In the field, the United States Army relies on fifth-generation (5G) wireless networks for secure communications, equipment tracking, and real-time health monitoring. 5G networks are also essential for the coordination of unmanned aerial vehicles with broader military operations. Current 5G technologies, however, are difficult and costly to set up, transport, and operate on the move.

Jonathan Chisum, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Notre Dame, has spent nearly a decade researching the fundamental science of a new, low-power antenna that could change the rules of wireless connectivity. Chisum’s antenna delivers wideband 5G connectivity while consuming a fraction of the power supplied to traditional antennas, and combines the many redundant antennas from each frequency band into one wideband antenna.

“Our wideband solution is an essential building block for mobile, agile, and resilient networks, enabling the Army to deploy 5G networks globally over varied regional frequency allocations,” said Chisum, an affiliate of Notre Dame's Wireless Institute and Notre Dame Nanoscience and Technology. “Consolidating multiple dedicated antennas into one compact and wideband antenna drastically reduces cost, complexity, and weight. And because we replace expensive, power-hungry beam-scanning electronics with an optically-inspired metamaterial lens antenna, the system draws minimal power, making it a perfect fit for mobile command posts.”

Read the full story

Originally published by Erin Fennessy Lawlor at research.nd.edu on July 30, 2026.

Supported by gifts from the IDEA Center’s Advisory Council, other donors, and funding from the University, the RCG enables researchers to work with industry experts to define and achieve commercially relevant, market-driven milestones that advance their technologies toward real-world impact.

“The innovations pitched by our faculty members this year showcase the depth of talent and translational vision across Notre Dame's research community,” said Karen Deak, executive director of the IDEA Center. “By bridging the gap between breakthroughs and market readiness, these grants allow us to accelerate technologies that address some of the world's most pressing challenges and support our researchers as they embody the University's mission to be a powerful means for doing good in the world.”

The faculty inventions selected for RCG support in this cycle span sustainable materials, cancer therapeutics, and biological nanoparticle manufacturing.

Manufacturing natural, fiber-based materials

Jason Carley, assistant professor of industrial design in the Department of Art, Art History, and Design, has developed a sustainable biocomposite material designed to replace medium density fiberboard (MDF), an engineered wood product that is widely used in residential construction. Carley’s material is made up of recycled cellulose and soy-based adhesives, in contrast with MDF’s composition of virgin timber and formaldehyde-based adhesives, and has proven comparable to MDF in early performance assessments. The RCG will support scaled development and more rigorous mechanical testing of Carley’s novel material, positioning it as a lightweight, commercially viable, domestically sourced alternative that could reduce dependence on imported materials across furniture, cabinetry, RV, and interior panel markets.

Reviving shelved cancer drugs

Many promising cancer drug candidates never reach patients because they damage healthy tissue at the high doses required to eliminate tumors. To address this challenge, Prakash Nallathamby, associate director of the Berthiaume Institute for Precision Health, and Aurelie Brownsberger, a doctoral student in the Bioengineering Graduate Program, have invented a magnetoelectric nanoparticle platform designed to selectively deliver these drugs to cancerous tissue.

The delivery platform, called MagSiNs, chemically binds a drug to a nanoparticle that preferentially accumulates in tumor tissue by taking advantage of magnetoelectric differences between healthy and tumor tissue. Once embedded, the release of the drug is triggered by a brief electromagnetic pulse. The RCG will support the integration of MagSiNs with potent anticancer drug candidates developed by Herman Sintim, the Grace-Rupley Professor of Chemical Biology and associate director of the Harper Cancer Research Institute, to target an aggressive, high-mortality subtype of colorectal cancer. It will also support the generation of preclinical efficacy and safety data in colorectal cancer models, potentially enabling the renewed development of cancer therapies previously limited by toxicity.

Scaling production of novel drug delivery agents

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) — naturally occurring, lipid nanoparticles released by virtually all cells to communicate and transport cargo — are an emerging class of therapeutic and drug delivery agents. Current manufacturing approaches, however, are limited by low yield and limited scalability.

To address these limitations, Yichun Wang, the Keating-Crawford Collegiate Professor of Biomolecular Engineering, has developed an EV fabrication platform that increases particle production in cell cultures by up to eight-thousand percent. The platform, which mimics the natural tissues that produce EVs, is a mesh-like web of fibers that generates electricity when bent or stretched. The RCG will accelerate the pilot, optimization, and de-risking of a one-liter reactor for research-grade EV production, with the long term potential to enable cost-effective EV fabrication across the growing sector.

Learn more about research commercialization at Notre Dame by visiting the IDEA Center website. To learn more about the Research Commercialization Grants program, contact Benjamin Sheyko, Technology Development Program Manager.

Contact

Erin Fennessy Lawlor / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

erin.lawlor@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a leading global Catholic research university located in South Bend, Indiana (USA). Inspired by its Catholic mission and founder Rev. Edward Sorin, C.S.C.’s vision for the University to be “one of the most powerful means for doing good” in the world, Notre Dame’s faculty and students pursue globally significant research, scholarship, and creative endeavor that advances discovery, fosters innovation, and drives lasting positive impact. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn. To learn more about the innovation unfolding at the University of Notre Dame, browse available intellectual property. To discuss licensing opportunities, contact Tim Joyce at tjoyce2@nd.edu.

“At Notre Dame, we are committed to bridge building. The 1st Source Awards being given tonight recognize the kind of cooperation between our scholars and researchers and local leaders that is so important both for the University and our community,” Father Dowd said. “It is through such bridge building that all of us will flourish.”

The evening's highest honor was awarded to Brian Blagg, the Charles Huisking Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and director of the Warren Family Research Center for Drug Discovery and Development at Notre Dame. Blagg received the 1st Source Faculty Commercialization Award for his work leading to Grannus Therapeutics, a venture focused on the development of a first-in-class treatment for ovarian cancer.

“It is an honor to represent my research group and the many scientists who have worked to develop a treatment that addresses the limitations of earlier therapies,” Blagg said. “We look forward to the day this drug receives FDA approval and can improve the lives of those battling cancer. I hope that drug development efforts at Notre Dame continue to flourish so that, together, we may advance more discoveries into clinical trials and fulfill our mission to be a force for good.”

Blagg’s research focuses on a specific protein called Hsp90β, which is necessary for the growth and survival of cancer cells. While researchers have targeted Hsp90 for decades, previous drugs were "pan-inhibitors," meaning they blocked all versions of the protein. This approach often led to severe side effects, such as damage to the heart and eyes. Blagg’s innovation is a first-in-class inhibitor that selectively targets only the beta isoform, Hsp90β. By leaving other versions of the protein alone, the treatment remains effective against ovarian, breast, and prostate cancers while avoiding the toxic side effects associated with non-selective therapies.

“Brian’s work with Grannus Therapeutics represents a significant achievement in the translation of research from the laboratory to the marketplace,” said Karen Deak, executive director of Notre Dame’s IDEA Center. “His dedication to the commercialization process ensures that these discoveries move toward clinical applications where they can benefit patients. Brian’s leadership, research excellence, and commitment to the flourishing of others exemplifies innovation at Notre Dame.”

Second place was awarded to Seunghyun Moon, assistant research professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering and a specialist in nanotechnology and materials science. His work focuses on developing lightweight, durable materials through advanced fabrication methods, including graphene and polyethylene composite films. This research has proven foundational for Tessellated, Inc., a Notre Dame spinout and a polymer film company that utilizes a patented formula to produce exceptionally robust but lightweight materials. The versatile material offers a wide range of potential applications, including body armor, sports gear, and thermal management, and can also be incorporated into composite components in aerospace and automotives.

Third place went to Thomas Pratt, the Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Research Professor of Electrical Engineering, who was recognized for his research on radio-frequency systems and the development of non-contact sensing methods. These innovations utilize radio frequency polarization mode dispersion (RF-PMD), a phenomenon that changes the polarization of RF signals as they travel through space. His team of researchers have applied this technology to create a contactless sensor platform being developed by PrimSphera that monitors heart and respiration rate, and are working to sense fluid levels to help patients manage chronic conditions at home. The technology is also being used by End Point Security in a prototype system that leverages PMD to secure wireless communications by authenticating signals based on their unique PMD response.

“Commercialization's not easy, it's not fast, and it's rarely linear — it’s difficult to turn discovery into something that can serve people, solve problems, and do good in the world,” said Andrea Short, president and CEO of 1st Source Corporation and CEO of 1st Source Bank. “It takes creativity and innovation, but it also takes persistence, resilience, partnership, and the willingness to listen, adapt, and sometimes pivot when the market teaches you something new. These qualities are in full display in the room tonight.”

The 1st Source Faculty Commercialization Award was created in 2010 to recognize Notre Dame and Indiana University School of Medicine-South Bend faculty for exceptional research discoveries, and for the role they have played in supporting the translation of these discoveries into marketable products and services.

“Like Notre Dame, we believe in being a force for good, right here at home, and that belief is why this award has always emphasized not just innovation, but local impact,” Short said. “The local impact of growing businesses, creating jobs, attracting talent, and strengthening the economic and intellectual vitality of the Michiana region and beyond.”

The event also recognized patents issued to researchers since the last award dinner and featured a panel discussion of how communities can better support and enable the translation of promising research into lasting companies.

Jeffrey F. Rhoads, the John and Catherine Martin Family Vice President for Research and professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, moderated the fireside chat, which featured panelists David Johnson, non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and president of Regional Growth Strategies LLC; John Dearie, the founder and president of the Center for American Entrepreneurship; and Manas Gosavi, chairman of Natrion, a battery separation company.

“We are deeply grateful for the commitment of 1st Source Corporation to forming deep relationships between Notre Dame researchers and our local community, and for the vision and leadership of Chris Murphy that inspired this award,” Rhoads said. “I would also like to thank Andrea Short for her essential partnership and for her continued dedication to the growth of entrepreneurship and innovation in South Bend and the wider region.”

To learn more about how University research is transferred from the lab bench to market, please visit the IDEA Center’s website.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at research.nd.edu on April 01, 2026.

The competition's five finalists contended for more than $100,000 in prize money, including awards for Best Undergraduate and Graduate Ventures, with RETRN Bio winning the Grand Prize.

Since 2000, the McCloskey New Venture Competition has served as an opportunity to test the validity of ideas and innovations that allows students to develop skills directly transferable to the commercial market. A signature event in the University’s innovation ecosystem, the competition is open to all current students from Notre Dame and Saint Mary's, as well as faculty and staff, alumni, and local community members. The finals of the competition take place annually during the South Bend-Elkhart region’s IDEA Week celebration.

"This competition demonstrates that starting a new company is more than a commercial exercise—it’s a vehicle through which our students can channel their ingenuity to serve others,” said Karen Deak, executive director of the IDEA Center. “By developing these entrepreneurial ventures, the McCloskey competition helps our students to realize the mission of the University by taking action to do good in the world, and we’re grateful to the McCloskey family for their support of this endeavor.”

A group of 16 semifinalists, selected from a pool of 160 entries, pitched their ventures to more than 100 alumni and industry experts who gathered on campus for the occasion. In addition to evaluating the competition, many judges engaged in networking, fireside chats, and mentorship sessions during the inaugural McCloskey Founders Summit, which took place on Thursday and featured remarks from Marcus Freeman, the Dick Corbett Head Football Coach.

“The launch of the new Founders Summit realizes the Notre Dame community’s commitment to developing a different kind of founder,” said John Henry, Director of Student Startups at Notre Dame’s IDEA Center. “While a business plan is important, we believe that the long-term success of any venture depends on the character, resilience, and vision of the person behind it. This event emphasizes the most valuable assets in our ecosystem: the relationships, trust, and community we build together.”

On Friday afternoon, the five selected McCloskey competition finalists—Advocate LLC, Anaphero, Geddit, Lantern Network LLC, and RETRN Bio—presented their ventures to a panel of five judges: Jillian DiIorio, president of ENOUGH; Chris Eakins ‘07, partner at McKinsey & Company; Chris GrandPre ‘88, board member and operating partner for a variety of ventures; Eric Haley MBA ‘07, co-founder of Gotham Greens; and Jasmine Shells ‘13, founder of Five to Nine.

The final round of pitches was followed by a closing reception, during which the McCloskey awards were given to alumni who have enriched the ecosystem that backs student entrepreneurs at Notre Dame. The new awards honor institution-building, hands-on program creation, social impact, and transformative mentorship.

Gary Gigot ‘72 received the McCloskey Lifetime Achievement Award, which honors an individual whose sustained contributions have fundamentally shaped Notre Dame's entrepreneurial landscape.

The McCloskey Program Builder Award, which recognizes an alumnus or stakeholder who has structurally changed how the Notre Dame entrepreneurship ecosystem works, was awarded to Alex Yurkowski ‘14, co-founder and chief technology officer of ClickUp, and Justin Hintz ‘13, vice president at Teamworthy Ventures.

The McCloskey Mentor of the Year Award was bestowed upon Chris Sinclair ‘06, founder and chief executive officer of The Anthem Group. The award honors the individual whose mentorship has had the most profound impact on Notre Dame student founders during the past year, chosen based on testimony from student founders.

The evening’s final honoree was Mike Haarlander ’99, founder of Runwayz, who received the Amy Hirsh Guarino Force for Good Award in September 2025. The award is bestowed on a venture fulfilling the mission of Father Sorin, Notre Dame’s founder, to be a force for good by significantly impacting the three principles of Catholic Social Teaching: The Vulnerable Family, The Planet, or The Catholic Church.

“Entrepreneurship at Notre Dame is sustained by individuals who dedicate their time and resources—those who establish programs, facilitate introductions, and invest in students well before a return on that investment is guaranteed," Henry said. "We’re pleased to be able to recognize these special members of the Notre Dame entrepreneurship community.”

The winners of the competition are listed below.

Grand Prize

The McCloskey Grand Prize of $50,000 went to RETRN Bio, which develops platform biotechnologies that repurpose agro-industrial plant waste into a new class of biopolymers. The venture was presented by founder and chief operating officer Kristin Mannion ‘12.

By utilizing proprietary upcycling techniques to produce biopolymers, the company creates tunable coatings and barrier resins for food packaging that effectively resist moisture and grease without the use of petroleum-based plastics, making the upcycled materials both home-compostable and marine-biodegradable.

RETRN Bio also won the Wray-O'Brien Innovation Prize, a $5,000 prize given to the venture demonstrating the greatest ambition in scope, and the Most Innovative Venture-Marmon Prize, a $10,000 award sponsored by Marmon Holdings, Inc. and given to the venture demonstrating the most innovative solution within the domains of medical devices, consumer retail, or industrial materials.

Best Student-Led Ventures

The award for Best Undergraduate Student-Led Venture went to Geddit, a Lesotho-based geolocation platform. Founded by Notre Dame student Akhente Borotho, the Geddit platform assigns every building in remote locales a contextualized and verified digital identity that can be used across delivery, financial, and government systems. Geddit’s digital addressing offers a solution to the challenges posed by the lack of reliable addresses for homes and businesses across Africa, which span logistics, banking, and public services. Borotho studies economics and mechanical engineering through the Reilly Dual Degree Program. The $10,000 prize is sponsored by Equicorp Partners LLC.

The award for Best Graduate Student-Led Venture went to Anaphero, which is developing a wearable device for children that identifies the earliest signs of a life-threatening allergic reaction. An integrated smartphone application sends real-time alerts to parents and caregivers. The venture was co-founded and pitched by Tiarnan O’Rourke, a student in the ESTEEM Graduate Program. The $10,000 prize is sponsored by Lavrock Ventures.

Anaphero and O’Rourke also received the Overcoming Adversity Award, sponsored by Schurz Communications, which recognizes the founder whose entrepreneurial journey has been defined by extraordinary resilience. O’Rourke has lived with serious allergies all his life and founded Anaphero to alleviate the stress that severe reactions cause to families.

Finalists

Lantern Network LLC won the Defense Tech Prize, which is sponsored by the University’s Office of Military and Veteran Affairs. The $5,000 award is given to the venture that best addresses a defense, national security, or military and veteran community need. Founded by Joseph Pugsley, Lantern Network LLC develops advanced passive sensors that detect and track drone activity in real time.

Rounding out the finalists was Advocate LLC, a patient-advocacy company founded by Shannon Biergans with her sons Nathan Biergans, a 2025 graduate of the ESTEEM Graduate Program, and Kevin Biergans, a current student in the ESTEEM program. Advocate LLC partners with employers to offer patient advocacy services. Patients are paired with experienced clinicians who assist in medication management, billing negotiations, and surgical coordination.

Additional Categories

Petrine Properties won the Catholic Mission Award, a $10,000 prize sponsored by Nick and Kari Galassi that recognizes the venture that most distinctively advances the Catholic character of Notre Dame. Co-founded and presented by David Murphy ‘14, the housing company provides high-quality, affordable, and scalable homes for young Catholic men.

The Community Impact Award, a $5,000 prize given to the venture with the strongest demonstrated connection to and positive impact on the South Bend–Elkhart region, was awarded to Azam Health, an artificial intelligence-powered telehealth platform founded by Notre Dame undergraduate student Alejandro Siman. The prize is sponsored by Startup South Bend Elkhart. Siman, a sophomore studying finance and political science, also competed at this year’s ACC InVenture Prize Competition, which was hosted at Notre Dame.

Nullpoint was crowned the Most Innovative Venture, a $10,000 prize sponsored by Schurz Communications and awarded to the venture that demonstrates the most original and technically differentiated solution to a significant problem. Founded by Jesse Pimental, a student in the Notre Dame Executive MBA program in the Mendoza College of Business, Nullpoint has developed “The Puck,” a compact, remotely operated interference device designed to attach easily to robotic vehicles or drones. The Puck’s dynamic hardware offers a targeted approach that ensures signal interference remains confined to an immediate testing area, protecting public systems normally affected by the reach of existing interference devices.

Accedar Salud won the $2,500 McCloskey People's Choice Award, which is sponsored by Notre Dame Student Entrepreneurship. The healthcare services platform was co-founded by Notre Dame undergraduate student Jonathan Perez Gomez, a first-year who is studying strategic management and finance in the Mendoza College of Business.

To learn more about entrepreneurship at the University of Notre Dame and for more details about future McCloskey competitions, please visit the IDEA Center’s website.

Photos by Angelic Rose Hubert and Libby Stafford.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at research.nd.edu on May 22, 2026.

The competition's five finalists contended for more than $100,000 in prize money, including awards for Best Undergraduate and Graduate Ventures, with RETRN Bio winning the Grand Prize.

Since 2000, the McCloskey New Venture Competition has served as an opportunity to test the validity of ideas and innovations that allows students to develop skills directly transferable to the commercial market. A signature event in the University’s innovation ecosystem, the competition is open to all current students from Notre Dame and Saint Mary's, as well as faculty and staff, alumni, and local community members. The finals of the competition take place annually during the South Bend-Elkhart region’s IDEA Week celebration.

"This competition demonstrates that starting a new company is more than a commercial exercise—it’s a vehicle through which our students can channel their ingenuity to serve others,” said Karen Deak, executive director of the IDEA Center. “By developing these entrepreneurial ventures, the McCloskey competition helps our students to realize the mission of the University by taking action to do good in the world, and we’re grateful to the McCloskey family for their support of this endeavor.”

A group of 16 semifinalists, selected from a pool of 160 entries, pitched their ventures to more than 100 alumni and industry experts who gathered on campus for the occasion. In addition to evaluating the competition, many judges engaged in networking, fireside chats, and mentorship sessions during the inaugural McCloskey Founders Summit, which took place on Thursday and featured remarks from Marcus Freeman, the Dick Corbett Head Football Coach.

“The launch of the new Founders Summit realizes the Notre Dame community’s commitment to developing a different kind of founder,” said John Henry, Director of Student Startups at Notre Dame’s IDEA Center. “While a business plan is important, we believe that the long-term success of any venture depends on the character, resilience, and vision of the person behind it. This event emphasizes the most valuable assets in our ecosystem: the relationships, trust, and community we build together.”

On Friday afternoon, the five selected McCloskey competition finalists—Advocate LLC, Anaphero, Geddit, Lantern Network LLC, and RETRN Bio—presented their ventures to a panel of five judges: Jillian DiIorio, president of ENOUGH; Chris Eakins ‘07, partner at McKinsey & Company; Chris GrandPre ‘88, board member and operating partner for a variety of ventures; Eric Haley MBA ‘07, co-founder of Gotham Greens; and Jasmine Shells ‘13, founder of Five to Nine.

The final round of pitches was followed by a closing reception, during which the McCloskey awards were given to alumni who have enriched the ecosystem that backs student entrepreneurs at Notre Dame. The new awards honor institution-building, hands-on program creation, social impact, and transformative mentorship.

Gary Gigot ‘72 received the McCloskey Lifetime Achievement Award, which honors an individual whose sustained contributions have fundamentally shaped Notre Dame's entrepreneurial landscape.

The McCloskey Program Builder Award, which recognizes an alumnus or stakeholder who has structurally changed how the Notre Dame entrepreneurship ecosystem works, was awarded to Alex Yurkowski ‘14, co-founder and chief technology officer of ClickUp, and Justin Hintz ‘13, vice president at Teamworthy Ventures.

The McCloskey Mentor of the Year Award was bestowed upon Chris Sinclair ‘06, founder and chief executive officer of The Anthem Group. The award honors the individual whose mentorship has had the most profound impact on Notre Dame student founders during the past year, chosen based on testimony from student founders.

The evening’s final honoree was Mike Haarlander ’99, founder of Runwayz, who received the Amy Hirsh Guarino Force for Good Award in September 2025. The award is bestowed on a venture fulfilling the mission of Father Sorin, Notre Dame’s founder, to be a force for good by significantly impacting the three principles of Catholic Social Teaching: The Vulnerable Family, The Planet, or The Catholic Church.

“Entrepreneurship at Notre Dame is sustained by individuals who dedicate their time and resources—those who establish programs, facilitate introductions, and invest in students well before a return on that investment is guaranteed," Henry said. "We’re pleased to be able to recognize these special members of the Notre Dame entrepreneurship community.”

The winners of the competition are listed below.

Grand Prize

The McCloskey Grand Prize of $50,000 went to RETRN Bio, which develops platform biotechnologies that repurpose agro-industrial plant waste into a new class of biopolymers. The venture was presented by founder and chief operating officer Kristin Mannion ‘12.

By utilizing proprietary upcycling techniques to produce biopolymers, the company creates tunable coatings and barrier resins for food packaging that effectively resist moisture and grease without the use of petroleum-based plastics, making the upcycled materials both home-compostable and marine-biodegradable.

RETRN Bio also won the Wray-O'Brien Innovation Prize, a $5,000 prize given to the venture demonstrating the greatest ambition in scope, and the Most Innovative Venture-Marmon Prize, a $10,000 award sponsored by Marmon Holdings, Inc. and given to the venture demonstrating the most innovative solution within the domains of medical devices, consumer retail, or industrial materials.

Best Student-Led Ventures

The award for Best Undergraduate Student-Led Venture went to Geddit, a Lesotho-based geolocation platform. Founded by Notre Dame student Akhente Borotho, the Geddit platform assigns every building in remote locales a contextualized and verified digital identity that can be used across delivery, financial, and government systems. Geddit’s digital addressing offers a solution to the challenges posed by the lack of reliable addresses for homes and businesses across Africa, which span logistics, banking, and public services. Borotho studies economics and mechanical engineering through the Reilly Dual Degree Program. The $10,000 prize is sponsored by Equicorp Partners LLC.

The award for Best Graduate Student-Led Venture went to Anaphero, which is developing a wearable device for children that identifies the earliest signs of a life-threatening allergic reaction. An integrated smartphone application sends real-time alerts to parents and caregivers. The venture was co-founded and pitched by Tiarnan O’Rourke, a student in the ESTEEM Graduate Program. The $10,000 prize is sponsored by Lavrock Ventures.

Anaphero and O’Rourke also received the Overcoming Adversity Award, sponsored by Schurz Communications, which recognizes the founder whose entrepreneurial journey has been defined by extraordinary resilience. O’Rourke has lived with serious allergies all his life and founded Anaphero to alleviate the stress that severe reactions cause to families.

Finalists

Lantern Network LLC won the Defense Tech Prize, which is sponsored by the University’s Office of Military and Veteran Affairs. The $5,000 award is given to the venture that best addresses a defense, national security, or military and veteran community need. Founded by Joseph Pugsley, Lantern Network LLC develops advanced passive sensors that detect and track drone activity in real time.

Rounding out the finalists was Advocate LLC, a patient-advocacy company founded by Shannon Biergans with her sons Nathan Biergans, a 2025 graduate of the ESTEEM Graduate Program, and Kevin Biergans, a current student in the ESTEEM program. Advocate LLC partners with employers to offer patient advocacy services. Patients are paired with experienced clinicians who assist in medication management, billing negotiations, and surgical coordination.

Additional Categories

Petrine Properties won the Catholic Mission Award, a $10,000 prize sponsored by Nick and Kari Galassi that recognizes the venture that most distinctively advances the Catholic character of Notre Dame. Co-founded and presented by David Murphy ‘14, the housing company provides high-quality, affordable, and scalable homes for young Catholic men.

The Community Impact Award, a $5,000 prize given to the venture with the strongest demonstrated connection to and positive impact on the South Bend–Elkhart region, was awarded to Azam Health, an artificial intelligence-powered telehealth platform founded by Notre Dame undergraduate student Alejandro Siman. The prize is sponsored by Startup South Bend Elkhart. Siman, a sophomore studying finance and political science, also competed at this year’s ACC InVenture Prize Competition, which was hosted at Notre Dame.

Nullpoint was crowned the Most Innovative Venture, a $10,000 prize sponsored by Schurz Communications and awarded to the venture that demonstrates the most original and technically differentiated solution to a significant problem. Founded by Jesse Pimental, a student in the Notre Dame Executive MBA program in the Mendoza College of Business, Nullpoint has developed “The Puck,” a compact, remotely operated interference device designed to attach easily to robotic vehicles or drones. The Puck’s dynamic hardware offers a targeted approach that ensures signal interference remains confined to an immediate testing area, protecting public systems normally affected by the reach of existing interference devices.

Accedar Salud won the $2,500 McCloskey People's Choice Award, which is sponsored by Notre Dame Student Entrepreneurship. The healthcare services platform was co-founded by Notre Dame undergraduate student Jonathan Perez Gomez, a first-year who is studying strategic management and finance in the Mendoza College of Business.

To learn more about entrepreneurship at the University of Notre Dame and for more details about future McCloskey competitions, please visit the IDEA Center’s website.

Photos by Angelic Rose Hubert and Libby Stafford.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at research.nd.edu on May 22, 2026.

“At Notre Dame, we are committed to bridge building. The 1st Source Awards being given tonight recognize the kind of cooperation between our scholars and researchers and local leaders that is so important both for the University and our community,” Father Dowd said. “It is through such bridge building that all of us will flourish.”

The evening's highest honor was awarded to Brian Blagg, the Charles Huisking Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and director of the Warren Family Research Center for Drug Discovery and Development at Notre Dame. Blagg received the 1st Source Faculty Commercialization Award for his work leading to Grannus Therapeutics, a venture focused on the development of a first-in-class treatment for ovarian cancer.

“It is an honor to represent my research group and the many scientists who have worked to develop a treatment that addresses the limitations of earlier therapies,” Blagg said. “We look forward to the day this drug receives FDA approval and can improve the lives of those battling cancer. I hope that drug development efforts at Notre Dame continue to flourish so that, together, we may advance more discoveries into clinical trials and fulfill our mission to be a force for good.”

Blagg’s research focuses on a specific protein called Hsp90β, which is necessary for the growth and survival of cancer cells. While researchers have targeted Hsp90 for decades, previous drugs were "pan-inhibitors," meaning they blocked all versions of the protein. This approach often led to severe side effects, such as damage to the heart and eyes. Blagg’s innovation is a first-in-class inhibitor that selectively targets only the beta isoform, Hsp90β. By leaving other versions of the protein alone, the treatment remains effective against ovarian, breast, and prostate cancers while avoiding the toxic side effects associated with non-selective therapies.

“Brian’s work with Grannus Therapeutics represents a significant achievement in the translation of research from the laboratory to the marketplace,” said Karen Deak, executive director of Notre Dame’s IDEA Center. “His dedication to the commercialization process ensures that these discoveries move toward clinical applications where they can benefit patients. Brian’s leadership, research excellence, and commitment to the flourishing of others exemplifies innovation at Notre Dame.”

Second place was awarded to Seunghyun Moon, assistant research professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering and a specialist in nanotechnology and materials science. His work focuses on developing lightweight, durable materials through advanced fabrication methods, including graphene and polyethylene composite films. This research has proven foundational for Tessellated, Inc., a Notre Dame spinout and a polymer film company that utilizes a patented formula to produce exceptionally robust but lightweight materials. The versatile material offers a wide range of potential applications, including body armor, sports gear, and thermal management, and can also be incorporated into composite components in aerospace and automotives.

Third place went to Thomas Pratt, the Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Research Professor of Electrical Engineering, who was recognized for his research on radio-frequency systems and the development of non-contact sensing methods. These innovations utilize radio frequency polarization mode dispersion (RF-PMD), a phenomenon that changes the polarization of RF signals as they travel through space. His team of researchers have applied this technology to create a contactless sensor platform being developed by PrimSphera that monitors heart and respiration rate, and are working to sense fluid levels to help patients manage chronic conditions at home. The technology is also being used by End Point Security in a prototype system that leverages PMD to secure wireless communications by authenticating signals based on their unique PMD response.

“Commercialization's not easy, it's not fast, and it's rarely linear — it’s difficult to turn discovery into something that can serve people, solve problems, and do good in the world,” said Andrea Short, president and CEO of 1st Source Corporation and CEO of 1st Source Bank. “It takes creativity and innovation, but it also takes persistence, resilience, partnership, and the willingness to listen, adapt, and sometimes pivot when the market teaches you something new. These qualities are in full display in the room tonight.”

The 1st Source Faculty Commercialization Award was created in 2010 to recognize Notre Dame and Indiana University School of Medicine-South Bend faculty for exceptional research discoveries, and for the role they have played in supporting the translation of these discoveries into marketable products and services.

“Like Notre Dame, we believe in being a force for good, right here at home, and that belief is why this award has always emphasized not just innovation, but local impact,” Short said. “The local impact of growing businesses, creating jobs, attracting talent, and strengthening the economic and intellectual vitality of the Michiana region and beyond.”

The event also recognized patents issued to researchers since the last award dinner and featured a panel discussion of how communities can better support and enable the translation of promising research into lasting companies.

Jeffrey F. Rhoads, the John and Catherine Martin Family Vice President for Research and professor in the Department of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, moderated the fireside chat, which featured panelists David Johnson, non-resident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and president of Regional Growth Strategies LLC; John Dearie, the founder and president of the Center for American Entrepreneurship; and Manas Gosavi, chairman of Natrion, a battery separation company.

“We are deeply grateful for the commitment of 1st Source Corporation to forming deep relationships between Notre Dame researchers and our local community, and for the vision and leadership of Chris Murphy that inspired this award,” Rhoads said. “I would also like to thank Andrea Short for her essential partnership and for her continued dedication to the growth of entrepreneurship and innovation in South Bend and the wider region.”

To learn more about how University research is transferred from the lab bench to market, please visit the IDEA Center’s website.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at research.nd.edu on April 01, 2026.

The Top 100 U.S. Universities ranking highlights and celebrates U.S. academic institutions that play a large role in advancing innovation through the critical step of protecting their intellectual property through patents. A strong patent portfolio enables and empowers researchers to translate their inventions: bringing important technologies to the marketplace, bolstering the economy and creating impactful societal solutions.

Patents awarded to Notre Dame over the past year include new printable electronics and biosensing devices; highly specific insecticides; new methods for cancer drug development, single-cell capture and nanoparticle assembly; new systems to enable fast flight; novel dyes for bioimaging; new technologies for making wireless communication more secure and more energy-efficient; and more.

“Securing a place among top patent grantees requires a robust research and innovation ecosystem, one which we have cultivated here at the University,” said Karen Deak, executive director of the University’s IDEA Center. “We’re proud to empower our researchers to translate their discoveries into impact, and ensure that Notre Dame’s research does not merely exist in the lab, but is positioned to drive economic growth and improve lives through commercialization.”

“These universities and their inventive faculty are at the forefront of driving national innovation and competitiveness,” said Paul R. Sanberg, president of the NAI. “By moving their ideas to market and protecting their IP with patents, these institutions are ensuring that the U.S. not only remains competitive on the global stage, but directly shapes the future of innovation.”

The NAI has published the Top 100 Worldwide Universities list since 2013 and introduced the Top 100 U.S. Universities list in 2023 to provide a more focused view of the national innovation landscape and the contributions made by U.S. academic institutions.

In addition to its institutional rankings, the NAI also recognizes individual academic inventors through its fellows and senior member programs. Current Notre Dame faculty who have also been elected NAI fellows include Nosang Myung, the Bernard Keating-Crawford Professor of Engineering and the faculty director of the Analytical Science and Engineering at Notre Dame (ASEND) core facility and the Materials Characterization Facility; Edward Maginn, the Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Engineering and associate vice president for research; Ashley Thrall, the Myron and Rosemary Noble Collegiate Professor of Structural Engineering; Hsueh-Chia Chang, the Bayer Corporation Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering; and Gary Bernstein, the Frank M. Freimann Professor of Electrical Engineering.

Recently, three faculty members were selected as senior members: Jonathan Chisum, associate professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering; Patrick Fay, the Stinson Professor of Nanotechnology; and Tom O’Sullivan, the Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Professor of Biomedical Electronics.

Learn more about innovation at Notre Dame on the IDEA Center’s website.

Contact: Brandi Wampler, associate director of media relations, 574-631-2632, brandiwampler@nd.edu

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at news.nd.edu on March 19, 2026.

NAI enhances the visibility of academic technology and innovation, promotes the disclosure of intellectual property, and educates and mentors innovative students. Senior Members are active faculty, scientists, and administrators who have successfully produced, licensed, patented, and commercialized new technologies that significantly impact society.

Jonathan Chisum, associate professor of electrical engineering, develops circuit and antenna systems for millimeter-wave (MMW) wireless communications and sensing. Chisum’s research has led to innovations in gradient refractive index (GRIN) lens antennas, which enable extremely power-efficient beam-steering antennas for 5G and 6G wireless networks, and low-earth-orbit (LEO) space-based internet connectivity. His patents are licensed by industry for innovative products powering next-generation wireless networks.

Patrick Fay, Stinson Professor of Nanotechnology, is internationally recognized as a leader in semiconductor technology, advancing the design, fabrication and characterization of microwave and millimeter-wave devices. He has developed transistors for high-frequency wireless communications and remote sensing; pioneered high-performance packaging technologies that enable ultra-high-speed chip-to-chip communications; developed efficient electronic devices for power control and conversion, and created high-speed integrated circuits and photodetectors that enable rapid, reliable data transmission across fiber optic networks.

Thomas O’Sullivan, Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Professor of Biomedical Electronics, leads a research group advancing noninvasive, light-based biomedical imaging and treatment technologies. By bridging the gap between advanced engineering and clinical application, his work aims to provide safer, personalized, and more effective treatment options. His team’s flagship invention—a handheld scanner commercialized through his startup, NearWave—can determine a breast cancer patient’s response to chemotherapy in as little as one week, potentially saving months of ineffective treatment.

The 2026 class of Senior Members will be honored during the Senior Member Induction Ceremony at NAI’s 15th Annual Conference, June 1-4, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.

Previously elected NAI Senior Members within the College of Engineering are Tengfei Luo, Dorini Family Professor of Energy Studies and associate chair of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, as well as director of the MONSTER Lab (MOlecular/Nano-Scale Transport & Energy Research Laboratory) and Matthew Webber, Keating-Crawford Collegiate Professor of Engineering, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, as well as director of the Berthiaume Institute for Precision Health.

A complete list of NAI Senior Members is available on the organization’s website.

University of Notre Dame student Alejandro Siman will compete against the top student entrepreneurs in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) for the ACC InVenture Prize at the 10th edition of the event on Friday, March 27. This year’s competition will mark Notre Dame’s second year of hosting.

Siman will pitch his company, Azam Health Technologies, a digital service connecting Spanish-speakers to healthcare solutions. A sophomore studying finance and political science, Siman began work on Azam as a high schooler in his home country of El Salvador, where he saw gaps in patient access to healthcare. Partnering with an insurance company, Siman built a digital platform to promote access to common services, from telehealth and in-person visits to laboratory tests, all from the user’s smartphone.

“I could see there was this huge underlying need, and a larger company that could support a solution,” Siman said. “I knew that, supported by this partnership, I could start bridging the gap in care by creating the platform that is now Azam.”

As a student at Notre Dame, Siman has continued to expand the services offered, building connections and gaining experience to broaden the platform’s scope and impact. Most recently, he has been working to add artificial intelligence features to the platform, which would provide users with additional pre- and in-visit services like symptom reporting and appointment transcriptions.

Siman participated in the IDEA Center’s Pre-Accelerator program during his first year at the University, as well as the Race to Revenue start-up development program in the summer of 2025. He noted that working with the IDEA Center has been especially helpful in connecting him to people and resources across all dimensions of entrepreneurship.

“The IDEA Center has been incredibly supportive in helping me make connections with people interested in contributing to the startup, as well as offering support with business development, marketing, the user interface, and programming,” Siman said. “I’ve also been able to connect with mentors in strategy. With an idea that’s very specialized, it requires a lot of care and reiteration to refine.”

Siman will pitch Azam at the Shark Tank-style competition, which invites teams of top student entrepreneurs from ACC schools to pitch their inventions and businesses to a panel of judges in front of a live audience. The first and second place teams, as determined by the panel, will receive $15,000 and $10,000 in support of their work, respectively. Additionally, viewers can vote for their team of choice to win the People’s Choice Award and $5,000 in funding.

This year’s emcee will be Faith Salie, an Emmy-winning broadcaster and contributor to CBS News Sunday Morning, as well as a recurring panelist on NPR’s Wait Wait... Don’t Tell Me! Judging the competition will be Sri Divakaruni, Vice President of Global Business Development at Rhizome Network; Adrienne Watson, Chief Scientific Officer at World Precision Instruments; and M. Cole Jones, Managing Partner at RIISE Ventures.

Doors open at 6 p.m. Eastern time for the in-person event, which will take place at South Bend’s Embassy Suites Hotel and kick off with an opening act at 6:15 p.m. The competition will officially begin at 7 p.m. and also air live on participating PBS stations across the country.

Siman said he plans to continue improving his business, and wants to ensure he communicates his passion for his work throughout the competition.

“My goal is to convey my energy for the work I’ve done and the problem that I’m trying to solve to the judges and audience,” Siman said. “I think that that will naturally put me in a good spot to be competitive at the event, which I’m very excited for.”

People’s Choice voting for the 2026 ACC InVenture Prize opens the week of the competition, on Monday, March 23 at 12:01 a.m. Eastern, and closes after the last team presents, at approximately 7:45 p.m. Eastern on Friday, March 27. To cast your vote for Siman from home or in the audience, text ‘ND’ to 415-965-7445.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Today, the City of South Bend’s Redevelopment Commission pledged financial support for the development of Colfax Corner, a new 202,000-square-foot research and innovation hub led by Ancora in collaboration with the University of Notre Dame. The city’s financial support comes through an Innovation Development District (IDD) bond, which will be repaid by incremental tax revenue generated by the project. The IDD is a novel partnership between the City of South Bend and the State of Indiana that will be an asset for attracting additional jobs and investment into the community.

Colfax Corner represents the first phase of the DTSB Tech and Talent District, and was envisioned by the Downtown 2045 Plan to serve as a catalyst for broader revitalization activities.

The project will feature a restored South Bend Tribune building and an adjoining modern research and office facility. The two will be linked on the second floor, and together frame an outdoor public plaza designed for events, pop-up programming and everyday use. Vertical construction is anticipated to begin in summer 2026, with completion expected by summer 2028.

By locating more than 400 high-tech jobs to downtown South Bend and engaging the community with an active calendar of programming and events, Colfax Corner will spark renewed energy in the city, with a projected $750 million direct impact to the local economy over the next 10 years.

“This project shows what’s possible when a university, private partners and a city pull in the same direction — innovation speeds up, talent sticks and opportunity widens for South Bend,” said Josh Parker, chairman and CEO of Ancora, an investment management firm that partners with universities to deliver projects that support academic, research and community goals. Ancora is the development, construction, asset and property manager for the project.

More than a real estate project, Colfax Corner is the product of cross-sector collaboration among Notre Dame, Ancora, the City of South Bend, the State of Indiana, Lilly Endowment Inc. and the Judd Leighton Foundation. The announcement follows a $30 million grant from Lilly Endowment through its College and Community Collaboration program, aimed at fueling job creation, economic growth and improved quality of life in Indiana’s college towns.

“We are grateful for the support Colfax Corner has received from our public and nonprofit partners,” said Shannon Cullinan, executive vice president of Notre Dame. “Together with other new developments in downtown South Bend, we look forward to the positive impact this project will have on advancing our region.”

“This game-changing project will not only reshape the landscape of our downtown, but also catalyze shared growth in our community.”

Notre Dame, as the anchor tenant, will work alongside Ancora to attract world-class research and talent while also welcoming educational programs, events, and dining and retail experiences — creating a vibrant district where innovation connects with the broader community. The district will also host ethics and leadership training through Holy Cross College and youth and early childhood programming through South Bend City Church.

“We are proud to partner with Ancora and the University of Notre Dame on this transformative investment in the heart of South Bend,” South Bend Mayor James Mueller said. “This game-changing project will not only reshape the landscape of our downtown, but also catalyze shared growth in our community.”

The Tribune building, acquired by Notre Dame in 2023 to preserve it from demolition, will undergo full historic restoration to provide classroom, research and innovation space. The new adjacent building will strengthen downtown South Bend as a hub for technological advancement and collaboration.

Phase Two of the project will expand west across Lafayette Boulevard, further extending the district’s economic and cultural reach.

To learn more about the project, visit www.colfaxcorner.com.

Contact: Erin Blasko, associate director of media relations, 574-631-4127, eblasko@nd.edu

Originally published by Erin Blasko at news.nd.edu on December 18, 2025.

This partnership builds on Notre Dame’s R.I.S.E. (Responsible, Inclusive, Safe and Ethical) AI Conference and Health AI Forum, hosted by the Lucy Family Institute for Data & Society and the Health Data Exploration & Analytics Lab (HEAL), which explored the intersection of artificial intelligence and rural health in October.

“Notre Dame’s mission calls us to address society’s most pressing challenges, and improving rural health is certainly among them,” said Jeffrey F. Rhoads, the John and Catherine Martin Family Vice President for Research and professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering at the University of Notre Dame. “The R.I.S.E. AI Conference brought together researchers, clinicians, community leaders and entrepreneurs to identify real problems and explore innovative solutions. This partnership with Parkview Health and the 1842 Fund creates a powerful pathway to transform those insights into actionable ventures that can create lasting impact in rural communities across Indiana and beyond.”

Rural communities face unique health care challenges, including provider shortages, longer travel distances to care and higher rates of chronic disease. This collaboration aims to develop AI-enabled solutions that can help bridge these gaps and improve health outcomes.

“Parkview Health has a long-standing commitment to improving health and inspiring well-being across Indiana, including the rural communities we serve,” said Dr. Sarah GiaQuinta, senior vice president of community impact at Parkview Health. “This partnership with the 1842 Fund represents an innovative approach to addressing health care access and outcomes in rural areas. By combining our deep clinical expertise and understanding of community needs with Notre Dame’s research capabilities and the 1842 Fund’s venture-building model, we can develop scalable solutions that make a real difference for patients in underserved areas.”

The 1842 Fund is an inception, pre-seed and seed venture capital fund anchored by the University of Notre Dame and managed by Alloy Partners. The 1842 Fund co-creates and funds new startups through the 1842 Studio, a venture studio that works closely with Notre Dame faculty and researchers as well as industry partners such as Parkview Health to build mission-driven companies from the ground up.

“The 1842 Fund exists to create and fund startups that align with Notre Dame’s mission while generating meaningful impact in communities,” said Mike Joslin, partner at the 1842 Fund and director at Alloy Partners. “Parkview Health is an ideal partner for this work. They bring both deep clinical expertise and a genuine commitment to serving the rural community. By working together, we can build ventures that are not only commercially viable, but also serve as a force for good.”

Alloy Partners, the Indianapolis-based venture builder that operates the 1842 Fund and 1842 Studio, has co-created more than 35 companies and seven venture studios, with a deep background in health care and digital health. The 1842 Fund has invested in three health-related startups, and the Alloy portfolio includes 12 companies launched in the health care or life sciences areas.

“Rural health challenges require innovative thinking and collaborative approaches,” GiaQuinta added. “We’re excited to work alongside Notre Dame’s researchers and the 1842 Studio team to develop solutions that can scale and create meaningful change for the patients and communities we serve.”

Contact

Brandi Wampler at Notre Dame, brandiwampler@nd.edu

Kaitlyn Hughes at Parkview Health, kaitlyn.hughes@parkview.com

PANBlast for Alloy Partners / 1842 Fund, alloypartners@panblastpr.com

The ranking is based on the academic offerings of the University, including how many entrepreneurship courses are offered and opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration with students in other fields, as well as scholarship availability, mentorship programming, and the frequency of co-curricular activities like new-venture competitions. Student outcomes were also taken into account, measured by how many companies were started by graduates both over the past five and the past 10 years, and how much money those companies have raised from investors.

Notre Dame’s ESTEEM Graduate Program, the University’s lead graduate program in innovation and entrepreneurship, fuses the University’s “force for good” mission with an experiential, industry-integrated curriculum. This interdisciplinary master's program in Entrepreneurship, Technology, & Innovation (ESTEEM), formed initially by the Colleges of Science, Engineering and Business (Mendoza) and now in its 17th year as a part of Notre Dame’s IDEA Center, immerses 50-60 exceptionally talented graduate students from around the globe in real-world capstone projects for partners like Intuit, Lenovo, Medtronic, and Johnson & Johnson, as well as many smaller, cutting-edge startups.

“ESTEEM delivers a world-class educational experience by creating the most realistic entrepreneurial sandbox in higher education, where tech-savvy students from diverse backgrounds—in science, engineering, and beyond—create, design, and iterate with confidence,” said David Murphy, Executive Director for ESTEEM and Student Entrepreneurship at the IDEA Center.

In addition to offering the ESTEEM program, the IDEA Center engages the University’s seven colleges and schools to advance student and faculty entrepreneurship by providing the necessary space, services, and expertise for idea development, commercialization, business formation, prototyping, securing early stage capital, and entrepreneurial education. The University entrepreneurship ecosystem also leverages Notre Dame’s global presence, including in Dublin, Mexico City and Jerusalem, as well as networks in the greater South Bend-Elkhart Region. These initiatives create an enterprising environment dedicated to scholarship, economic development, and positive global change.

"What sets Notre Dame apart is our integration of rigorous, hands-on entrepreneurship with a powerful commitment to the common good,” Murphy said. “We intentionally cultivate servant leaders who aspire to use the power of innovation and entrepreneurship to deliver impact at scale and fix things that matter.”

To learn more about the ESTEEM program and apply, please visit the ESTEEM website.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at esteem.nd.edu on November 21, 2025.

Karen Imgrund Deak has been selected as executive director of the IDEA Center at the University of Notre Dame, where she has served in the interim role since September of 2024. She will lead the unit and oversee the roll out of its recent strategic reorganization. Deak brings to the role knowledge of developing partnerships at the IDEA Center, across the University, and beyond.

Speaking about Deak’s hire, Jeffrey F. Rhoads, the John and Catherine Martin Vice President for Research, said, “After an extensive national search, I am thrilled that we found our new leader right here at Notre Dame. Karen’s distinctive skills and collaborative mindset are exactly what the commercialization and innovation landscape at the University needs right now, especially as we look to build a partnership-centric unit that works hand-in-glove with our faculty, staff, and student researchers, our community, and our corporate partners.”

As interim director, Deak has led the refocusing of the team to better support the commercialization of University-created technology. Under this new framework, the team of Researcher Liaisons fully focuses on supporting faculty, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate student researchers across all disciplines by helping them identify research that is potentially patentable or commercially promising.

The new structure also includes a separate Technology Protection and Licensing Team, which focuses on identifying and maintaining intellectual property (IP) protection for inventions and University-created work. This team also includes experts who focus on licensing research to corporate partners who are interested in developing it into products and services that advance the common good.

The final piece of the IDEA Center’s new Research Commercialization framework is the Ventures and Strategic External Relations Team, which is responsible for exploring and initiating new external relationships, while also nurturing existing partnerships. This team is currently responsible for administering the IDEA Center's Pit Road Fund and the University's relationship with the 1842 Fund and Alloy Partners, and aims to significantly grow the number of external partnerships focused on commercializing Notre Dame’s research.

“I’m thrilled by the invitation to become a permanent member of such a great team,” Deak said. “I’ve greatly enjoyed my time in the interim role, and I’m humbled to have been selected to continue leading the IDEA Center as we work in partnership with the University’s researchers.”

Deak brings a diverse portfolio of experiences to her position, with expertise in patent law, philanthropic fundraising, student engagement, and project management, including previous roles in the early operations of the IDEA Center. She holds a doctorate in Genetics from the University of Chicago and an undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Deak began her career at what is now the world's largest law firm, where she worked as a patent agent, representing clients as diverse as Washington University in St. Louis and large multinationals such as Monsanto, to help them prepare and prosecute patent applications at the U.S. Patent Office. Initially recruited to the University via the College of Science, Deak was tasked with planning, creating, and managing a master's-level program teaching patent law to prospective patent agents, which she directed for five years.

Before formally joining the IDEA Center’s staff in 2017, Deak was involved in its establishment and early growth. As Commercialization Specialist for Notre Dame Research, she served the faculty liaison to the developing IDEA Center. Deak expanded the impact of the Center’s partnerships as Director of Network Engagement, as she developed and leveraged a nationwide, multi-industry network of external alumni experts to help commercialize Notre Dame-generated innovations.

Deak then went on to lead the creation of strategic growth and fundraising plans for Notre Dame Research, The Graduate School, and the IDEA Center, as the Academic Advancement Director within the Office of Development. Prior to returning to the University to serve as interim director at the IDEA Center, Deak supported the work of two start-ups in a variety of roles.

“With her extensive background in patent law and commercialization, Karen is well-positioned to lead the IDEA Center into a new chapter of supporting researchers and their ideas on the entire journey from early development to commercial launch. We are excited to have her on the Notre Dame Research team,” said Rhoads.

Learn more about Deak and the IDEA Center on the IDEA Center's website.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

Originally published by Erin Fennessy at research.nd.edu on October 17, 2025.

On Friday, September 19, members of the University of Notre Dame and South Bend communities gathered to celebrate the legacy of Amy Hirsh Guarino by recognizing a local venture that best embodies the ideals of the University and reflects Amy's values of hard work, helping others, innovation, and community service.

Amy, a 1983 graduate of Notre Dame and later an IDEA Center Advisory Council member, left behind a remarkable legacy of people-centered connection and empowerment. While pursuing a successful career in the tech industry, where she helped build customer bases and secure funding for early-stage companies, she dedicated herself to mentoring others. Driven by her passion for helping people, from recent graduates to seasoned CEOs, Amy leveraged her deep connections within the global Notre Dame network to create positive outcomes for hundreds of individuals and businesses.

“Amy lived Father Sorin’s mission to be a force for good in the world; both in pursuit of her own projects towards this end, and in supporting other Domers seeking to do so,” said Tim Connors, Notre Dame alumnus, friend of Amy’s, and founder and managing partner of PivotNorth Capital. “The work showcased at this gathering in honor of Amy signifies what is possible when the Notre Dame family comes together to solve the challenges facing the marginalized today.”

The Amy Hirsh Guarino Tech Endowment for Excellence Award was established after her passing in 2023 to inspire Amy’s passion for helping others in future generations of entrepreneurs. The award is bestowed on a venture fulfilling the mission of Father Sorin, Notre Dame’s founder, to be a force for good by significantly impacting the three principles of Catholic Social Teaching: The Vulnerable Family, The Planet, or The Catholic Church.

This year’s award was presented to Runwayz, an online platform designed to connect the 1.5 million high school students who graduate each year without set plans for the future with potential employers. Runwayz, founded by Mike Haarlander ‘99, utilizes artificial intelligence to provide tailored career guidance to job seekers. The platform also connects users to employers with open positions, empowering them to apply quickly and seamlessly with just a few clicks.

Runwayz’s leveraging of AI-enabled systems to drive change in the job market, especially for young job seekers, as well as the venture’s demonstrated ability to design, prove, and scale their platform, set the platform apart as a compelling “Force for Good.”

“Runwayz sits at the intersection of social good and financial opportunity, both tremendously important to our economy and society,” said Phil Calandra, Notre Dame alumnus and friend of Amy’s, who served on the judging panel that selected Runwayz as the winner.

"American businesses, large and small, local, regional and national, need more talent to fill production and other jobs that do not require a college degree,” Calandra continued. By linking employers with job-seeking high school seniors, right where they live—on their smart phones—the Runwayz app and business model have the potential to introduce a powerful new paradigm to secondary education, talent acquisition, and career development for young people in this country.”

The startup will receive $5,000 to support their efforts in leveraging technology to serve those seeking a purpose and livelihood through meaningful employment. Runwayz will also receive coaching from seasoned venture capitalists and founders in the Notre Dame network, as well as amplification of their venture to patrons of the Amy Hirsh Guarino Technology Endowment.

“What began three years ago with mentoring at the IDEA Center has evolved into building this platform that guides students toward meaningful careers. It’s very powerful to walk with a student as they discover what they want to be—and more so knowing they now have the tools to get there,” said Mike Haarlander, founder of Runwayz. “We are deeply grateful to Notre Dame, its alumni, and its students for giving their time, talents, and resources to help us become a true force for good.”

The event, which was hosted at the Momentum Entrepreneurship Hub in downtown South Bend, also featured competitive pitches from Azam Health, DoorBlockade, and Routora, three ventures co-founded by Notre Dame students or alumni. Although not selected for the Amy Award, these ventures had the opportunity to pitch in front of more than sixty audience members, including local and national business leaders, fund managers, and Notre Dame faculty.

Nancy Economou, last year’s Amy Award recipient, shared an update on the progress her venture Watts of Love has made in tackling energy poverty through innovative solar lighting solutions with the funds received and connections made over the past year. Economou also served as a judge for this year’s awards, alongside Dave Hemler of iNDustry Labs, and Notre Dame alumni Phil Calandra, Tim Connors, Caroline Gash, and Gary Gigot.

The awards portion of the event concluded with the presentation of the Amplifier Award, which was given to Ellen Dutton, assistant teaching professor in the ESTEEM Graduate Program, in recognition of her support of Economou and Watts of Love. The Amplifier Award honors the passion Amy had for lifting up the work of others to amplify their impact.

“This Amplify Award will go on my desk, so I can see it every day and ask myself: who can I help today? Who will that remind me of? Dutton said. “It will remind me of Amy, and I am honored to carry her pledge forward.”

About the IDEA Center

The IDEA Center, which is part of Notre Dame Research, is the University of Notre Dame’s collaborative innovation hub dedicated to expanding the technological and societal impact of the University’s innovations. We do this by nurturing and facilitating the movement of the best ideas of faculty, staff, and students from discovery to commercial application. The Center provides the necessary space, services, and expertise for idea development, commercialization, business formation, prototyping, entrepreneurial education, and student entrepreneurial efforts. The Center is open to any University researcher and student with an idea they want to commercialize.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

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On Friday, July 25, University of Notre Dame students, mentors, and alumni, along with local community leaders in commerce and business, gathered in Elkhart’s River District and downtown South Bend to mark the close of the IDEA Center’s summer internship program for student entrepreneurship, Race to Revenue (R2R).

Launched in 2019 with eight students, R2R is a startup accelerator designed to provide select Notre Dame students, known as “Racers,” with the tools to succeed as entrepreneurs. The program has grown steadily since then, with the seventh cohort boasting 17 student founders who raised and earned more than $1 million across 11 ventures, with the support of 16 interns.

Standout ventures include Routora, with founder Luke Blazek securing $200,000 in funds, including from the 1842 Fund; Azam Health, which also reached six figures in revenue this summer; and DoorBlockade, a community-partnered venture which is rapidly expanding business operations.

Demo Day, the summer’s closing event, provides students with a final opportunity to pitch their products to South Bend-Elkhart region’s investors, as well as a moment to reflect on the work of the previous ten weeks, and, for some, the work of multiple summers.

“The final product of this summer is a five-minute pitch, but so much goes into that,” said John Henry, director of student startups at Notre Dame’s IDEA Center. “This program is for the most-committed student founders at the University. What we've discovered over the last seven years is that this is the time for them to join a community of like-minded peers, and this has had a major inspirational and motivational impact on our broader community.”

This summer’s culminating event also spotlighted two ventures from student founders at Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), who joined the R2R cohort on Notre Dame’s campus for the final two weeks of the program. Both ventures addressed communications needs that would currently benefit the country: Bridge, a secure messaging platform with 7,000 users, and Petsos.app, a 24/7 veterinary telehealth platform for pet owners who had to relocate far from care centers, and has hosted 500 consultations to date.

“Despite everything going on at home, we’re here to show that we're still trying to be a part of the world, that we have ideas and we have people whose experience we want to share,” said Maksym Zabrodin, Program Manager of the IdeasLab at UCU’s Ideas Center. “The students presenting here today, they’re still dreamers, and they represent the Ukrainians who still pursue their ideas in the face of hardship.”

While a Demo Day pitch is delivered by the founders, it also reflects the support of the community. In recent years, R2R has added a mentorship aspect and an internship opportunity for students who are not yet founders but seek to grow their entrepreneurial skills in support of others.

For Jackson Ballow, his stint as a coding intern during the summer of 2024 led him to completely change career paths. Where he once envisioned a career in consulting, Ballow has instead joined the team at DeSyncAI, one of this summer’s R2R ventures.

“I learned infinitely more with Race to Revenue than in a typical, one-track internship,” Ballow said, who graduated from Notre Dame in 2024 with a major in computer science. “Working with multiple teams throughout the summer enabled me to learn new skills to work with different people on different projects, from physical products to online platforms.”

Adam Toland, a recent graduate of the ESTEEM program, first participated in R2R during the summer of 2022 as a business development intern.

“I knew nothing about business development when I walked in for my first summer,” Toland said. “R2R gave me the chance to take the initiative and build up the entire team of sales interns, a learning opportunity which is impossible to replicate in a classroom or even a typical internship.”

Now, Toland is the co-founder of DoorBlockade, a venture which has coupled the work of local inventor Nikolas Ackerman with Toland’s business expertise to launch the sale of an innovative tool to quickly reinforce any interior door in emergency situations.

Also key for Toland as he learns the ropes of being a founder is his relationship with Chris Sinclair, a 2006 graduate of the Mendoza College of Business, founder and president of The Anthem Group, and Toland’s mentor since Henry connected the pair in 2022.

“When the opportunity to join DoorBlockade came up in the fall of 2023, Chris was my first call,” Toland said. “Chris has been here, done this all before, and has been nothing but generous with his time since we first met. I probably wouldn’t still be in entrepreneurship without his listening ear and honest feedback.”

Sinclair added, “Entrepreneurship is about knowing people, but it’s also very tactical: it's funding, it's product development, it's marketing, it's all the things that I've been through. If I can help somebody not make the same mistake that I did in the past, especially to support a venture as important as DoorBlockade, I'm definitely going to do that.”

As the structure of the program has expanded in scope, so has the annual Demo Day. Initially billed as a final pitch day, this year’s closing event also highlighted the development of Elkhart’s River District and the success of R2R alumni, especially those who live and work in the area.

“That’s the fruit of nearly a decade of student empowerment, that we now have program alumni who grew their business during Race to Revenue, and not only continued to grow their business beyond our program, but decided to remain in South Bend,” Henry said.

One such success story is that of Matt Harfmann, the founder of Break’n Bad, an enterprise which facilitates the live sale of sports cards and has generated more than $20 million in lifetime revenue.

While Harfmann founded the company in 2021, the support he received as an R2R participant in 2023 has had a lasting impact on Break'n Bad’s operations and growth.

“Our current CTO was actually an intern when I was a Racer,” Harfmann explained. “We got along great, and he joined the team after R2R ended, which was a huge win for us. He’s made connections with manufacturers and distributors and really taken our growth to the next level.”

Another is Kris Priemer, South Bend native and the founder of Momentum Entrepreneurship Hub, a brand new co-working space located in downtown South Bend. While Priemer was too early to benefit from R2R as a 2011 ESTEEM graduate, current Racers are reaping the rewards of Priemer’s sustained commitment to the South Bend area, which culminated in the development and foundation of Momentum.

In addition to hosting the afternoon program of Demo Day, the hub provided office space for student founders, interns, and program staff during the final weeks of the summer, prompting a notable increase in productivity.

“The environment at Momentum added a professional feel to the summer,” said Josh Miller, MBA candidate and R2R program staff. “It really kicked everyone into a higher gear and a higher quality of work.”

Priemer added, “The energy these student entrepreneurs brought was incredible. We didn’t just want to provide space. We wanted to show that South Bend can be a real launchpad for big ideas. Watching them use the space exactly as it was intended: long days, lots of coffee, and meaningful collaborations and connections, was everything we hoped for.”

Indeed, when Momentum opened its doors to local stakeholders and alumni on Demo Day, the student founders of R2R ultimately walked away having made 30 new connections with collaborators from across the country, and some even from around the world.

“The work we do at the IDEA Center goes beyond the pitches and the money raised,” said Henry. “What our students achieve here is regionally rooted with international reach. ”

About the IDEA Center

The IDEA Center, which is part of Notre Dame Research, is the University of Notre Dame’s collaborative innovation hub dedicated to expanding the technological and societal impact of the University’s innovations. We do this by nurturing and facilitating the movement of the best ideas of faculty, staff, and students from discovery to commercial application. The Center provides the necessary space, services, and expertise for idea development, commercialization, business formation, prototyping, entrepreneurial education, and student entrepreneurial efforts. The Center is open to any University researcher and student with an idea they want to commercialize.

Contact

Erin Fennessy / Writing Program Manager

Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame

efenness@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183

research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch / linkedin.com/company/undresearch

About Notre Dame Research

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please visit NDR's website or NDR's LinkedIn.

This summer, Notre Dame senior Caitlin Dineen helped South Bend entrepreneurs troubleshoot the everyday challenges of running their ventures. Inside a brick storefront just west of downtown on Lincoln Way West, she met with small business owners, listened to their needs and provided guidance on everything from business planning to digital marketing.

Dineen interned at the University’s Collaboration Hub, which opened its doors a year ago. Since then, the hub has quickly become a go-to resource for local entrepreneurs and an experiential learning opportunity for area college students, including Notre Dame students in the University’s College of Arts and Letters and Mendoza College of Business.

“Seeing entrepreneurs’ passion and drive was really inspiring, and I appreciated the opportunity to support their work,” said Dineen, a psychology and business economics major who plans to work as a human resources consultant after graduation. “For me, this was also an opportunity to get hands-on experience with the various aspects of running a business.”

Building opportunity by training entrepreneurs

Dineen is among the approximately 50 students who have worked with the Collaboration Hub, part of the McKenna Center for Human Development and Global Business in Notre Dame’s Keough School of Global Affairs. She is also among the 35 students who will work at the hub this fall.

The hub serves graduates of the McKenna Center’s South Bend Adversity and Entrepreneurship Program, part of the center’s Urban Poverty and Business Initiative. The initiative leverages entrepreneurship to boost economic opportunity and supports clients in more than 50 cities in the United States and around the world. The year-long program includes six weeks of training, 14 weeks of mentoring and 14 weeks of consulting. It also helps entrepreneurs access microcredit, maintains a database that tracks their progress and organizes community networking events. The program is led by Michael Morris, a Keough School entrepreneurship expert who frequently consults and publishes on the topic.

After completing the program, participants can continue to utilize the hub as a resource. It provides a range of services including continuing education, business consulting, technical training and help designing and producing marketing materials.

Small business owners find support to succeed

Local business owners appreciate the partnership. Angie Logan, who owns AngLes on Wheels with her husband, Les, worked with student consultants to enhance how she markets the food truck and catering business. They helped her design and build a new website that more prominently highlights her offerings (everything from chicken wings to mac and cheese and catfish nuggets). And her website now includes an online ordering form along with customer reviews, small touches that help her better connect with customers.

“As an entrepreneur, you’re used to doing everything yourself,” Logan said. “So sometimes it can be difficult to ask for or accept help. But if you can push past that, you realize there are resources that can help you take your business to the next level.”

Students learn by helping clients solve problems

Learning is a two-way street that benefits students as well as entrepreneurs. Quinn Littlefield, a Notre Dame junior majoring in accounting and history, has appreciated the opportunity to work with Joe Luten, who co-owns Importin’ Joe’s Ethiopian Coffee with his wife, Afomia.

“I think the biggest takeaway from this experience for me is that you learn from them just as much as they learn from you,” said Littlefield, who plans to work in municipal finance. “Working with Joe was a partnership that pushed me to keep learning. I helped him with budgeting while I was taking a managerial accounting class. So I was able to go to office hours and ask professors for help on a real-world challenge that was closely related to what I was learning in class.”

Jasleen Ghattora, a senior at Saint Mary’s College, was impressed by the breadth of experience she gained.

“My summer internship experience at the hub was great preparation for transitioning from college to the workplace because I worked with entrepreneurs from different industries including logistics, beauty, food, event planning and artificial intelligence,” said Ghattora, who is majoring in business administration. “I found myself doing everything from finance, accounting, and operational plans to marketing and social media. It really broadened my skill set.”

Translating dreams into economic opportunity

Community leaders appreciate the resources students provide through the hub. Gladys Muhammad, who has championed South Bend community development and neighborhood revitalization for decades, has seen firsthand how students have connected with local people.

“Many people in this neighborhood want to become entrepreneurs, and there’s been a real need,” she said. “People keep coming and coming. The students are always happy to help people, to listen to the ideas they have and to help answer any questions they need to ask.”

That hands-on engagement is an important aspect of creating opportunity and supporting South Bend’s continued revitalization, Muhammad said.

“I think this is the kind of thing Notre Dame does,” she said. “It’s building capacity by empowering people and giving them the knowledge and tools they need to succeed. And it’s helping people make their dreams a reality and supporting economic development right here in our community.”

How to get involved

The Collaboration Hub welcomes members of the community to get involved as volunteers and mentors. For more information, email Michael Morris at mmorri24@nd.edu.

Originally published by Josh Stowe at keough.nd.edu on September 03, 2025.

She was even more excited when the stadium’s brand-new video board aired an NBC Fighting For story about Basar Bilgicer’s research into blocking peanut allergens from triggering immune system overreactions. She asked her father, a drug company executive and Notre Dame business school alumnus, if this might be an opportunity to get involved with a solution to a condition that had complicated her life since childhood.

“I remember to this day her looking at that screen and turning to me,” Dr. Erik Eglite said. “She said, ‘Daddy, can I meet him? I really want to do something about it.’ This kid actually did that.”

Originally published by Office of Brand Content at news.nd.edu on July 01, 2025.

Smith is a neurosurgeon at Beacon Health System’s Memorial Hospital in downtown South Bend, Indiana, about a mile southwest of the University’s campus. He is talking with Ryan Roeder, a professor of aerospace and mechanical engineering, about a spinal fusion surgery Smith had just performed using a brand-new type of implant. Although he is looking at bones, it is clear that where others might see death, Smith sees a system teeming with life.

“Bone is an active organ,” Smith says, “and it undergoes continuous remodeling.”

“Remodeling” is not just an apt metaphor; it’s a technical term for the three-part biological process whereby cells digest old bone and deposit fresh, hardened bone in replacement. Remodeling is a key word for this surgery, because for the surgery to be successful, bone has to fuse with an implant—a lifeless material that Smith must insert into the living system of vertebrae and nerves that make up the cervical spine.

Read the story

Originally published by Brett Beasley at news.nd.edu on June 05, 2025.

“Esophageal cancer is one of the deadliest and least ‘forgiving’ malignancies in the U.S. and around the world,” says Prakash Nallathamby, assistant professor of practice and associate director of the Berthiaume Institute for Precision Health at the University of Notre Dame.

Nallathamby, who is also an affiliate of Notre Dame’s Harper Cancer Research Institute and the Bioengineering Graduate Program, explains that the cancer is becoming more widespread, for reasons that are not fully clear. “We used to associate it mainly with risk factors like smoking,” he says, “but we can now see that rates continue to rise even where tobacco use has fallen.”

One thing is certain, he says, “Given that this cancer has a five-year survival rate of around 20-25%, there is an urgent need for novel treatment platforms that can overcome the biological and logistical hurdles of advanced disease.” And the need is even more urgent for veterans, who are five to ten times more likely than members of the general population to develop esophageal cancer.

So Nallathamby was excited to partner with the U.S. Defense Health Agency’s Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program (PRCRP), an entity charged by Congress to investigate cancer risks and knowledge gaps that may be relevant to active-duty service members, their families, veterans, and the American public.

Over the next two years, with funding from the PRCRP, Nallathamby plans to apply a new technological breakthrough to make the benefits of CAR-T-cell therapy available to those suffering from esophageal cancer.

CAR-T-cell therapy has been at the center of several major cancer success stories over the past few decades. Among the most famous is that of Emily Whitehead, who, at the age of six, was the first pediatric patient at CHOP to receive CAR-T-cell therapy in 2012 for treating her non-responsive relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Today, she remains cancer-free and has gone from a sure death sentence to living the life of an everyday college student.

CAR-T cell therapy has been successful in treating several blood cancers, including leukemia, lymphomas, and myelomas. But the success has been difficult to replicate for most other types of cancer.

“Solid tumors are much tougher to treat with CAR-T-cell therapy than blood cancers,” Nallathamby explains. “Tumors form physical barriers, suppress immune activity around them, and show mixed antigen patterns—all of which make it hard for CAR-T cells to reach, survive, and work effectively. On top of that, manufacturing takes about 4 weeks, and patients usually get only one infusion after chemo preconditioning.”

In a typical CAR-T process, doctors collect a patient’s T cells by Peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) collection. In the lab, those cells are activated and genetically modified—usually with a viral vector—to display a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) that recognizes a tumor antigen. The modified cells are expanded to large numbers, tested for quality, and then infused back into the patient after a short chemotherapy regimen. Once inside the body, CAR-T cells are expected to seek out and bind cancer cells via the CAR, multiply in place, and release cytokines that kill the tumor.

Nallathamby plans to develop a modified version of CAR-T-cell therapy using specially designed multispecific “bridge” nanoparticles. The nanoparticles, which are less than 100 nanometers wide, have a silica core and are studded with gold nanodots. The design is based on one that Nallathamby and his team recently patented. The nanoparticles will present antibodies targeting up to four antigens simultaneously on esophageal cancer cells and one antigen on CAR-T cells and T-cells.

The team will administer multispecific bridge nanoparticles together with “off-the-shelf,” orthogonal CAR-T cells in mouse models of esophageal cancer. Once in circulation, the nanoparticles home to tumor antigens and simultaneously anchor the CAR-T cells at the disease site. Because these CAR-T cells are pre-manufactured rather than patient-derived, no leukapheresis or custom engineering is needed; they are activated on demand with a small orthogonal molecule.

This streamlined approach reduces the treatment window from the four- to five-week cycle of conventional CAR-T therapy to just three or four days, making repeat dosing practical. “We hope this gives patients more opportunities,” Nallathamby explains. “If we see a 30 percent response after one round, we will still have time to administer additional rounds safely. When tumors shrink, surgery outcomes become more viable with a smaller resection.”

Nallathamby’s team will specialize in the lab-based development of the treatment, but as he puts it, “We have a clear desire to move this treatment from the lab bench to the patient’s bedside. And that vision is all about leveraging the resources of our regional and state translational research network.”

Nallathamby’s team’s lab-based work will be complemented by contributions from clinicians. Dr. Sazzad Hassan, Assistant Research Professor of Surgery at the Indiana University School of Medicine, and Dr. Urs von Holzen, Surgical Oncologist and Medical Director at the Goshen Center for Cancer Care, will serve as co-principal investigators for the project.

The new funding is the result of a series of efforts that have been developing since 2021, when the Nallathamby group, with support from BIPH, entered into a partnership with the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute’s (I-CTSI) Drug Think Tank, facilitated by Dr. Padma Portonovo (Indiana University School of Medicine). Nallathamby also highlighted the early proof-of-concept studies by Emma Tam ND’20 (Da Vinci Fellow) and Jordan Chang ND’22 (NURF) that laid essential groundwork for the current effort.

Contact:

Brett Beasley / Research Content Strategy Program Director
Notre Dame Research / University of Notre Dame
bbeasle1@nd.edu / +1 574-631-8183
research.nd.edu / @UNDResearch

About Notre Dame Research:

The University of Notre Dame is a private research and teaching university inspired by its Catholic mission. Located in South Bend, Indiana, its researchers are advancing human understanding through research, scholarship, education, and creative endeavor in order to be a repository for knowledge and a powerful means for doing good in the world. For more information, please see research.nd.edu or @UNDResearch.

Originally published by Brett Beasley at research.nd.edu on May 22, 2025.