Biotech blueberries? UMaine explores new commercial use for the crop

Courtesy / University of Maine Certain blueberry compounds contribute to wound-healing, potentially lending themselves to a commercial biomedical product.

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By Staff

Maine's wild blueberries may have a new commercial potential — for use in a biomedical product that would treat wounds.

University of Maine professor of clinical nutrition Dorothy Klimis-Zacas has found that compounds called phenolic acids, when extracted from wild blueberries, promote cell migration and speed the closure of wounds, according to a news release.

The research has potential to contribute to the field of wound healing and skin regeneration, including the treatment of burns and chronic diabetic wounds. Diabetic patients are prone to reduced blood flow to their limbs, which often results in impaired wound healing, infirmity, increased health care costs and lower quality of life.

Klimis-Zacas was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the Maine Technology Institute to support her efforts to develop a product prototype for the commercial market. The funds are a partial match to a $40,000 UMaine Medicine Seed Grant she received for preclinical studies of the technology. The Wild Blueberry Association of North America and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture also have supported the research.

Klimis-Zacas has partnered with James Weber, UMaine associate professor of animal and veterinary sciences, and doctoral student Natalie VandenAkker, to develop a path to commercialization. The team participated in UMaine’s I-Corps program in spring 2019, a six-week workshop funded by the National Science Foundation that focuses on identifying market opportunities for STEM-based research.

The team will also participate this spring in the Maine Innovation, Research and Technology Accelerator. This university program guides participants through market and intellectual property analysis to develop a business model and, ultimately, a commercialization plan with a strategy for bringing research to market. That could include starting a company, licensing to an existing company, or forming an extended research collaboration with an industry partner.

A patent for the extracts and methods used in this research is pending.

Klimis-Zacas has been researching the health benefits of wild blueberries for more than 20 years, and recently co-authored papers on the berry's wound-healing properties in two scientific journals.