Delaware Bioscience Center for Advanced Technology (CAT) Grant Program is a grant from the University of Delaware Research Office that funds collaborative bioscience and life sciences research projects that advance Delaware's economy and innovation ecosystem.

The program supports partnerships between University of Delaware researchers and Delaware-based companies to develop new technologies, products, and processes in biotechnology, biomedical science, and related fields. Awards are designed to catalyze translational research with commercial potential, accelerating technology transfer from the university to industry.

Eligible applicants are University of Delaware principal investigators partnering with qualified Delaware bioscience companies.

Delaware Bioscience Center for Advanced Technology (CAT) Grant Program | University of Delaware Research Delaware Bioscience Center for Advanced Technology Grant Program The mission of the Delaware Bioscience Center for Advanced Technology (CAT) program is to support and grow Delaware’s economy by fostering innovative research and development activities among its members.

The Delaware Bioscience CAT program is successfully attracting and retaining life science businesses and creating new high-tech jobs for Delaware. The program supports this mission by sponsoring four grant mechanisms with funding by the State of Delaware.

Image taken by the Jia Lab at the DBI Bio-Imaging Center About the Delaware Biotechnology Institute The Delaware Biotechnology Institute is a partnership between government, academia and industry to help establish the First State as a center of excellence in biotechnology and the life sciences.

Based at the University of Delaware’s Science, Technology and Advanced Research (STAR) Campus, DBI promotes biotechnology research and technology transfer, education and workforce development for the benefit of the environment, agriculture and human health.

DELAWARE BIOSCIENCE CENTER FOR ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY GRANT (CAT) FULL SUBMISSION DEADLINE: APRIL 13, 2026 Competitions are held annually for the grants program, which has four funding mechanisms, from fostering applied research collaborations to supporting access to high-end research instrumentation.

Principal investigators from any academic or medical research institution in Delaware are eligible to apply for the Bioscience CAT grants, including UD, ChristianaCare, Delaware State University, Delaware Technical Community College and Nemours Children’s Hospital.

Delaware-based life science businesses also are eligible to apply for grants specifically directed at technology access IDEAS — HIGH-RETURN, INNOVATIVE, TRANSFORMATIVE (iHIT) Supports ideas in bioscience research that are in the development stage and promise to have a high economic return for innovative and transformative research projects.

APPLIED RESEARCH COLLABORATIONS (ARC) Supports bioscience research collaborations between Delaware academic and business partners ENTREPRENEURIAL PROOF OF CONCEPT (EPoC) Supports bioscience research towards establishing a new Delaware-based business TECHNOLOGY ACCESS PROGRAM (TAP) Provides Delaware bioscience businesses access to high-end research technologies at a reduced rate. Applications accepted year round.

Q: Can someone help me find a partner/collaborator for my project? A: Yes, please reach out to our email address at catdbi@udel. edu .

Q: If a research and development relationship already exists between an academic partner and an industry partner (fitting CAT requirements), is the existing partnership eligible to apply for a CAT grant? A: Yes, an existing academic and industry partnership is eligible to apply for a CAT grant provided that the effort is not already externally funded through other sources.

Q: Assuming a grant is funded, can a partnership then apply for other external funding? A: Yes. Additional external funding after awarding of the CAT grant is encouraged.

Q: As an adjunct professor, am I eligible to be PI for a CAT grant? A: As an adjunct faculty member, you would not be eligible without prior approvals. A letter or letters from pertinent offices at your institution explaining your position and showing that your institution will provide the necessary administrative support and other infrastructure needed is required.

The letter could be submitted either in advance of the deadline, or simultaneous with the grant submission deadline, to cat@dbi. udel. edu .

Q: Am I allowed to serve as PI on more than one proposal submission? A: Yes. However, a PI may have only one active CAT grant at a time.

Q: Must the grant funds be expended over a period of one year or can they be expended in less time, for example, over a six-month time period? A: The maximum timeframe for spending the grant funds is one year. There is no minimum timeframe.

However, principal investigators should be aware of significant portions of expenses in salary to ensure the salary levels and effort are reasonable to the work proposed to be done over that time period. Q: Is there any limit on how many grants are awarded to a particular academic or industry scientist over a period of time? A: Currently, there are no limits except that a PI may have only one active CAT grant at a time.

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