Tempo Therapeutics lands $2.3M SBIR grant for wound-healing tech
What's the deal? Tempo Therapeutics, a San Diego clinical-stage regenerative medicine company, has secured a $2.25 million Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Cancer InstituteDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The money will fund development of its Microporous Annealed Particle (MAP) Wound Matrix, a synthetic scaffold designed to treat complex wounds.
What's the endgame? The grant supports MOSAIC II, a randomized clinical study testing whether the MAP Wound Matrix can shorten the time to graft readiness after surgery for non-melanoma skin cancers. The study is led by Stephanie Deshayes, vice president of research and development.
How it works: Traditional treatments often trigger a persistent foreign-body response that slows healing. MAP is engineered to support the body's natural regeneration, promoting rapid cell ingrowth and a well-vascularized wound bed ready for reconstruction or grafting.
"The capacity to regenerate tissue within the volume of a complex wound, instead of solely from the margins, has the potential to transform treatment methodologies for challenging wounds," said Westbrook Weaver, co-founder and chief technology officer.
Why now? The study follows Tempo's first-in-human randomized controlled multicenter trial on full-thickness wounds after Mohs surgery. MAP-treated wounds reached a favorable Wound Bed Score roughly 14 days earlier than controls.
The company's lead product has completed first-in-human trials and is submitted for FDA approval via the De Novo pathway. Beyond wound care, Tempo is eyeing surgical reconstruction, aesthetic dermatology, and regenerative medicine.
The signal: At $2.25 million, the grant sits in the lower tier of disclosed funding events, but non-dilutive federal money is a common lifeline for clinical-stage biotech firms. For Tempo, it buys a shot at clinical validation without diluting equity — a meaningful step as it seeks regulatory clearance.
Read more: third-news.com
Image credit: Tempo Therapeutics
