SilkMed’s Momentum Continues with Post-Graduate Support from the Auster Center
Chronic wounds affect over 6 million Americans annually, with hundreds of thousands of those being burn wound patients. Current standard-of-care dressings can be incredibly painful; 75% of burn patients report severe pain during frequent dressing changes throughout the healing process. This was the primary driver for the SilkMed team to develop a non-contact, biocompatible, spray-on solution for burn wound dressing.
Sebastian Useche is a recent graduate of Tufts University’s MS in Innovation & Management (MSIM) program and is currently CEO & Co-Founder of SilkMed, a MedTech company using silk-derived biomaterials to transform wound care through a spray-on protective solution. Sebastian entered the MSIM program with a desire to combine his STEM background with business courses in a program that supported his values. As a part of the program’s immersive curriculum, Sebastian discovered an opportunity to follow his values while applying his technical knowledge when he was introduced to Dr. David Kaplan of Tufts Silk Lab. Through conversations with Dr. Kaplan, customer interviews, and in-depth research, Sebastian and his team identified a pressing problem with current standard-of-care burn dressings. He recognized the potential to leverage the Tufts Silk Lab’s research to develop a product that could bring relief to burn patients – leading to the creation of SilkMed.
The SilkMed team went through many different pathways to success during Sebastian’s time at Tufts. The team competed in the Tufts New Ventures Competition (previously titled the Tufts $100k) where they won 2nd place in the Healthcare & Life Science track. The following summer, SilkMed grew to include Zachary DiMuccio, another MSIM graduate, as Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer. Together, Sebastian and Zach participated in the Tufts Venture Accelerator which helped the team transition from a lab concept to a company now raising a $500K pre-seed round.
After graduating, the SilkMed team connected with the Auster Center for Applied Innovation and Research for an opportunity to join the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (NSF I-Corps) Spark program. The NSF I-Corps program supports the commercialization of research-based technology in the New England area, supported by year-round, hands-on courses and activities. Through the Spark program, SilkMed gained entrepreneurial training, support, and funding for customer discovery.
“Participating in the Spark program was pivotal for SilkMed. The entire process helped us refine our direction by identifying key unmet needs and setting a strategic foundation for where our technology should go. It sharpened my ability to think systematically about product-market fit and taught me how to continuously align innovation with real-world clinical workflows,” Sebastian said in an interview.
After finding success with the Spark program, SilkMed was accepted into the NSF I-Corps National cohort – a competitive, grant-funded national program that supports selected teams with intensive mentorship and $50,000 in NSF funding to validate their business model. With support from the Auster Center, SilkMed completed Nationals in December 2025 with great success. They entered the program with the goal of completing more than 100 customer discovery interviews and left with a better understanding of the needs and challenges within burn and wound care. SilkMed was also awarded “Best in Show” at the conclusion of Nationals.
“Overall, this was a great opportunity for us to further validate the need of our technology and deepen our understanding of the standard of care and pain points that clinicians and patients face when recovering from traumatic injuries like burns. We are very excited to continue this journey with everything we have learned and gained through the NSF I-Corps Nationals program”, said Sebastian.
Sebastian and his journey with SilkMed – from inception during the MS in Innovation & Management program, to his successes in venture competitions hosted by the Derby Entrepreneurship Center at Tufts, to the support he found within the Auster Center for Applied Innovation and Research post-graduation – demonstrates how the Auster Center supports researchers and venture creators across their journeys.
“The Auster Center is well-positioned to be the connector across multiple silos, and I believe it can play a major role in supporting future founders, building entrepreneurial muscle across campus, and helping great ideas make it to market,” Sebastian concluded.