Global Design Contest Awards ULiSSES™ Medical Device Grand Prize

ULiSSES™, a first-of-its-kind medical device, created by Vascular Perfusion Solutions, Inc. (VPS) has been selected as the Grand Prize winner in the 2019 "Create the Future" Design Contest. The Contest is conducted by Tech Briefs Media Group, an SAE International Company. It was established in 2002 to recognize and reward engineering innovations that benefit humanity, the environment, and the economy. ULiSSES™ was selected for the coveted award from among 700 entries submitted by engineers and organizations from 60 countries. VPS accepted the grand prize along with a $20,000 cash award in New York City on November 8, 2019. VPS plans to apply its winnings toward continued research with the device.

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(L-R) Vascular Perfusion Solutions’ (VPS) Tom DeBrooke, Leonid Bunegin and Rafael Veraza accept the grand prize in the "Create the Future" Design Contest for their creation of ULiSSES™, a first-of-its-kind medical device. ULiSSES™ was selected for the coveted award from among 700 entries submitted by engineers and organizations from 60 countries.

“In addition to extending the life of organs, the ULiSSES™ device will transform the organ preservation, resuscitation and transportation market because of its portability, affordability and ease of use,” said Leonid Bunegin, Chief Science and Technology Officer at VPS.

Designed by the San Antonio-based VPS team, ULiSSES™ is a small, self-contained device for organ and limb transport that uses oxygen to preserve and resuscitate vascularized tissue — organs and limbs — for more than 24-hours, compared to only 4 to 6 hours with current methods. The ULiSSES™ device can also operate as a bioreactor, for example, to potentially grow new skin for burn victims.

ULiSSES™ was created to be easily transported in a commercial airliner. It can be stored in an overhead compartment, or under the seat to allow the transport of organs or limbs anywhere in the world. VPS is working to further develop ULiSSES™, which is licensed by the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, to save limbs that are lost in accidents, or on the battlefield.

To accelerate progress, VPS has a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement in place with the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, the University of Texas at San Antonio, and the U.S. Army’s Institute of Surgical Research (ISR), also in San Antonio. In addition, VPS has a joint operating agreement with the U.S. Army, with animal testing to be conducted by the ISR.

VPS is also working with Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, and the U.S. Department of Defense. In support of this additional work, VPS is the commercial partner in a Joint Warfighter Medical Research grant from the U.S. Department of Defense. VPS is currently working to enter the FDA’s Breakthrough Device Program to begin a streamlined review process, to get ULiSSES™ into early clinical use.

For more information on the award, visit www.createthefuturecontest.com. Additional information on VPS and ULiSSES™ can be found at www.vascularperfusion.solutions.

About Vascular Perfusion Solutions (VPS)

Vascular Perfusion Solutions, Inc. is a development and early-stage company, formed for the purpose of commercializing new, unique, and innovative oxygenated perfusion preservation and resuscitation solutions for the body’s limbs, organs, and other vascularized tissue. Visit www.vascularperfusion.solutions to learn more.

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