Vote for Tulane grad students in business plan competition

Two Tulane University bioinnovation graduate students have made it to the final round in the Rice Business Plan Competition and are looking for online votes to win the People’s Choice Award and $5,000 in cash.

So far, Nicholas Pashos’ Bioaesthetics is No. 5 in the poll and Derek Dashti’s D&P Bioinnovations is No. 20 in the poll. Cast your vote here.

There are 42 student-led ventures competing for more than 60 awards and $1.3 million in prize money in the contest. Competitors will pitch their ventures to judges this weekend in Houston for the $300,000 grand prize.

Voting ends Saturday at 1 p.m. CST.

Bioaesthetics is working to develop Pashos’ experimental graft that would allow breast cancer patients to regenerate a nipple and areola for complete breast restoration after a mastectomy.  

D&P Bioinnovations is a regenerative medicine company focused on repairing damaged organs. One of its key technologies is an implantable medical device to functionally regenerate a damaged esophagus.

Voting ends Saturday at 1 p.m. CST. Winners will be announced on Saturday evening.