CN Bio has received a £180,000 grant from Innovate UK to develop alternatives to animal testing in pharmacokinetic studies. The funding, delivered with the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research, supports the UK Government's goal to reduce dog and non-human primate use in such studies by 35% by 2030. The Cambridge-based company will create a workflow combining data from its human multi-organ microphysiological systems with physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models. The project will build on CN Bio's existing Gut/Liver system and explore adding a kidney model to estimate renal clearance. CN Bio provides organ-on-a-chip systems that recreate human tissue biology for drug discovery and development, offering more human-relevant insights than traditional animal-based studies.

Women's health startups Papcup and Peripear have each secured £75,000 in non-dilutive funding from Innovate UK's Women in Innovation programme. Papcup, founded by Sânziana Foia, is developing an at-home diagnostic that uses electrochemical biosensing to analyse menstrual blood. Early data suggests the technology could help detect conditions like iron deficiency and cervical cancer, offering a potential alternative to traditional pap smears. Peripear, founded by midwife Nina van Schaick, has created an automated perineal thermotherapy wearable that provides hands-free warmth during childbirth to help prevent perineal tearing. The funding will support the company's first-in-human study at the National University Hospital System in Singapore next year. The Women in Innovation programme backs female entrepreneurs with capital and a year of training and mentoring.

The RipenAI Team, led by Dr Xuechun Wang and Prof Lei Su in the School of Engineering and Materials Science (SEMS) at Queen Mary University of London, has been awarded £35,000 through the Innovate UK ICURe Explore programme to accelerate the commercialisation of their AI-driven smart sensing technology for precision and sustainable farming. The ICURe Explore programme is an intensive, twelve-week initiative designed to help research teams evaluate the commercial potential of their innovations through structured market exploration and stakeholder engagement. The RipenAI team has developed an AI-powered optical sensing system that enables real-time, non-destructive assessment of grape ripeness. Developed and tested in collaboration with Saffron Grange Vineyard and Extended Robotics Ltd., the technology aims to address key challenges in the viticulture sector, including labour shortages, the need for destructive sampling, and the growing impacts of climate variability. This award marks an important step toward translating cutting-edge research from Queen …