There is a folder on my computer entitled "Rina Pridor." It contains all of the incubator's correspondence with the Office of the Chief Scientist since the Misgav Venture Accelerator was established in 1992. Rina, you see, has been the manager of the Incubator Program since before there was a program. Rarely has a government program been as closely associated with its founder as is the Incubator Program with Rina.

 

When Rina led the establishment of the Program in 1991, its focus was on easing the absorption of immigrant scientists from the former Soviet Union. During the first part of the decade, incubators and their companies helped provide a soft landing to 1000s of enterprising immigrant scientists and engineers.

 

During the late '90s the incubator model succeeded beyond anyone's wildest dreams in establishing real businesses.  With the end of the massive Soviet immigration, it would have been easy to call the Program a success and to shut it down. But an amazing transformation occurred. The Incubator Program, under Rina's enlightened leadership, evolved into Israel's main engine for establishing technology-based start-ups and facilitating the establishment of close to 100 new companies every year.

 

Over the past 18 years, the government of Israel has spent some $500 million on the Program. During that same period, graduate companies have brought in over $2 billion in new capital into the country -- creating jobs and exports and expanding the country's tax base. In short, the Incubator Program that Rina built pays for itself.

 

When Rina announced that she would be leaving the Incubator Program at the end of 2008, it shocked us all. It is hard to imagine the Incubator Program without Rina Pridor at its head. But it is to Rina’s credit that the Program is strong and will continue along the successful path she forged. This is a lasting legacy of which Rina must be tremendously proud and for which we are greatly in her debt. And while Rina will not be at the helm from January 1, 2009, every time a great new incubator company is formed, it will be indebted to Rina.

 

I think I will keep the "Rina Pridor" folder on my computer.

 

Steve Rhodes, CEO
Misgav Venture Accelerator

 

HIGH-TECH LIPIDS ENTERS $26 MILLION AGREEMENT WITH LARGE EUROPEAN PHARMA
High-Tech Lipids (HTL) is entering into an agreement worth as much as $26 million with a large European pharma for commercialization and international launch of the company's first product. HTL has developed a breakthrough lipid emulsion for total parenteral nutrition (TPN). Learn more about HTL.

 

 

FLEXICATH COMPLETES ADDITIONAL FUNDING RAISE OF $600,000
Led by The Zitelman Group Inc., Flexicath -- which expects to launch U.S. sales in early 2009 -- completed a $600,000 funding round. Flexicath has developed the Firm-Grip, a unique catheter that combines a standard catheter in an enclosed polymer sleeve and a silicone insertion unit to reduce the risk of catheter-related bloodstream infections.

News of the raise was reported in Globes (English) Washington Business Journal  and in the Hebrew press (PDF).

In other news from Flexicath … the Company received approval from the Israel Ministry of Health to begin sales of FlexiGrip in Israel. The device is also approved for sale in the United States.

 

 

VIRTUAL PORTS RECEIVES $300,000 GRANT
Udi Gordin, CEO of Virtual Ports, announced the approval from the Israel Office of Chief Scientist (OCS) for an R&D grant of $300,000. The Company will use the grant to complete the R&D and regulation activities toward product launch in Q3 2009. Virtual Ports develops novel tools for laparoscopic procedures. Both the EndoClear and the EndoGrab are both FDA approved.

Virtual Ports continues its fund-raising activities, seeking an additional $2 million to be used for manufacturing, sales, marketing and for development of new devices. Learn more about Virtual Ports.


DUNE MEDICAL INITIATES CLINICAL TRIAL OF MARGIN-DETECTION SYSTEM
Dune Medical Devices, has initiated a clinical trial of the MarginProbe intraoperative, real-time, positive margin detection system. Dune received FDA investigational device exemption (IDE) approval, allowing them to move ahead with the trial. The study will involve more than 600 women in leading medical centers on the East Coast and in Los Angeles. Read the full article about Dune’s clinical trial.

 

 

VACCIGUARD FEATURED IN GLOBES
VacciGuard was the subject of a recent article in Globes, a Hebrew-language business news daily. VacciGuard is developing effective vaccines from proprietary peptides to combat some of the world's most infectious diseases, such as West Nile Virus, Salmonella typhi, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Neisseria meningitis type B. The Company recently signed an evaluation agreement with a major international pharmaceutical company to investigate a new vaccine for a widespread disease. Read the full article about VacciGuard (Hebrew).

 

 

JUVENIS UNVEILS NEW WEBSITE
The new Juvenis website recently went "live." The Company is developing advanced biomaterials for use in plastic and reconstructive surgery. One of its first products is Tenergel®, a biodegradable liquid polymer that increases in viscosity to form a soft, natural-looking gel when it comes in contact with tissue fluids. See the new Juvenis website.

 

 

REALVIEW MEDICAL ISSUES PRESS RELEASE ABOUT BLADDER IMAGING CAPSULE
Our newest company, RealView Medical, issued a press release about its innovative bladder imaging capsule. The capsule is a minimally invasive endoscopic device for long-term monitoring of patients with transitional cell carcinoma, the most common bladder cancer. Read the press release (Hebrew). 

 

 

MARKETREACH AMERICA LIFE SCIENCES & MEDICAL DEVICES 2009 EVENT
Reaching Customers & Getting Paid in the U.S. Healthcare Market
The 7th MarketReach America program will begin with this important event in Haifa on January 13, 2009. 

 

All of the featured speakers will be available for private consulting sessions after the event (by reservation only) and in Tel Aviv on January 14 and 15. See program agenda and registration details. 

 

Headway and Pro-IV, participants in the last MarketReach America conference in September, both received investment commitments as a direct result of their participation in the conference.

PRO-IV MEDICAL'S CEO PARTICIPATES IN CIRCLE OF LIFE EVENT
Pierre Sharvit, CEO of Pro-IV Medical, participated in a live business development session at the Circle of Life December event. The session was conducted by Tina Ornstein and Maura Rosenfeld, both of Trendlines International. The Circle of Life is an organization for members of Israel's life science community.

 

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

BE OUR GUEST
Since October, the incubator has hosted groups of businesspeople and government representatives from around the United States (South Carolina, Michigan, Alabama) and the world (Angola).


BY DONATION ONLY
In cooperation with the Misgav Economic Corporation, Misgav co-sponsored a blood drive in the Misgav Business Park.

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS TO NEW FATHER, TAMIR LEVITAL
Congratulations to Headway CEO Tamir Levital and Naama Gal on the birth of their first child, a girl, Neta, born December 18.

 

 

©2008 The Misgav Venture Accelerator. All rights reserved