"Wherever the art of medicine is loved, there is also a love of humanity.” — Hippocrates
Today’s issue:
October 27, 2020
MEDICAL RESEARCH
Cincinnati Children's finds hormone for reversing malnutrition in infants 
Photo by paullphoto for Shutterstock
Researchers at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital have found a hormone that could help reverse a disorder that can cause malnutrition in some babies. The disorder causes the inadequate absorption of nutrients, which leads to the need for IV feeding.
Scientists discovered the hormone using organoids grown from stem cells. The organoids allowed them to further understand how nutrients, particularly protein and carbohydrates, are absorbed by the body. They found enteroendocrine cells control absorption in the gut. Babies without functional cells can’t properly absorb nutrients.
"This study allowed us to understand how important this one rare cell type is in controlling how the intestine absorbs nutrients and functions on a daily basis," Heather A. McCauley, a research associate at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and lead author of the paper, told us.
Cincinnati Children’s started the program to make organoids from stem cells in 2006.
"What this study highlights is how decades of basic research into how organs are made and how they function is now leading to breakthroughs in identifying new therapeutics," said James Wells, senior author of the study and chief scientific officer of the Center for Stem Cell and Organoid Medicine (CuSTOM) at Cincinnati Children's. Share this story!
INNOVATORS PODCAST
Prioritizing data to prioritize care 
Tawanda Chitapa never had the opportunity to touch a computer in his native Zimbabwe. He did, however, recognize the opportunity in technology (apparently also a big deal in the 90s). Upon arriving at Western Kentucky University, Chitapa declared computer science his major. Today, he's at the forefront of leveraging data and AI at Norton Healthcare to help high-risk patients avoid infectious diseases and to improve recovery for those leaving the hospital.
In this week's episode of Flyover Future's Innovators podcast, hosts Ben Reno-Weber from Louisville’s Future of Work Initiative and our executive producer Brian Eichenberger talk with Chitapa about data strategy, governance, and how to serve multiple stakeholders. You can also listen to this episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, or wherever else you get your podcasts.
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UC participates in trials aimed to prevent blood vessel damage in COVID-19 patients The University of Cincinnati is one of 20 sites across the country that is participating in Phase 2 trials for the drug razuprotafib. The drug is currently used to improve blood vessel health in patients with diabetes and renal disease, but doctors are researching its effects on blood vessels in COVID-19 patients.
The illness caused by coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 can cause severe blood vessel damage to those heavily impacted by the disease. The vessels in the lungs, heart and kidneys face long-term impact from COVID-19. Researchers are hoping that razuprotafib can improve the health of the blood vessels, which will limit damage done to organs.
"COVID-19 enters the body through the nose and back of the mouth and then travels to the upper and lower respiratory tracts," said Richard Becker, MD, a UC Health cardiologist and director of the UC Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute, in a release. "In serious cases, the virus causes inflammation in the blood vessels of the lungs." Share this story!
FUNDING AND DEALS
Workhorse secures $200 million in funding Workhorse, a company that manufactures drone-integrated electric delivery vans, has raised $200 million from two institutional lenders. The company will use the money to increase supply chain volumes, hire manufacturing employees and automate sub-assembly processes. Workhorse’s all electric, zero emissions delivery vans are popular among companies working to deliver products their last mile.
In addition to its low-floor-design delivery vans, the company also makes a proprietary telematics system that allows customers to track and monitor the performance of its vehicles. The system lets customers collect data to manage route planning, maintenance and fuel costs. The company will also accelerate production of a refrigeration truck for grocery delivery. Share this story!
Infosys scoops up Cincy’s Kaleidoscope Innovation Infosys, a multinational consulting, IT, and outsourcing firm based in Bangalore, India, has acquired Cincy's Kaleidoscope Innovation, an industrial design firm. The move bolsters Infosys’ offerings in smart products and its impact on patient care, treatment, diagnostics, and consumer health across the world, the company said in a media release.
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ON OUR RADAR 
Gain insight into the Cincinnati innovation ecosystem Learn more about the people and organizations shaping the economic future of our city with Cincinnati Future's innovation radar. There are over 275 company profiles. Is your company one of them? Explore the innovation radar to find out.
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ENHANCING TECH
Ascribe adds AI to SaaS products Opinions are everywhere. They’re in social media, in research data, customer comments sections, surveys, customer support calls, chats, emails, and user forums. But harvesting those verbatim comments and putting them into meaningful action are a challenge for large corporations, small companies, researchers and data scientists.
Cincy-based Ascribe has added artificial intelligence to its suite of software-as-a-service tools. The tool can be used to classify customer comments from open-ended survey responses. The AI tool creates a codebook that in turn is applied to responses for automatic coding. That way, companies and researchers can act on insights from verbatim comments and enhance the customer, employee or patient experience. Share this story!
KNOW YOUR CITY 
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AROUND THE REGION With 
We hope you enjoy these headlines from the latest issue of Flyover Future, chronicling innovation throughout the Midwest. If you'd like to subscribe to Flyover Future, click here.
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