North Carolina Central University (NCCU) is leading a $1,097,158 NCInnovation Partnership Grant aimed at transforming university research into real-world biosecurity solutions.
The collaboration, anchored by NCCU and supported by NC State University and Orion Integrated Biosciences, underscores the state’s commitment to accelerating innovation that strengthens North Carolina’s economy, agriculture and public-sector preparedness.
At the forefront is TinChung Leung, Ph.D., associate professor of biological and biomedical sciences at NCCU and researcher with the Julius L. Chambers Biomedical and Biotechnology Research Institute, who directs technical development and ensures research milestones align with commercialization goals.
“My perspective always starts with the customer,” Leung said. “We look at the problem from the customer’s point of view and ask how genomics and data analytics can help them make better decisions. That means bringing different expertise together to solve a real problem, not working in isolation.”
The project is developing an applied, scalable biosecurity platform that leverages advanced analytics, artificial intelligence and genomic data to assess biological risk before it causes harm. By integrating qualitative signals, such as global news reports and outbreak alerts, with quantitative biological data, the platform supports earlier, more targeted decision-making related to ports of entry, agricultural supply chains and invasive species detection.
As the lead institution, NCCU provides academic leadership, research infrastructure and hands-on workforce development through faculty and student engagement. NC State contributes expertise in engineering, data science, machine learning and agricultural pest risk analysis through co-principal investigators Anderson de Queiroz, Ph.D., and Gareth Powell, Ph.D.
“There are many insects that look exactly the same,” Powell said. “Some are devastating pests. Others are harmless or even beneficial. Right now, we don’t have good tools to tell them apart in real time. Genomics gives us a way to identify which species pose a real risk before the damage is done.”
NCInnovation’s milestone-driven funding focuses on technology validation, engagement with North Carolina end users, and defined pathways to licensing or private-sector deployment. The grant expanded the project’s scope to include agricultural and ecological applications alongside national biosecurity priorities.
“The NCInnovation grant is what allowed us to bring that agricultural expertise into the project,” said Roy Carter, the project’s entrepreneur-in-residence. “It enabled us to test how this platform could support both government decision-making and real-world agricultural protection. That kind of convergence doesn’t happen without intentional support.”
Industry partner Orion Integrated Biosciences, led by CEO and co-principal investigator Willy Valdivia, supports commercialization strategy, operational system architecture and regulatory engagement.
“What’s unique here is that we’re not just collecting data or analyzing data,” Valdivia said. “We’re using it to support real decision-making. By combining open-source information with genomics, we can assess risk earlier and translate that insight into action.”
The platform is being designed with usability in mind, including intuitive risk indicators and dashboards that align with how government and industry partners operate in real-world environments.
“Avoiding risk is far less costly than responding after the fact,” Carter added. “Whether it’s an invasive pest, a pathogen, or an unknown biological threat, having better information earlier changes everything.”