396th Edition – March 10, 2020

BioBuzz and Workforce Genetics Founder, Chris Frew, Joins BioTalk to discuss building two organizations, talent acquisition, and his role in the BioHealth Capital Region ←Sub title

Chris is the Founder and CEO of Workforce Genetics, LLC (WGx), and BioBuzz Media to foster highly engaging experiences that connect people and companies across biohealth ecosystems. His insights into talent attraction, employer branding, and marketing have helped top companies to tackle their most pressing challenges in the new talent economy. Previously as Vice President at Breezio, a leading innovator in cloud-based online communities, he lead the development of the new Internship Network of Maryland (inMD) platform that was approved by Gov. Hogan in 2017. As Vice President of Tech USA’s Scientific Division Chris founded and ran a national staffing division operating at $23M annually when he left in 2015. Chris is passionate about impacting others, especially his family and his team, and helping to foster a strong community within the BioHealth Capital Region. He is a Maryland native and a graduate of Towson University. Learn more at https://www.workforcegenetics.com/ and http://biobuzz.io/

Read More

Register Now for the 6th Annual BioHealth Capital Region (BHCR) Forum held on April 14-15 at AstraZeneca in Gaithersburg, MD. Join your peers biotech and life science executives and expert speakers from industry, academia, healthcare, government, finance and real estate development, among others, converged to discuss the BHCR’s path forward to becoming a top three U.S. biotech cluster by 2023.

Register Now

Read More

OVERVIEW

BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI), is a Montgomery County innovation intermediary which translates market-relevant research into commercial success by bringing together management, funding, and markets. BHI is seeking a life sciences professional with consulting, market research and/or portfolio management experience to join the BHI’s team and serve as a Senior Analyst, Ph.D. to manage and support the Analyst team through training and front facing of potential start-up CEOs and Companies.

POSITION DESCRIPTION – Senior Analyst, Ph.D.

The Senior Analyst will manage the analysts and provide project support and guidance to the team as well as to new entrepreneurs on projects including SBIR Grants, corporate and private investments. This will entail market, technology, regulatory and other business intelligence research to support BHI consulting, coaching of companies and the Analyst team profit center. This is a hands-on leadership position. 

Download the Full Job Description.

Read More

U.S. laboratory equipment maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. agreed to buy Qiagen NV, a Dutch maker of tests for diseases including cancer and the new coronavirus, for about 9 billion euros ($10 billion) in the biggest health-care acquisition so far this year.

Investors will get 39 euros in cash for every Qiagen share, Thermo Fisher said Tuesday. That’s 23% higher than Monday’s closing price. Qiagen also sells products for food and forensic testing. Bloomberg earlier reported the companies were nearing a deal after reviving discussions that broke off late last year.

Read More

Novavax Inc. is already cashing in on its stock spike after announcing plans to develop a vaccine for the COVID-19 coronavirus.

The Gaithersburg biotech has raked in $98.7 million in net proceeds this quarter from selling 10.5 million shares of common stock at $9.55 per share, the company reported Monday in Securities and Exchange Commission filings. And it could sell up to $150 million more in common stock shares, the company said.

Novavax’s (NASDAQ: NVAX) stock was trading at $12.09 per share Monday early afternoon — which, though down about 24% from Friday’s close (as stocks see general volatility amid the coronavirus outbreak), is still notably high for the Maryland biotech.

Image: Novavax is developing a vaccine candidate for the COVID-19 coronavirus. This Centers for Disease Control and Prevention illustration shows the structure of coronaviruses. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION

Read More

CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSE:CVM) announces that it is developing an immunotherapy with the potential to treat the COVID-19 coronavirus using its patented LEAPS peptide technology. The LEAPS peptides will utilize conserved regions of coronavirus proteins to stimulate protective cell mediated T cell responses and reduce viral load. The LEAPS peptide technology can be used to construct immunotherapeutic peptides that exhibit both antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Consequently, these products not only target the virus infection against which they are directed, but also elicit the appropriate protective response(s) against it.

Read More

Montgomery College and George Mason University (Mason), in collaboration with AWS Educate, will partner to create a Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) pathway in cloud computing. This degree offers students a seamless transfer pathway from a two-year associate’s degree to a four-year bachelor’s degree in cloud technology, providing a clear path to high-demand careers in cloud computing with AWS (Amazon Web Services) partners and customers.

Read More

Are you an experienced biohealth industry executive seeking full time or part time employment as a consultant or start-up C suite executive? BioHealth Innovation is updating its database of experienced industry executives who may be able to share their expertise with early stage/growing companies. To be considered by companies or technology transfer organizations seeking leaders for their spin-out companies and/or advisors to support their business growth, please this form and upload a copy of your resume. (For questions/more information, please email: BHI@BioHealthInnovation.org.)

Read More

Tomorrow and every day, we recognize the hashtag#RareDisease community on behalf of the Innate Pharma team. We do what we do because of you. hashtag#RareDiseaseDay hashtag#WRDD hashtag#HairyCellLeukemia hashtag#cutaneouslymphoma hashtag#SézarySyndrome hashtag#MycosisFungoides

Read More

Immunomic Therapeutics, Inc., a privately held clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering the study of nucleic acid immunotherapy platforms, announced today that it successfully completed a pre-IND (Investigational New Drug) meeting with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding its First-In-Human (FIH) Phase I trial and development plans for ITI-1001. The FDA addressed the Company’s questions and provided feedback on key components of the planned IND application for the candidate, ITI-1001, for the treatment of newly diagnosed Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM).

Read More

NEURALY ANNOUNCES FIRST PATIENT DOSED IN PHASE 2 CLINICAL TRIAL OF NLY01 FOR PATIENTS WITH PARKINSON’S DISEASE

Novel Mechanism of Action Inhibits Pathological Activation of Microglial Cells and Prevents Neuronal Cell Death

Neuraly, a clinical stage biotechnology company pioneering disease-modifying agents for neurodegenerative disorders, today announced the dosing of the first patient in its Phase 2 clinical trial of NLY01 for Parkinson’s disease.

“Current therapies for Parkinson’s disease provide only temporary symptomatic improvement and fail to slow or halt the relentless progression of the disease,” said Seulki Lee, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive Officer of Neuraly. “The initiation of this Phase 2 study is an important milestone in the ongoing advancement of NLY01 which we believe has the potential to be a ground-breaking therapy for Parkinson’s patients based on results we have seen to date in preclinical trials.”

Read More

A Cyber Living Innovation Lab with robotic platforms to evaluate 5G performance and a fleet of driverless cars will provide experiential learning opportunities to students from universities across the region as the anchor of George Mason University’s cybersecurity research expansion, thanks to $2.5 million in funding as part of a statewide initiative.

Read More

As part of the government-wide effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in U.S. communities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has updated a broad agency announcement (BAA) to focus specifically on products to diagnose, prevent or treat coronavirus infections.

The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), issued the BAA, BAA-18-100-SOL-00003-Amendment 13, to solicit proposals for advanced development and licensure of COVID-19 diagnostics, vaccines, or medicines such as therapeutics or antivirals.

“Amid the expanding global outbreak of COVID-19, Americans need diagnostics, vaccines, and medicines to mitigate the potential impact of this virus”, said BARDA Director Rick Bright, Ph.D. “To accelerate the availability of these lifesaving tools, BARDA took an important step today to request proposals for development of COVID-19 diagnostics, vaccines, or therapeutics, many of which will be developed using existing platform technologies to permit rapid development.”

Read More

PASADENA, Calif. and NEW YORK, March 6, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE), an urban office REIT and the first, longest-tenured and pioneering owner, operator and developer uniquely focused on collaborative life science, technology and agtech campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, and its executive chairman and founder, Joel S. Marcus, were honored to receive the 2020 Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award. This recognition highlights Alexandria’s contributions to our nation and unwavering support for the Naval Special Warfare community, as well as its embodiment of the values that epitomize the SEAL community. Congressional Medal of Honor recipient and retired U.S. Navy Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Britt Slabinski presented the prestigious award to Mr. Marcus yesterday evening during the Navy SEAL Foundation’s 12th annual New York City Benefit Dinner celebrating the Foundation’s 20th anniversary.

Read More

If you’ve been on the web to learn more about the latest pandemic, chances are you’ve stumbled upon at least one or two coronavirus dashboards. These are the landing pages for interactive maps and visuals that show where the virus has spread, as well as numbers on the latest in infection rates and deaths, breakdowns of what countries are suffering from new cases and what regions are likely seeing new outbreaks, and much more.

Image: UPCODE ACADEMY

Read More

The Maryland Economic Development Association (MEDA) is proud to announce the winners of the 2020 MEDA Awards. The 2020 awards, sponsored by Miles & Stockbridge P.C., recognize the exceptional people, programs and projects that bring economic prosperity to Maryland.

“We’d like to thank all who submitted a nomination for recognizing such deserving programs, projects and individuals, and our awards judges for their hard work determining the winners,” says Pamela Ruff, MEDA executive director. “The 2020 winners exemplify the Maryland communities that are going above and beyond when it comes to economic expansion and prosperity.”

Read More

Northern UK Trade Mission to the BioHealth Capital Region with British Department of Trade and Industry of the UK Embassy at AstraZeneca

Read More

The region’s politicians and business leaders are mourning the fact Baltimore stands to lose another headquarters of a prestigious, publicly traded company with the news that Legg Mason Inc. was acquired by Franklin Resources Inc. But investors should remain bullish about the city’s business future. The acquisition of Legg Mason was part of a natural cycle of industry consolidation and not a measure of Baltimore’s business climate. In fact, Baltimore and the surrounding region are poised to lead a business revolution in health.

Read More

As the world scrambles to monitor and contain the COVID-19 outbreak, drug companies are racing to develop or repurpose treatments to combat the potential pandemic. The death toll continues to climb. The first U.S. death associated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus was reported in Washington state February 29. As of March 2, according to the Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) at Johns Hopkins University, 3,048 people in 11 countries had died worldwide, nearly all of them (96% or 2,914) in China.

Image: Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Southwest Research Institute/Roman Tkachenko

Read More

What is Crab Pot?

The Crab Pot Pitch Competition is Southern Maryland’s premier pitch competition for entrepreneurs with cutting edge, disruptive and innovative technologies. Made popular by television shows like ABC’s “Shark Tank,” pitch contests provide an opportunity for entrepreneurs to present their ideas to a panel of judges or investors in front of an audience.

Crab Pot provides an opportunity for the community to celebrate the efforts of local entrepreneurs and innovators. Audience members get to see what entrepreneurs in Southern Maryland are up to. Crab Pot provides an opportunity for the community to celebrate the efforts of local entrepreneurs and innovators. Audience members get to see what entrepreneurs in Southern Maryland are up to. Entrepreneurs get to practice their pitches and win cash prizes. This year will be the 6th annual competition!

Read More

Facing record-high volatility and market uncertainty, one biotech is scheduled for the week ahead.

Formed by New Enterprise Associate’s orphan drug accelerator Cydan, genetic disorder biotech Imara (IMRA) plans to raise $76 million at a $301 million market cap. The Boston-based company’s sole candidate IMR-687 is a once-a-day therapy targeting sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia by inhibiting PDE9. It is expected to begin a Phase 2b trial in the 1H20. While there is significant unmet medical need for both disorders, it is a crowded space, with three products approved in 2019.

Read More

With more than 378 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. and more than 15 associated deaths, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is actively monitoring, and trying to contain, the transmission of the disease, called COVID-19.

In some cases, depending on risk level, the CDC may ask individuals or families to self-quarantine or remain in isolation. Here’s a look at what that means and tips for implementing such measures.

Read More

In this age of near-exclusive reliance on electronic communication, practically nobody asks for your number any longer — we just text, email or AirDrop critical identifiers.

However, some of us still must record our activities numerically, and innovators are certainly not immune from exchanging numbers — usually with interested leaders or colleagues, for the purpose of benchmarking.

Read More

This is our fourth annual STAT Madness, a bracket-style tournament to find the best innovations in science and medicine.

The second round of voting begins Monday, March 9 at 12 a.m. EDT and is open until Sunday, March 15 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.

Read More

The BioHealth Capital Region (BHCR) has a long history of leading the fight against new, frightening diseases, like Ebola and the novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) which is quickly spreading across the globe. Leading public health agencies such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and others believe the COVID-19 virus has the potential to reach pandemic levels as infection numbers rise beyond China’s borders.

Image: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/opsdashboard/index.html#/bda7594740fd40299423467b48e9ecf6

Read More

As one of the largest healthcare tech deals in 2020, Thermo Fisher is buying coronavirus diagnostics company Qiagen NV for €9 billion. QIAGEN is considered a leading global provider of molecular diagnostics and sample preparation technologies. The deal has been approved by the boards of directors at both companies as well as the managing board of QIAGEN.

Read More