Newswise — June 23, 2020 – Nutley, NJ – A company that makes wearable UV detectors, which is based at the Hackensack Meridian Center for Discovery and Innovation (CDI), was awarded a prestigious National Science Foundation grant.
Shade received the NSF’s Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant in the amount of $750,000 to conduct research and development work on a low-cost semiconductor that accurately measures the UV index from sunlight.
“Shade has become the gold standard for wearable, real-time UV measurements in clinical studies,” said Emmanuel Dumont, Ph.D., the CEO of Shade, who is also a research assistant member in the CDI laboratory of Benjamin Tycko, M.D., Ph.D. “This grant recognizes Shade’s ambition in bringing scientific-grade measurements to all wearable devices.”
“We are proud to establish partnerships with deep technology companies such as Shade,” said
David Perlin, Ph.D., chief scientific officer and senior vice president of the CDI. “Their work is a perfect illustration of our mission to go from bench to bedside.”
Shade was founded by Dr. Dumont in 2016 and is a spin-off from the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute in New York.
One of the challenges in detecting harmful radiation from sunlight, he said, is that sunlight has nearly countless different spectra, and the effects can be vastly different for different people with varying exposures.
“Skin cancer is the largest cancer in the US and Shade’s technology has the potential to provide a data-driven and chemical-free alternative to skin cancer prevention,” he added, explaining that the detector measures both instantaneous and cumulative exposure to UV.
“NSF is proud to support the technology of the future by thinking beyond incremental developments and funding the most creative, impactful ideas across all markets and areas of
science and engineering,” said Andrea Belz, division director of the Division of Industrial
Innovation and Partnerships at NSF. “With the support of our research funds, any deep
technology startup or small business can guide basic science into meaningful solutions that
address tremendous needs.”
“With the support of NSF, we are excited to incorporate our breakthrough technology into a
low-cost, low-power, surface-mount component,” said Peter Kaplan, Ph.D., chief technology officer at Shade.
The NSF grant is the second Shade has received from that federal agency. The company’s work has also received the backing of the National Cancer Institute and early-stage venture capital funds.
The Shade technology has been used in five research publications and has recorded over three million data points of UV exposure, so far – but the company seeks further partnerships.
For more information, visit www.wearshade.com.
ABOUT HACKENSACK MERIDIAN HEALTH
Hackensack Meridian Health is a leading not-for-profit health care organization that is the largest, most comprehensive and truly integrated health care network in New Jersey, offering a complete range of medical services, innovative research and life-enhancing care.
Hackensack Meridian Health comprises 17 hospitals from Bergen to Ocean counties, which includes three academic medical centers – Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune, JFK Medical Center in Edison; two children's hospitals - Joseph M. Sanzari Children's Hospital in Hackensack, K. Hovnanian Children's Hospital in Neptune; nine community hospitals – Bayshore Medical Center in Holmdel, Mountainside Medical Center in Montclair, Ocean Medical Center in Brick, Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen, Pascack Valley Medical Center in Westwood, Raritan Bay Medical Center in Old Bridge, Raritan Bay Medical Center in Perth Amboy, Riverview Medical Center in Red Bank, and Southern Ocean Medical Center in Manahawkin; a behavioral health hospital – Carrier Clinic in Belle Mead; and two rehabilitation hospitals - JFK Johnson Rehabilitation Institute in Edison and Shore Rehabilitation Institute in Brick.
Additionally, the network has more than 500 patient care locations throughout the state which include ambulatory care centers, surgery centers, home health services, long-term care and assisted living communities, ambulance services, lifesaving air medical transportation, fitness and wellness centers, rehabilitation centers, urgent care centers and physician practice locations. Hackensack Meridian Health has more than 34,100 team members, and 6,500 physicians and is a distinguished leader in health care philanthropy, committed to the health and well-being of the communities it serves.
The network's notable distinctions include having four hospitals among the top 10 in New Jersey by U.S. News and World Report. Other honors include consistently achieving Magnet® recognition for nursing excellence from the American Nurses Credentialing Center and being named to Becker's Healthcare's "150 Top Places to Work in Healthcare/2019" list.
The Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine at Seton Hall University, the first private medical school in New Jersey in more than 50 years, welcomed its first class of students in 2018 to its On3 campus in Nutley and Clifton. Additionally, the network partnered with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to find more cures for cancer faster while ensuring that patients have access to the highest quality, most individualized cancer care when and where they need it.
Hackensack Meridian Health is a member of AllSpire Health Partners, an interstate consortium of leading health systems, to focus on the sharing of best practices in clinical care and achieving efficiencies.
For additional information, please visit www.HackensackMeridianHealth.org.
About the Center for Discovery and Innovation
The Center for Discovery and Innovation, a newly established member of Hackensack Meridian Health, seeks to translate current innovations in science to improve clinical outcomes for patients with cancer, infectious diseases and other life-threatening and disabling conditions. The CDI, housed in a fully renovated state-of-the-art facility, offers world-class researchers a support infrastructure and culture of discovery that promotes science innovation and rapid translation to the clinic.
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