University of Houston spinout's smartphone COVID-19 test to head to market

Pandemic innovation

Luminostics, which was founded out of a lab at UH, received NIH grant to produce its COVID-19 rapid antigen test. Photo courtesy of Luminostics

A Silicon Valley startup with Houston roots is helping tackle the COVID-19 pandemic with its smartphone-based coronavirus test.

Milpitas, California-based Luminostics, a University of Houston spinout, is producing millions of its Clip COVID Rapid Antigen Test for U.S. consumers after receiving emergency authorization for the product in December. The emergency approval closely followed the National Institutes of Health awarding a $26.1 million contract to Luminostics to speed up development of the coronavirus test. According to a news release from UH, Luminostics is working on an affordable next generation hardware system to reach the mass over-the-counter market at scale.

Chemical engineers and UH alumni Bala Raja, the CEO, and Andrew Paterson, the chief technology officer, began forming their company in the UH lab of Richard Willson, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and professor of biochemical and biophysical sciences.

The technology developed in the UH lab aims to equip consumers with rapid self-diagnostic tests for the flu, HIV, herpes, and other conditions by detecting the presence of bacteria, viruses, small molecules, hormones, and proteins. But Raja and Paterson put that strategy on hold last year and pivoted to re-engineering their technology for COVID-19 testing. The result: the Clip COVID Rapid Antigen Test.

"When we realized that COVID wasn't just a bad flu and that it was actually gonna go crazy and affect as many people as it has, we decided that everything we've done could be very quickly repurposed to make two different tests," Raja told Inc. magazine in April.

UH alumni Andrew Paterson and Bala Raja are co-founders of Luminostics. Photo via UH.edu

As UH explains, the Clip COVID test relies on a nasal swab, a smartphone clip, and glow-in-the-dark nanoparticles to detect a coronavirus infection within 30 minutes. In the phone, an image processor measures the intensity of the luminescence signal. If the signal is strong enough, the result is positive. If it's weak, the result is negative.

"We live in a world where you can have all your basic necessities delivered to your home through an app, and yet this pandemic has exposed how far behind the diagnostics industry lags compared to consumer technology and the convenience economy," Paterson tells UH.

Funding from the National Institutes of Health, venture capital firm Khosla Ventures, investment firm Lynette Capital, and startup accelerator Y Combinator has helped support the Clip COVID Rapid Antigen Test. The startup entered the Y Combinator program in 2016, a year after Raja and Paterson established Luminostics.

In April 2020, French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi said it was exploring a collaboration with Luminostics on the COVID-19 test.

"The diagnostics industry is saturated with products that cater to big, centralized labs or testing in the doctor's office," Paterson says. "There are many applications where it does make sense to do testing in a centralized lab, but there are dozens of other applications where there should be home-tests and there are not, because few companies have tried to take on the technical and regulatory challenges with developing home-testing."

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Houston health orgs lost $58M in canceled, stalled NIH grants, new report shows

research cuts

Seven institutions in the Houston area have lost nearly $60 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that were aimed at funding health research.

The Science & Community Impacts Mapping Project identified 37 cancelled or frozen NIH grants worth $58.7 million that were awarded to seven Houston-area institutions. The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston suffered the biggest loss — five grants totaling nearly $44.8 million.

The Harvard University T.H. Chan School of Public Health reported in May that over the previous several months across the U.S., the federal government had terminated roughly 2,100 NIH research grants worth around $9.5 billion.

In August, the U.S. Supreme Court derailed researchers’ efforts to reinstate almost $2 billion in research grants issued by NIH, according to Nature.com.

“Make no mistake: This was a decision critical to the future of the nation, and the Supreme Court made the wrong choice. History will look upon these mass National Institutes of Health (NIH) research grant terminations with shame,” the American Association of Medical Colleges said in a statement. “The Court has turned a blind eye to this grievous attack on science and medicine, and we call upon Congress to take action to restore the rule of law at NIH.”

Texas health researchers rely heavily on NIH grants and contracts. During the federal government’s 2024 budget year, NIH awarded $1.9 billion in grants and contracts that directly supported 30,553 jobs and more than $6.1 billion in economic activity in Texas, according to the United for Medical Research coalition.

Here’s a rundown of the cancelled and frozen NIH grants in the Houston area.

  • University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston: Five cancelled or frozen grants, totalling approximately $44.8 million in funding lost.
  • Baylor College of Medicine: 17 grants cancelled or frozen, totalling approximately $8 million in funding lost
  • University of Houston. Five cancelled or frozen grants, totalling approximately $3.7 million in funding lost
  • University of Texas Health Science Center Houston: Five grants cancelled or frozen, totaling approximately $1.1 million in funding lost.
  • University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center: Two grants cancelled or frozen, totalling $831,581 in funding
  • Rice University. Two grants cancelled or frozen, totaling $254,645 in funding lost
  • Prairie View A&M University: One grant cancelled or frozen, totalling $31,771 in funding lost

Magnolia milkshake shop blends up a sweet partnership with Comcast Business

Treat Takeover

Comcast Business (CB) powers businesses of every size with fast and reliable phone, mobile, internet, cybersecurity, and television services. Houston’s local CB team also stands behind entrepreneurs and small businesses, knowing they’re the heart of thriving communities: driving growth, sparking innovation, and creating jobs close to home.

Magnolia hometown favorite Chill Milkshake and Waffle Bar was the site of Comcast Business’ latest road trip to treat customers to a cool and refreshingly free treat, picking up the tab for several hours for nearly 200 customers.

Chill Milkshake and Waffle Bar, Magnolia Surprise! Your order is free.Photo courtesy of Comcast Business

“We aren’t just about products and services, we are about building partnerships in our community and playing a supporting role, it means the world to us,” says Heather Orrico, vice president of Comcast Business in Texas.

Chill Milkshakes and Waffle Bar, located at 6606 FM 1488 Rd., Suite 110 in Magnolia, opened in December 2020 and has been a Comcast Business customer for the last two years.

Who would’ve thought you’d need WiFi to serve milkshakes and waffles? Technology runs almost every part of the business.

“In a world where people rarely carry cash anymore, we have to be able to process payments electronically and promptly. Otherwise, the day stops. Nobody wants that,” says owner Jeanie Rosett. “We count on WiFi to efficiently complete transactions and guest payments, process online orders, and keep our music lively.”

It's no surprise that Chill’s array of flavors and dedication to making the perfect milkshake (along with waffles and sandwiches) have earned them the title of best milkshake in Texas by USA Today, followed by ranking sixth-best milkshake in the nation by Travel + Leisure.

Chill’s family environment creates a space where everybody can hang out, or the kids can come on their own and parents feel they are safe. “Good WiFi keeps them connected,” says store manager Laura Mabery. “We also have people who stop in with their laptop, have a hotdog and a shake while continuing to work. We live in a world that needs to be connected! You can do that at Chill-Magnolia.”

Comcast Business A sticker in the window lets everyone know.Photo courtesy of Comcast Business

While Mabery and Rosett appreciate the upgrade in customer service and reliability that was missing from their previous service provider, they were honored and pleasantly surprised to be selected for the recent Comcast Business “take over.”

“It's reassuring to know that our internet needs are taken care of, but that Comcast Business also supports us as a hometown commodity,” says Mabery. “And a free Chill milkshake...what's not to love about that?"

Houston robotics co. unveils new robot that can handle extreme temperatures

Hot New Robot

Houston- and Boston-based Square Robot Inc.'s newest tank inspection robot is commercially available and certified to operate at extreme temperatures.

The new robot, known as the SR-3HT, can operate from 14°F to 131°F, representing a broader temperature range than previous models in the company's portfolio. According to the company, its previous temperature range reached 32°F to 104°F.

The new robot has received the NEC/CEC Class I Division 2 (C1D2) certification from FM Approvals, allowing it to operate safely in hazardous locations and to perform on-stream inspections of aboveground storage tanks containing products stored at elevated temperatures.

“Our engineering team developed the SR-3HT in response to significant client demand in both the U.S. and international markets. We frequently encounter higher temperatures due to both elevated process temperatures and high ambient temperatures, especially in the hotter regions of the world, such as the Middle East," David Lamont, CEO of Square Robot, said in a news release. "The SR-3HT employs both active and passive cooling technology, greatly expanding our operating envelope. A great job done (again) by our engineers delivering world-leading technology in record time.”

The company's SR-3 submersible robot and Side Launcher received certifications earlier this year. They became commercially available in 2023, after completing initial milestone testing in partnership with ExxonMobil, according to Square Robot.

The company closed a $13 million series B round in December, which it said it would put toward international expansion in Europe and the Middle East.

Square Robot launched its Houston office in 2019. Its autonomous, submersible robots are used for storage tank inspections and eliminate the need for humans to enter dangerous and toxic environments.

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This article originally appeared on EnergyCapitalHTX.com.

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