Patented technology developed by an OARDC scientist has led to the creation of a startup company for producing diagnostic tools and vaccines to combat poultry and livestock diseases.
LARAD Inc. is the result of research conducted byDaral Jackwood, a professor in the center's Food Animal Health Research Program.
"LARAD Inc. is also the first OARDC spinout into theBioHio Research Park," said Shauna R. Brummet,president and CEO of the agbioscience technology park, which is located on OARDC's Wooster campus.
The company will initially focus producing virus-like particles for infectious bursal disease virus, which is a highly contagious immunosuppressive disease affecting poultry worldwide.
"We are very excited to work with Dr. Jackwood in the startup of his company providing support and guidance at this early stage," Brummet said. "This is an example of the important technology being developed at OARDC that can be moved into a locally based startup company, which will create high-paying jobs in our region."
The company is using molecular biology methods to develop virus-like-particle (VLP) technology for new vaccines and diagnostics that will benefit the food-animal industry and safeguard our food-production system. Jackwood is the company's founder and scientific adviser. LARAD stands for Leadership for Advanced Responses to Animal Diseases.
He said, "These are cutting-edge products that will allow the industry to do things it hasn't been able to do before."