A FORWARD-LOOKING initiative has supported the birth of 15 new companies through its digital fellowship scheme - with great success. The fresh business shoots have been "seeded, fertilised and nurtured" by Teesside University's Institute of Digital Innovation.

The institute's fellowships enable digital media or technology specialists from its area - north-east England - to make their ideas a business reality through the use of world-class facilities, mentoring support and funding.

Among the exciting new enterprises is a science-based company, Nano AgricoChemicals, being launched by Dr Andrew Dean and his mother and fellow Teesside University graduate Sylvia Dean.

In recent months they have worked with the Institute of Digital Innovation (IDI), using computerised design packages to develop a novel product range of nanoparticle agrochemicals that they believe will prove more effective in protecting crops in the future.

"We are looking at using nanotechnology to develop products which can offer better crop protection from a wide range of pathogens and soil contaminants and enhance the health and well-being of crops through improved nutrient and trace mineral uptake," said Dr Andrew Dean.

"Working with the IDI has been a huge benefit to the project and has enabled us to design optimal synthesis mechanisms that we believe will significantly increase the activity of these products and cut down laboratory testing times and costs," he added.

Dr Dean's doctoral degree at Teesside centred on the study of sensors to detect DNA; he also has a master's degree in biotechnology. After graduating, he set up his first company, Spartan Nano, in 2008 with his mother. It won the Tees Valley area's Blueprint business award and has been shortlisted for the regional finals in October.

He said he formed Spartan Nano to provide high-quality analysis and research for the chemical and life sciences sectors. The company's product development and contract research focus is on electrochemical and piezoelectric biosensors; nanoparticle synthesis; nanoparticle bio-remediation, and nanoparticle antimicrobials to target hospital "super-bugs" such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and C.difficile.

Working with leading government organisation UK Trade & Investment, Dr Dean travelled to California to look at expanding Spartan Nano's activities in the United States. In particular, this market visit was to examine potential collaborations between various private and public institutes and corporations.

UK Trade & Investment is the government's international business development agency, supporting companies in the UK doing business internationally and overseas enterprises seeking to establish a market footprint in the UK. The integrated services offered by UKTI bring together a network of business sector specialists and support teams in more than 170 British embassies and Foreign & Commonwealth Office posts overseas, as well as key experts in government departments across the UK (www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk).

Spartan Nano plans to work with researchers in California, the state responsible for 40 per cent of food production in the US. "California is facing a series of problems beyond water shortages because it has huge farms and has been using so many chemicals to increase food production that insects are becoming resistant to normal insecticides," added Dr Dean (www.spartannano.com/).

Dr Jim TerKeurst, the director of the Institute of Digital Innovation - part of Teesside University's DigitalCity initiative - said: "It has been an incredible few months for the IDI. We have supported the start-up of 15 new digital companies and it's clear that this region has the talent, skills and enterprise to succeed on the national and international stage and the IDI is honoured to be playing its part in building our digital future."

The latest 15 enterprises being launched bring the total of start-ups helped by the IDI to 59, covering everything from nanotechnology for agricultural applications, digital media and games, e-security and science and healthcare applications.