Asana Medical, Inc. Named as Finalist in 43North’s $1 Million Business Idea Competition
Asana Medical, Inc., a development-stage medical device company focused on development and commercialization of its innovative engineered tissue therapy for ulcerative colitis, is pleased to announce that they have been chosen as a finalist in 43North’s Business Idea Competition, the winner of which will be awarded $1 million dollars.
“We are extremely honored to be named a 43North finalist and to receive the validation of our business model that accompanies it. I’ve witnessed firsthand the suffering caused by ulcerative colitis, which is a horrible disease. The funding provided through this event will be a boost to our on-going capital raising efforts. All funds will be used to execute to our development plan,” stated Marc Ramer, Asana Medical’s Chief Executive Officer.
The 43North Business Competition, being held in Buffalo, NY, received a total of 6,932 entrants and on October 16th, they announced the eleven companies that made it through to the finals. With $5 million in cash prizes, including a top award of $1 million, six $500,000 awards and four $250,000 awards, 43North is setting out to turn the best new business ideas from around the globe into reality.
Asana Medical is seeking to provide a novel treatment for debilitating digestive diseases with a patent-pending medical device that stimulates the body to heal itself. Asana’s engineered tissue device offers a drug-free, surgery-free alternative on a proven therapy that targets the multi-billion dollar ulcerative colitis market.
Asana’s lead technology, Extracellular Matrix, a porcine-derived biological material, acts as a catalyst to stimulate the body to grow new, healthy tissue in place of diseased or damaged tissue. The core technology has been proven to be safe and effective in hernia meshes, vaginal slings, and burn and wound dressings. Asana’s novel application of this technology will treat ulcerative colitis, a disease that renders the colon nonfunctional. Ulcerative colitis affects 750,000 patients in the United States and approximately 6 million patients worldwide.
The 43North winners and their respective awards will be announced on Thursday, October 30th at the renowned Shea’s Performing Arts Center in Buffalo.
ABOUT 43NORTH
A total of 6,932 business ideas were initially submitted for the 43North competition’s first round, which took place February 5 through May 31. From a pool of 2,603 qualified submissions, 113 semifinalists were selected to advance to the second round through a formal, month-long review period conducted by more than 269 judges from an array of professional sectors. Eleven finalists will advance to the third and final round of the competition and will vie for a series of cash prizes, including a top award of $1 million, six $500,000 awards and four $250,000 awards. All winners will be required to locate their companies in Buffalo, New York, for one year under the terms of the competition.
The New York Power Authority (NYPA), Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion initiative, and Launch NY are 43North’s primary and founding sponsors. Additional support comes from National Grid, Orange Capital, Buffalo Niagara Enterprise, Buffalo Office Interiors, Perfect Sense, Larkin Development Group, Superior Group, Rich Products Corporation, M&T Bank, Delaware North Companies, Phillips Lytle LLP, The Buffalo News, SoftBank Capital, Bright Buffalo Niagara, Buffalo Niagara Partnership, and others. See a complete list at www.43north.org/43north-sponsors.
To learn more, please visit www.43north.org.
ABOUT ASANA MEDICAL, INC.
Asana Medical is a development-stage medical device company developing a tissue-engineered therapy for the treatment of ulcerative colitis (UC), a debilitating gastrointestinal disease. The Company’s therapy, a novel application of a proven technology will be a first in-class therapy for 5.8 million suffering from UC. This therapy will be positioned to compete in a multi-billion dollar market dominated by drug therapies that often have debilitating side effects. Asana counts on an experienced management team, strong IP, world-class advisors in business and medicine, and compelling canine study data.