A preview of the emerging health care companies profiled in the current issue of Start-Up. This month's profile group, Rediscovering Existing Drugs, features profiles of Ascend Therapeutics Inc., Ocularis Pharma Inc. and Oriel Therapeutics Inc. Plus these Start-Ups Across Health Care: Exagen Diagnostics Inc., Piedmont Pharmaceuticals LLC, Protein Forest Inc., Proteus Biomedical Inc. and Xilas Medical Inc.

Protein Forest Inc. has devised a way to improve the throughput of 2D gel electrophoresis, which it believes will give it a significant share of the $500 million market for protein separation and analysis tools, of which 2D gel and protein chip technologies comprise roughly half.