Rare blood disorders are on VERALOX Therapeutics Inc.'s "hit" list. The company, a small molecule drug discovery and development firm based in the Frederick Innovative Technology Center, Inc. (FITCI), launched in September 2017 with a mission to develop a first-in-class therapeutic targeting rare immune-mediated blood disorders, beginning with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) and HIT with thrombosis (HITT). These life-threatening diseases have a high mortality rate and often require limb amputations due to complications. The drug, VLX-1005, is the only therapeutic in development that strikes at the source of HITT and has performed impressively in clinically relevant animal models. Additionally, it has demonstrated preservation of insulin secretion and promotion of beta cell survival in newly-diagnosed type I diabetes patient samples, providing significant opportunities for market expansion into diabetes.