INNOVATION & TRANSLATION - LS4FUTURE

Innovation and Translation

LS4FUTURE supports the translation of new discoveries into heath solutions and bridge the gap from discovery to delivery.

Innovation and Translation

LS4FUTURE offers a combination of tools designed to support the translation of new discoveries into heath solutions and bridge the divide from discovery to delivery.

STARTUP RESEARCH PROGRAM

Post-Graduation program developed by ITQB NOVA and NOVA SBE

Helping to close the communication gap between scientists and business stakeholders

The StartUp Research Program has been designed to create awareness in researchers of the value their science can generate. It provides Life Sciences researchers with knowledge about Innovation Management, Business Modelling, while developing soft and entrepreneurship skills.

The Program is open to all Graduate Researchers and Science Managers (>BSc) with preferably more than 1 year of lab work experience.

The course will comprise 11 weeks, with a total of 102 in classroom hours, and will accredit 8 ECTS.

Members of the LS4FUTURE community are welcome to enroll to the program, with the possibility to apply for the following Attendance Scholarships:

ITQB NOVA SCHOLARSHIPS: 2 Full tuition Scholarships (1500€) / Edition are available for ITQB NOVA students and staff. Preference will be given to Students enrolled either in ITQB NOVA MSc or PhD programs.
OEIRAS Valley SCHOLARSHIPS: in the scope of the Oeiras Valley initiative and strategic objectives, 15 x €1500 Scholarships / Edition are available. Although not-exclusive, Oeiras Valley scholarships will be preferentially awarded to candidates coming from SI&DT institutions located within the Oeiras Valley Ecosystem (iBET, INIAV, Católica Biomedical Research Center – CBR, Champalimaud Foundation, and Tagus Park); and those belonging to the Associate Laboratories LS4FUTURE and CIISA/AL4AnimalS (fulfilling One Health Initiative goals); as well as to the iNOVA4Health Program; CoLife; the Co-Lab AccelBio and the DxHub Excellence Hub, will be considered as such.

The sixth edition of the StartUp Research Program – 2025 Edition was held between 7 May and 15 July 2025.

More details about this postgraduation can be found in the StartUp Research Program Website.

BIOENTREPRENEURSHIP TRAINING PROGRAM

Online and on-site workshops and courses

Stimulating entrepreneurial thinking and initiatives among our research community

This training program allows researchers to understand not only the science but also the culture, the practices and the language required for integrating basic research to clinical research, medical practice and industrial activity.

Team leaders as well as other members within research groups with interest/capability to develop impactful translation of new life sciences discoveries into solutions for health, agro-industry, food sustainability, and other societal goals are welcome to participate in this series of workshops and courses, which are built to navigate through 3 main phases: AWARENESS about the translational potential of biological research and the basic concepts in entrepreneurship, EXPLORATION of one’s research entrepreneurial capability and IMPLEMENTATION of this knowledge to structure real-life business models and analyse value position.

Check LS4FUTURE

TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES

LS4FUTURE CollDatabase

Explore LS4FUTURE’s collective expertise capacity

CollDatabase is a user-friendly search tool designed to showcase the collective research capabilities of LS4FUTURE institutions and each of their scientific members. It serves as a dynamic catalog that promotes knowledge sharing and fosters collaboration within our network.

Through CollDatabase, you can explore detailed information about each lab, including:

Scientific capabilities
Technical and technological skills
Research interests
Inter-lab connections

Accessing CollDatabase

If you are a member of an LS4FUTURE institution, you can access the database using the username and password provided to your lab supervisor during registration. If you haven’t received your credentials yet, please contact the Coordination Office at ls4future@ls4future.pt.

Click here to access CollDatabase.

New Group Leaders

Are you a new Group Leader at one of our partner institutions? We invite you to join this initiative by adding your lab’s expertise, skills, and research interests to CollDatabase. You will also be able to discover potential collaborators across the LS4FUTURE network. To get started, please reach out to the Coordination Office for access instructions and credentials.

For Potential Companies and Industry Partners

If your company is interested in accessing LS4FUTURE’s CollDatabase to explore potential scientific collaborations, we welcome your engagement. Please contact the Coordination Office at ls4future@ls4future.pt for more information on how to get involved.

INDUSTRY CALLS

In association with NOVA impACT!

Fostering academia-industry interaction opportunities

The Industry Calls Platform helps accelerate scientific innovation by publishing open opportunities to establish collaborations between academic researchers and companies/organizations (national and international) at different stages of development.

Any research team within LS4FUTURE community containing at least one member affiliated to NOVA University is entitled to apply for these calls.

Keep yourself updated by visiting the NOVA Innovation Industry Calls website.

CURRENTLY OPEN CALLS:

Seeking Manufacturers Specializing in Pre-fillable Syringes (PFS) and Autoinjectors

Deadline: 19th August 2025 – 10:59 pm GMT

RECENTLY CLOSED CALLS:

Novel Drug Discovery Concepts and Targets within Genetic Kidney Diseases

Deadline: 20 January 2025

Seeking Novel Approaches to Promote Immune Reset in Inflammatory Disease/Autoimmune Conditions by Targeting Neuro-Immune Crosstalk

Deadline: 4 August 2025

Novel Sporicidal Disinfectants Without Scent

Deadline: 29 July 2025

Seeking Late Preclinical Oncology Assets: Small Molecules with IND-enabling Data and Patient Stratification Potential

Deadline: 14 July 2025

Innovations in Senescence and Cellular Energetics for Optimizing Skin Health

Deadline: 14 July 2025

Seeking Novel CNS Indications and Mechanistic Pathways for RIPK1 Inhibition

Deadline: 30 June 2025

CLINIC CHALLENGE

Boosting collaboration between researchers and clinicians

This program serves as a platform to promote awareness of specific scientific needs of stakeholders in the clinic sector by providing a more structured way to exchange knowledge and to establish joint research plans.

Such interaction can be framed within different types of partnerships, including “know-how” exchange as well as technical and/or technology support.

MENTOR NETWORK

In association with NOVA impACT!

Sharing knowledge and experience to support entrepreneurial initiatives

This network allows researchers to enter in contact with experts with proven entrepreneurial experience and skills, who can provide guidance, expert advice and help scientists to navigate the “valley of death” bridging between fundamental discoveries and translation.

Mentors can help to define proper business strategies, connecting aspiring entrepreneurs and potential partners, customers or investors, facilitating access to critical resources, adding value and improving the conditions for the success of a business idea.

Any research team within LS4FUTURE community with at least one member affiliated to NOVA University can make use of this mentorship program.

To find out more about mentors and make inquiries, please visit the Mentor Network website.

OTHER ENTREPRENEURSHIP & STARTUP ONLINE RESOURCES

Online Course on Research Impact

In this online course, it is explored what societal impact of research is and how it is created. You will learn the role of interaction in creating impact and identify different paths of interaction. You will find out why it is important to know your relevant audiences and how to interact with them. In the course, it is also considered how the societal impact of research is evaluated and to what extent impact is in the hands of a researcher. Finally, a practical approach to promoting impact from the point of view of impacting societal decision-making will be presented.

The course is specifically aimed at researchers. It is not limited to researchers in any single field, but societal impact is viewed from the perspectives of several different disciplines.

The course is open to all and free of charge. You can do it entirely at your own pace and sign up right away. It takes about 3–6 hours to go through all the material. You just need to sing up (using your Google account or by creating a new user) at https://digicampus.fi/ and look for the course “Researcher’s online course on research impact“.

The course has been produced by the University of Helsinki in collaboration with the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters.

Entrepreneur’s Guide To A Biotech Startup

Practical information packed into The Entrepreneur’s Guide to a Biotech Startup. This free 100-page eBook is based on personal interviews with entrepreneurs, investors, attorneys, and other professionals who understand biotech venture creation and are eager to share their insights.

DOWNLOAD

Essential Books for Biotech StartUp Pioneers

Blog’s author: Jia Jia He

Jia Jia is a Molecular & Cell Bio and Business Admin freshman at UC Berkeley. At PR ON THE GO, the science wizard dives deep into the world of biotech and health startups, exploring popular science, highly specialized science media, and the investor side of science startups.

LINK

Biotech Founder Resources – Pillar VC

Founder Playlist resources tailored to biotech founders and their unique set of fundraising, management, and legal needs.

On this website, you can explore content based on several topics, such as

Its resources are divided into guides, podcasts, videos, audios, and more, and also provide useful templates that can be downloaded to use for your own purposes.

Check the link below to find out more.

LINK

North Carolina Biotech’s Biotechnology Center

NCBiotech website is tailored to connect people with their potential future job or company in life sciences.

The link below provides Entrepreneur & Startup Resources for business to structure, fund and grow their companies.

LINK

Useful online articles

So you want to start a biotech company. Sadhana Chitale, Colm Lawler, Arthur Klausner. Nat Biotechnol. 2022 Mar;40(3):296–300.

How to build a biotech startup? Krzysztof Potempa. Updated LinkedIn link.

The Associate Laboratory LS4FUTURE is supported by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal) through the funding LA/P/0087/2020 (DOI 10.54499/LA/P/0087/2020).

The Associated Laboratory LS4FUTURE is supported by Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT, Portugal) through the funding LA/P/0087/2020.