CIT Client SpermCheck Expands into Canadian Market
Herndon, VA (PRWEB) July 02, 2013 -- The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) announced today that one of its clients, SpermCheck, received approval from Health Canada for over-the-counter sale of the home sperm test SpermCheck® Fertility.
The University of Virginia received a $194,700 Commonwealth Technology Research Fund (now called the Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund) award in 2008 to commercialize this product with ContraVac (d.b.a. SpermCheck), a spin-out of the University. Managed by CIT, the Fund advances science- and technology-based research, development and commercialization to drive economic growth in Virginia.
Health Canada has cleared the SpermCheck® Fertility at-home male fertility test for over-the-counter sale within the country. The test measures a protein unique to sperm (sperm protein 10) to detect an individual’s sperm levels and provides an easy alternative to semen testing at a physician’s office or laboratory. It is already available in pharmacies in the United States, such as Walgreens. The test helps identify male factor infertility due to subfertile levels of sperm, which occurs in 40 percent of infertile couples.
CIT President and CEO Pete Jobse said, “The success of SpermCheck® reflects the value that research commercialization has in bringing new, innovative products to the market. The McDonnell administration and General Assembly have supported funding for the CRCF, because they understand the contributions of these emerging companies in growing Virginia’s innovation economy.”
SpermCheck® President Ed Leary said, “The CTRF award was crucial to the product’s success. With SpermCheck® Fertility, we are proud to export to Canada an extremely high quality product that is 100% Made in the U.S.A and has roots in Virginia. In addition to our Charlottesville headquarters and research collaboration with the University of Virginia, monoclonal antibodies used in the devices are manufactured at U.Va. and the SpermCheck® kits are distributed through SpermCheck® in Charlottesville. SpermCheck® engages160 jobs in the region. The development, manufacture and distribution of SpermCheck® Fertility has had a very positive economic impact on the economy of Virginia and the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region.”
About the CRCF and R&T Roadmap, http://www.cit.org/programs/cit-rd/crcf
The Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) advances science- and technology-based research, development and commercialization to drive economic growth in Virginia and to encourage collaboration among its institutions of higher education and partnerships between these colleges and universities, and business and industry.
The Commonwealth Research and Technology (R&T) Strategic Roadmap is a comprehensive planning tool the Commonwealth will use to identify research areas worthy of economic development and institutional focus. It provides elected and other officials with priorities in key industry sectors that have commercial promise and that are eligible for CRCF awards.
About the Center for Innovative Technology, http://www.cit.org
CIT is the state-chartered nonprofit corporation that conducts the business of the IEIA and accelerates innovation and the next generation of technology and technology companies. CIT creates new technology companies through capital formation, market development and revenue generation services. To facilitate national innovation leadership and accelerate the rate of technology adoption, CIT creates partnerships between innovative technology startup companies and advanced technology consumers.
Hap Connors, Center for Innovative Technology, http://www.cit.org, (703) 689-3048, [email protected]
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