Emergence client, Mississauga, Ontario-based Dalriada Therapeutics, wins $25,000 grand startup prize from RBC at “Startup Showcase”.
“They pitched, they networked, and they demoed” – says University of Toronto News: fledgling student entrepreneurs – that is – who worked the room at the Startup Showcase, the final event in the first-ever Entrepreneurship@UofT Week that took place March 27-31, 2017.
At the end, 10 finalists participated in a five-minute, pan-university pitch competition. At stake: $50,000 in prize money from the RBC Prize for Innovation & Entrepreneurship to help take their businesses to the next level.
- The winners of the later stage competition were: (Emergence client) Dalriada Therapeutics ($25,000) and Steadiwear Inc. ($10,000)
- The winners of the early stage competition were: AllergenFree ($10,000) and Genecis ($5,000)
Dalriada Therapeutics Inc. is a start-up focusing on the development of novel small molecules for a range of therapeutic and diagnostic applications. Click here to learn more about Dalriada.
Dalriada CEO Dr. Diana Kraskouskaya (centre) and CSO Professor Patrick Gunning (right)
With broad expertise in drug discovery and chemosensor technologies, the company’s efforts are currently centred on the preclinical development of a novel class (DT1) of small molecule inhibitors in cancers of the blood and brain as well as proliferative skin pathologies.
Dalriada is engaged in the development of small molecule-based diagnostic technologies for Alzheimer’s disease and infections.
In addition to these R&D activities, Dalriada offers services in medicinal chemistry and custom synthesis.
According to ICUBE – the business accelerator at the Institute for Management & Innovation, University of Toronto Mississauga – when asked what it was like to be part of U of T’s first entrepreneurship showcase, Dr. Kraskouskay said, “The experience really showed us we were on the right track, and inspired us to work even harder to bring our new therapeutic technology to market.”
There was a constant flow of traffic at the Dalriada Therapeutics booth as visitors wanted to hear about the cloaked cancer therapy from the CEO herself.
“Health tech professionals were very curious regarding our therapeutic technology development,” Diana said.
“Investors interested in our unique business model, and people who are close to those suffering from cancer were inquiring when our drug is going to be available as an experimental drug in clinical trials.”