Foundation Venture Capital Group Company Receives $8.2 Million DoD Contract

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J., Dec. 20, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- James M. Golubieski, president of Foundation Venture Capital Group, LLC, (FVCG) a New Jersey Health Foundation affiliate, announced that Snowdon Inc., a company in which FVCG has invested, was awarded a new three-year contract by the Department of Defense (DoD) Program, Transformational Medical Technologies (TMT).

Under this new Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) contract, Snowdon may receive up to $8.2 million to support development efforts for the discovery and preclinical development of novel medical treatments to combat biowarfare pathogens.

"Snowdon was the first FVCG investment," explained James M. Golubieski, president of FVCG and a member of the Snowdon Board of Directors.  "We believed then, as we do today, that Snowdon had unique possibilities and potential.  That belief was again validated by this most recent award."

Snowdon is partnering with two centers of excellence within The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-New Jersey Medical School (UMDNJ-NJMS). The Center for Emerging Pathogens in the Department of Medicine, which maintains high-level biosafety containment facilities under the direction of Dr. Nancy Connell, will test Snowdon's drug candidates on specific biowarfare pathogens. Snowdon will also be assisted by the newly opened Regional Biocontainment Laboratory of UMDNJ under the direction of Dr. David Perlin, director of the Public Health Research Institute.

Snowdon has recently expanded its R&D space and facilities substantially at its headquarters located in the Princeton Research Center (Monmouth Junction, NJ) and has hired additional staff and technical personnel.

"This DTRA-TMT contract will complement Snowdon's recent successes in the development of treatments for pain, infectious diseases and nervous system disorders," explained Dr. William Welsh, founder of Snowdon and a professor at UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Snowdon specializes in the discovery and development of novel small-molecule therapeutics for the treatment of pain, infectious diseases and nervous system disorders. By applying its proprietary E-Prospector computational platform technology together with its expertise in medicinal chemistry, and pharmacology, Snowdon reduces the time, cost, and risk of drug discovery.  

The company was established in 2007 with an equity investment by Foundation Venture Capital Group together with grants from the New Jersey Commission on Science & Technology and the National Institutes of Health.

"We started Foundation Venture Capital Group in 2006 as a unique opportunity to invest in start-up companies formed by researchers at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey," explained Dr. George F. Heinrich, CEO.  "Since our initial investment with Snowdon we have invested in four other companies, one of which was recently sold to a global investment firm focused on advancing breakthrough technologies that can radically increase human lifespan and improve quality of life."

To learn more visit www.foundationventure.com or www.snowdonpharma.com.

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About the Defense Threat Reduction Agency

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) was founded in 1998 to integrate and focus the capabilities of the Department of Defense (DoD) that addresses the threat by weapons of mass destruction (WMD).  DTRA's mission is to safeguard the United States and its allies from chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high-yield explosive WMDs by providing capabilities to reduce, eliminate and counter the threat and mitigate ifs effects.  DTRA combines DoD resources, expertise and capabilities to ensure the United States remains ready and able to address present and future WMD threats.  For more information on DTRA, visit www.dtra.mil.

About Transformational Medical Technologies (TMT)

TMT was created by DoD to protect the Warfighter from emerging and genetically engineered biological threats by discovering and developing a wide range of medical countermeasures through enhanced medical research, development and test and evaluation programs.  The TMT Program Office is matrixed from the Joint Science and Technology Office—DTRA and Joint Program Executive Office – Chemical and Biological Defense with oversight from the Office of the Secretary of Defense.  For more information on TMT, visit www.tmti-cbdefense.org.

SOURCE Foundation Venture Capital Group, LLC