guidance and support from TIDO during the submission process.