Vanderbilt University has said its commercialisation earnings have quadrupiled over a three year period – reaching more than $24.5m for the fiscal year ending 30 June.

Several licensing agreements boosted profits at Vanderbilt’s tech transfer unit, the Vanderbilt Centre for Technology Transfer and Commercialisation (CTTC), over the past year. These include a licence with pharmaceutical firm Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS) for new drugs tackling Parkinson’s disease, one with BMS peer AstraZeneca for schizophrenic drugs, and a further agreement with motion and control tech firm Parker Hannifin for a lightweight mechanical exoskeleton.