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BIOINC@NYMC WELCOMES AFFINA BIOTECHNOLOGIES AS NEWEST CLIENT

Drug Discovery Start-up Has Joined the Expanding Innovative Community at the Biotechnology Incubator

Valhalla, N.Y. – September 12, 2018 – New York Medical College (NYMC) announced that Affina Biotechnologies  is the latest client to join BioInc@NYMC, NYMC’s biotechnology incubator — a New York State-designated Innovation Hot Spot. Affina Biotechnologies is a drug discovery start up that also offers services in protein biochemistry and assay development. There are currently nine start-ups occupying BioInc@NYMC, the mid-Hudson Valley’s only fully-equipped incubator on a health sciences college campus.

“We are excited to be a part of BioInc@NYMC’s novel drug development community, and hope that our residence here will be of benefit to the other members of the incubator,” said Alexander Vinitsky, Ph.D., president and CSO, Affina Biotechnologies, Inc.

Affina’s drug discovery efforts are based on a proprietary, in silico screening algorithm that allows them to identify small molecule hyper-interaction modulators (SHIM®) of biomolecular complexes. These small molecules increase the stability of the targeted complexes. They have developed several chemotypes of SHIMs against tumor suppressor p53—effective against drug resistant primary ovarian cancer cells—for the treatment of ovarian, prostate, lung and blood cancers. The company is also developing SHIMs that are effective in lowering cholesterol by having a novel activity against a major cholesterol lowering target, PCSK9.

In addition to drug discovery work, Affina helps customers develop measurements of activities, kinetics and affinities of interactions and concentrations of biomolecules. They offer a unique mix of label-free and label-dependent assay technologies supported by scientific and technical expertise and a wide range of instrumentation.

“The growing list of start-ups eager to join BioInc@NYMC reflects our ability to establish ourselves as the premier biomedical incubator in the region,” said Deborah Novick, director of BioInc@NYMC. “We are committed to supporting biomedical start-ups who can benefit from our advanced equipment and resources needed to spark innovation, and are eager to see how Affina Biotechnologies will flourish while here.”

Launched in October 2014, BioInc@NYMC is the Hudson Valley’s only biotechnology incubator offering shared resources, turnkey wet lab space, and sponsored professional services to promising, high-potential entrepreneurs and start-ups. In addition to providing best-in-class infrastructure and operational services, BioInc@NYMC assists its members in refining their business strategies, conserving capital, building strong teams, and achieving development and funding milestones. BioInc@NYMC occupies a 10,000-square-foot wing of a 129,000-square-foot campus building.

New York Medical College

Founded in 1860, New York Medical College is one of the oldest and largest health sciences colleges in the country with nearly 1,500 students and 330 residents and clinical fellows, more than 2,600 faculty members and 23,200 living alumni. The College, which joined the Touro College and University System in 2011, is located in Westchester County, New York, and offers degrees from the School of Medicine, the Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences, the School of Health Sciences and Practice, a School of Dental Medicine and a School of Nursing. NYMC provides a wide variety of clinical training opportunities for students, residents, and practitioners. For more information, visit www.nymc.edu.  

Affina Biotechnologies

Affina Biotechnologies is driven to discover novel drugs for difficult targets and are dedicated to our services in biomolecule characterization.  We bring to our work expertise in drug discovery and protein biochemistry that has been developed over many years of work in life science industry and academia.  Please visit our website at www.affinabio.com to see our offerings in services and come and talk to us about our drug discovery efforts.