Crypto Tests Granted

Vegrandis LLC, a client of Fayetteville’s Virtual Incubation Co., has received a $500,000 Phase II Small Business Innovation Research award from the National Science Foundation. The award is Vegrandis’ fifth SBIR since its 2002 startup.

By default, the company will be eligible to apply for a Phase II B SBIR grant worth up to another $500,000. The award is specifically for the company to research laboratory-on-a-chip tests for water pathogens and will focus on Cryptosporidium parvum, Calvin Goforth, president of VIC, said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, crypto has become one of the most common causes of waterborne disease in humans in the United States over the last two decades. It was a major concern for relief efforts in tsunami-struck areas recently.