Ablitech gets ‘seed’ money for company

RIDGELAND AND HATTIESBURG — Mississippi Technology Alliance (MTA) president and CEO Dr. Randy Goldsmith announced that the Mississippi Seed Fund has invested $100,000 in Ablitech Inc. of Hattiesburg.

“Ablitech’s experienced management team and strong relationships with university researchers position the company for rapid growth,” said Goldsmith. “This investment will help the company ramp up product development and the critical research needed to secure future contracts.”

Ablitech was formed in 2006 to bring cutting-edge university knowledge in medicinal chemistry and polymer science to market for healing the human body. The company specializes in converting university research into practical prototypes that can be marketed to pharmaceutical and medical device companies. Ablitech will use the seed fund investment for product research and market development.

“Without the support of MTA and the Mississippi Seed Fund, Ablitech would have been forced to leave the state to obtain financing for its new product developments,” said Ken Malone, CEO of Ablitech. “Now, we can develop our new cancer therapy, Versadel, right where the initial discoveries were made, in Mississippi.”

The Mississippi Legislature established the Mississippi Seed Fund to provide high-tech start-up companies with access to pre-seed financing, early stage risk capital and product development capital to stimulate and accelerate the development of high-performance, technology-based business ventures in Mississippi. The fund is managed by MTA. Recipients must have a cash match from accredited investors to obtain funding.