Evaluation and planning study of a smart nanomedicine platform able to fight cancer relapse with remote activation

This thesis analyzes the topic of technology transfer for projects born in the university environment, focusing on the importance of intellectual property and the different financing schemes used. So, we decided to use a group of researchers from the Polytechnic of Turin led by Professor Valentina Cauda as a “case study”. At the beginning we discuss the theoretical basis of the thesis. Here we describe the process of technology transfer, presenting the problem related to the reduction of the gap between basic research and technology development. We will see who are the main actors involved in this process, their interactions and the models used so far. Then we will focus on the interactions between universities and companies, focusing our analysis on the biomedical and pharmaceutical sectors. We will also talk about the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) and, finally, the “third mission” of universities. After we will explore the topic concerning intellectual property, which makes technology transfer safer and more efficient. We will talk about the patent and the way startups can decide to sell it or be acquired by a company in order to exploit this asset. After that we’ll present the various possibilities with which a startup can obtain financing based on the different phases of the project, focusing on the figures to turn to and on the parameters more interesting for investors. Then, we will analyze the different forms of collaboration with companies and the role played by university incubators and accelerators, but also by scholarships, competitions and prizes. We will also talk about ERC (European Research Council), the most prestigious European agency which, since its inception, has supported European research through its 5 main types of funding schemes: Starting Grant (StG), Consolidator Grant (CoG), Advanced Grant (AdG), Sinergy Grant (SyG) and Proof of Concept (PoC). Later, describing the “case study” method, we will discuss the ERC's decision to fund university research through different forms of funding, so we can understand the way a funding scheme works better than another. In particular, we will compare the ERC PoC funding with the StG, CoG and AdG fundings, reporting the example of some successful projects of the last 10 years, that have benefited from these grants. So we can demonstrate the success of a project does not depend only on the size funding but also from the project and team structure. We will then go on to introduce the TNH Lab team, describing in detail the different projects that have been followed, from u-Care to XtraUS, presenting the characteristics of the technology, the level of development achieved, the strengths, the major problems and how to mitigate them. At the end we will talk, first in general, of the main advantages and risks deriving from the stipulation of a company collaboration; then in detail, the opportunity offered to XtraUS to be able to establish a partnership with the Therakos company, as a possible growth strategy. We will focus on the synergies between the two projects, on the definition of the next steps of this partnership but also on the possible changes to be made to the technology. At the conclusion of this thesis will be see PoC fundings have showed less significative results, in terms of industrial successful, than other fundings, in order to demonstrate that no matter only the size of funding but also the way it will be use.