544th Edition, January 31, 2023

ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Montgomery County companies had a record year of investment in 2022, with more than $29.9 billion in combined initial public offering (IPO), merger and acquisition, private investment and venture capital deals. That is an increase from $4 billion in 2020 and more than $18 billion in 2021. In all, Montgomery County had 144 deals across 126 companies in 2022.

“The record investment in Montgomery County companies is a testament to the region’s remarkable climate of business growth and innovation,” said Bill Tompkins, President and CEO of the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation. “We are a premier destination with a powerful network of existing businesses across a wide range of industries. Our deep talent pool, diverse and vibrant communities, and proximity to the federal agencies including the Departments of Transportation and Energy, FDA, and NIH position the County’s companies for success.”

QuartzBio, a Part of Precision for Medicine, Acquires SolveBio and Expands Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) Data Management Solutions for Clinical Research & Development (R&D)

QuartzBio’s suite of end-to-end SaaS solutions provides pharmaceutical and biotech clients with a fully connected data ecosystem linking sample, biomarker, and clinical data to improve collaboration, planning, and R&D productivity.

Frederick, MD – January 24, 2023 – Precision for Medicine, the first global, precision medicine clinical research services organization, today announced the strategic acquisition of SolveBio by QuartzBio.

SolveBio’s intelligent technologies and enterprise data management platform has integrated into QuartzBio’s suite of SaaS solutions, providing a single, scalable solution supporting clinical sample inventory management and biomarker data management for the biotech and pharmaceutical sectors.

By Alex Keown
January 24, 2023

BioHealth Innovation’s lofty goal of the BioHealth Capital Region (BHCR) achievement of “Top 3 by 2023” is not likely to be reached this year due to inflation and uncertain economic conditions.

That’s the assessment of Rich Bendis, President and Chief Executive Officer of BHI, who has championed the region’s transition into a top four biopharma hub in the United States. However, given the state of the economy and the amount of money being invested, Bendis said it is unrealistic to expect the region to move up the ranking of the top 10 life sciences regions compiled by Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN).

The Bear Institute, a pediatric health IT collaboration between Washington, D.C.-based Children’s National Hospital and Oracle Health, has named four startup companies as the winners of its second annual pediatric digital health innovation competition.

The competition, dubbed the Bear Institute Pediatric Accelerator Challenge for Kids, allows startups to share their innovations and receive feedback from judges while competing for a chance to win an on-site pilot and software development support, according to a Jan. 17 release from Children’s National.

Germantown’s Precigen Inc. (NASDAQ: PGEN) has raised $75 million in a public offering that closed Friday and intends to use the proceeds to speed development of its experimental treatments for multiple rare diseases.

The clinical-stage biotech, which is developing gene and cell therapies for cancers, autoimmune disorders and infectious diseases, sold 42.86 million shares of common stock for $1.75 each. The company also gave the underwriters an option to buy up to 6.43 million additional shares in the 30 days after it filed an updated prospectus Jan. 26 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

As many of us were winding down our work over the winter holidays, my colleagues at the University System of Maryland were putting the finishing touches on our 2022 Annual Report. And while the new year compels us to look ahead with purpose, the report gives us a chance to look back at what’s brought us to our place of strength.

The annual report breaks down progress on our five strategic priorities: Innovate the education we provide our students. Make that education accessible to all. Prepare students for jobs that will write Maryland’s future. Conduct and commercialize research that changes the world. Center equity and justice in everything we do.

Novavax Announces Plan to Deliver Updated Protein-based Vaccine Consistent with FDA Recommendations for 2023/2024 Vaccination Season at VRBPAC Meeting

Jan 27, 2023

FDA Advisory Committee votes to harmonize vaccine strain composition of primary series and booster doses Novavax’ protein-based option remains an important part of the current U.S. vaccine portfolio

Novavax participated in yesterday’s U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee’s (VRBPAC) meeting, which resulted in a unanimous vote recommending harmonizing vaccine strain composition of primary series and booster doses. During the meeting, Novavax shared data demonstrating that the Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine, Adjuvanted (NVX-CoV2373), when used as a booster induces a broad functional immune response, including against forward drift variants.

In conversation with Mathias Alder, CEO of Gain Therapeutics discussing his personal life insights and professional achievements in the field of Computational Drug Discovery. Matt Pillar:  A few months ago, I set out to learn as much about computational biology and as myriad applications in Biotech as I could. And on more than one occasion, that effort led me to a Zoom call with Matthias Alder. That my inquiry resulted in multiple opportunities to talk with Matthias made me happy. One, because he’s a really great guy, and two, because while his company’s drug discovery model leans heavily into proprietary structure based computational methods, he’s not one of these bombastic, over the top futurists who’s all in on relinquishing science to the algorithms. Just the opposite, he’s pragmatic and practical about the advantages and the limitations of deploying computational tools in an industry whose mission it is to save lives by injecting things into living human bodies.

The Technology Transfer Society – Washington D.C. chapter is running an Introduction to Technology Transfer and Commercialization course in conjunction with Montgomery College. The course will be given in a hybrid format to allow for both virtual and in-person attendance.

This course is intended to provide students with an overview of the entire technology transfer process – moving technologies from the lab to market. This course is a great overview for anyone interested in learning more about the operations of a technology transfer office or those looking to understand how to commercialize their own invention. Students will hear from experienced professionals to broaden their understanding of technology transfer.

This Spring 2023 course (SMB035) will take place starting February 8^th  on the Montgomery College Rockville Campus each Wednesday from 6-8:40 p.m. For more details on the course see here .

The biotechnology industry is one of the riskiest and the most challenging—but it is also one of the few that makes the difference between life and death.

In recent years, biotech has given us major breakthroughs: vaccines that provide protection from lethal viruses; a lupus treatment approved for use in children with the first new mechanism of action in more than 50 years; and significant progress in hematology with the approval of a bispecific antibody for multiple myeloma.

Image: Dinesh Patel, PhD, CEO of Protagonist Therapeutics (PTGX)

Pennovation Works, the 23-acre University of Pennsylvania property just across the Schuylkill River from the core campus, has long been a site for innovation. Home to a ferry business in the 18th century, a paint company in the 19th century, and a DuPont chemical research facility for much of the 20th century, the space underwent a further transformation in 2016 with the establishment of the Pennovation Center, an incubator for science and technology startups, many of which have their origins within the University. Last year, the 65,000 square foot Pennovation Lab opened, offering larger lab spaces for companies outgrowing their previous locations.

Image: A view of the new research, development, and biomanufacturing facility from the intersection of Grays Ferry Avenue and 34th Street on the Pennovation Works property. (Image: Longfellow Real Estate Partners)

By Cho KyooHong

On Jan. 9, the Ministry of Health and Welfare reported to President Yoon Suk Yeol concerning its 2023 plan, of which the main tasks include leaping forward as a leading country in the field of biohealth through human resource cultivation, deregulation and export support.

Noting that a large number of quality jobs can be created as the biohealth industry grows, President Yoon called for strong support from the government for domestic enterprises to be up to global standards, which requires a tax benefit corresponding to that of the semiconductor sector, capacity development and a solid industrial ecosystem.

Image: Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyoo-hong

At first glance, it seems like a rough time for venture capital, especially in the healthcare industry. Overall, venture investments in 2022 were down 35% from 2021, according to CB Insights, with digital health investments down over 50%. Biopharma investment beat the trend a little bit, according to Evaluate Vantage, down only 23% from the year before.

Image: Dimension founders Zavian Dar, Adam Goulburn and Nan LiDIMENSION