Rice Biotech Launch Pad hosts foundation representatives, Type 1 diabetes patients and advocates for campus tour

HOUSTON – (Dec. 2, 2024) – The Rice Biotech Launch Pad, an accelerator dedicated to facilitating the transition of discoveries from Rice University labs into innovative therapies, hosted a group of Type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients, advocates and leaders from Breakthrough T1D, a leading global organization funding T1D research Nov. 15.

During its visit, the group had the opportunity to learn about ongoing research efforts and current challenges and advancements directly from researchers working on next-generation diabetes therapies in the lab of Rice bioengineer Omid Veiseh and a Houston Methodist lab, both located in Rice’s Biosciences Research Collaborative.

One of the research focus areas for Veiseh, a Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas Scholar and director of the Rice Biotech Launch Pad, is encapsulation technology for stem cell-derived beta cells, which aims to eliminate the need for immunosuppression in patients with T1D. Encapsulated cells could mimic the function of the pancreas, producing insulin in response to blood sugar levels.

“Our mission is to develop innovative solutions that free patients from pumps and glucose monitors,” said Veiseh, who also serves as managing partner for RBL LLC, a Houston-based company incubator launched this year that evolved from the Rice Biotech Launch Pad. “We are committed to transforming how this disease is managed and ultimately to curing it. We are grateful for the support and dedication of organizations like Breakthrough T1D in helping us reach this goal.”

Next, Breakthrough T1D representatives along with T1D patients and advocates visited RBL LLC headquarters in the Texas Medical Center’s Helix Park to gain insight into the current technologies and entrepreneurial initiatives advancing toward a potential cure.

Marshall Lang, a member of Breakthrough T1D’s Houston board of directors, spoke of the hope these advancements bring to families affected by T1D.

“Seeing the progress here at Rice, I genuinely feel we are on the brink of a significant breakthrough,” said Lang, who is also on the foundation’s global mission board, which focuses on volunteer engagement to help continue to advance the mission of Breakthrough T1D. “I promised my son 20 years ago that I’d fight to find a cure, and today, I can see a clear path toward fulfilling that promise.”

The group also toured RBL LLC’s venture creation studio dedicated to accelerating the commercialization of biotech innovations located at Helix Park. RBL LLC evolved from the Rice Biotech Launch Pad, which was established in 2023 in order to help bridge the gap between academic discovery and patient-ready treatments. Veiseh highlighted that both entities strive to foster collaboration among researchers and entrepreneurs with a shared vision of reducing the timeline to clinical application.

Lang and his colleagues expressed gratitude for the work being done at Rice and emphasized the importance of partnerships between academic institutions, nonprofits and the private sector in advancing T1D research.

“The enthusiasm and dedication of the team here is inspiring,” Lang said. “These efforts will not only improve lives but have the potential to change the course of this disease entirely.”

Breakthrough T1D has been instrumental in supporting advancements in T1D treatments, and its collaboration with Rice and other institutions reflects its ongoing commitment to funding innovative research and bringing life-changing therapies to fruition.

Veiseh closed the visit by thanking Breakthrough T1D for its advocacy and funding.

“Together, we are making strides toward a future where diabetes no longer controls lives,” he said. “It’s an exciting time to be at the forefront of this work.”

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This news release can be found online at news.rice.edu.

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Credit: Photos by Gustavo Raskosky/Rice University

About Rice:

Located on a 300-acre forested campus in Houston, Texas, Rice University is consistently ranked among the nation’s top 20 universities by U.S. News & World Report. Rice has highly respected schools of architecture, business, continuing studies, engineering and computing, humanities, music, natural sciences and social sciences and is home to the Baker Institute for Public Policy. Internationally, the university maintains the Rice Global Paris Center, a hub for innovative collaboration, research and inspired teaching located in the heart of Paris. With 4,776 undergraduates and 4,104 graduate students, Rice’s undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio is just under 6-to-1. Its residential college system builds close-knit communities and lifelong friendships, just one reason why Rice is ranked No. 1 for lots of race/class interaction and No. 7 for best-run colleges by the Princeton Review. Rice is also rated as a best value among private universities by the Wall Street Journal and is included on Forbes’ exclusive list of “New Ivies.”