280th Edition – November 21, 2017

The Johns Hopkins University and Deerfield Management announced today the creation of Bluefield Innovations, a collaboration designed to catalyze the development of early stage therapeutics. Funded by Deerfield, an investment management firm committed to advancing health care, Bluefield Innovations will provide up to $65 million in initial funding over five years to support the commercialization of early stage therapeutic research at Johns Hopkins, with additional funding available to advance research that shows strong commercial potential.

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Date and time: Tuesday, 21 November 5:00PM – 8:00PM EST  

Location: MedImmune 1 Medimmune Way Gaithersburg, MD 20878 United States

HBA Mid-Atlantic presents a panel of successful diverse women from the public and private healthcare sectors to share their experiences on harnessing one’s power.

• Primary Competency: 8. Builds relationships and teams
• Secondary Competency: 12. Continues to learn, grow and transform

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Bioterrorism threats and infectious disease outbreaks are on the rise. Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (EBS) has a stream of revenues from FDA-approved drugs, as well as a full pipeline of drugs under development, to combat these health threats.

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QIAGEN N.V. (NASDAQ: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) today launched enhancements in its QIAGEN Clinical Insight (QCI) bioinformatics software automating the AMP/ASCO/CAP Standards and Guidelines for the Interpretation and Reporting of Sequence Variants in Cancer, advancing precision medicine with the first solution to offer molecular pathologists critical information needed to guide oncologists’ treatment decisions.

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David Narrow said the life of an entrepreneur is fast-paced and at times very stressful, but he has never loved any job more.

His medical technology firm, Sonavex, recently raised $3 million and took up new office space in Canton. The company is currently working on commercializing its product, which uses ultrasound technology to detect potentially harmful, post-surgical blood clots.

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When: December 20th, 2017 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Where: Bar Louie 150 Gibbs St. Rockville MD 20850

Join BioBuzz and annual sponsor Biohealth Innovation, Inc. to celebrate the holiday season and last BioBuzz event of the year. The celebration will be at Bar Louie in the Rockville Town Center on December 20th, 2017 from 5 – 7pm. Only a 5 minute walk from the Rockville Metro, please join us for this exciting event.

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AstraZeneca and its Maryland-based biologics research and development arm, MedImmune, announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency has adopted a positive opinion, recommending benralizumab as an add-on maintenance treatment in adult patients with a type of severe asthma.

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University System of Maryland (USM) Chancellor Robert L. Caret was elected chair today of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) Board of Directors. He succeeds University of Virginia President Teresa A. Sullivan.

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That Indians are not only heading global IT giants like Google and Microsoft but also a number of startups in diverse sectors, including biotechnology, across the US is evident from the fact that of the 52 companies operating out of the two innovation hubs in Rockville and Germantown in Maryland 11 are either headed or run by Indians.

From mobile technology platform connecting doctors and patients to pre-market cybersecurity for IoT (Internet of Things) devices, Indian Americans are the driving force behind several firms at the two innovation hubs managed by BioHealth Innovation, Inc, a non-profit public-private partnership, which aids early stage biotechnology companies from research to commercialization.

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The Inova Health System will formally open its doors to new ideas by launching its personalized health accelerator on Nov. 30.

The event begins at 6:15 p.m. and will be held at the Inova Center for Personalized Health at 3225 Gallows Rd. in Fairfax. It includes a ribbon cutting, networking, keynote speeches and a tour of the facility.

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A team of five Johns Hopkins University students won first place and $5,000 at the fifth annual Pfizer Case Competition at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School earlier this month.

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LOCATION: Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR), 9600 Gudelsky Dr., Rockville, MD 20850

TIME: Thursday, November 30, 2017 – 3:00pm to 5:00pm

NIIMBL was formed to leverage a $70 million cost-shared agreement sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) into a $270 million public-private partnership to promote innovative technologies in bio-manufacturing in America. This information session will provide an overview of NIIMBL and explain how your organization can get involved!

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Fifteen Johns Hopkins scientists are among 3,000 individuals included on the annual Highly Cited Researchers list compiled by Clarivate Analytics, which was previously part of Thomson Reuters.

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Funding and Research Opportunities

The following funding opportunity announcements from the NHLBI or other components of the National Institutes of Health, might be of interest:

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FDA approval based on Phase III program demonstrating up to 51% reduction in asthma exacerbations, significant improvement in lung function and a 75% reduction in daily oral steroid use

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It just wouldn’t feel like a Friday without some Trump cabinet intrigue so with that in mind, Alex Azar, the former president of Lilly’s U.S. business, has been tipped to be the next Secretary of Health and Human Services, according to Bloomberg. If he’s approved, Azar would succeed Tom Price, who resigned from the post amidst fallout over the cost of his extensive use of government travel via military and private jets.

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Inova Health System’s venture capital arm has been busy over the last year.

Since starting Inova Strategic Investments, Inova has closed three new direct company investments and two fund investments.

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Six years ago, at age 49, Julie Gregory paid an online service to sequence her genes, hoping to turn up clues about her poor circulation, blood-sugar swings and general ill health. Instead she learned she had a time bomb hidden in her DNA: two copies of a gene variant, ApoE4, that is strongly linked to Alzheimer’s. Most Americans with this genotype go on to develop late-onset dementia.

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High-income countries are grappling with the challenge of caring for aging populations, many of whose members have chronic illnesses and declining capacity to manage activities of daily living. The 2017 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey of Older Adults in eleven countries showed that US seniors were sicker than their counterparts in other countries and, despite universal coverage under Medicare, faced more financial barriers to health care.

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Scientists for the first time have tried editing a gene inside the body in a bold attempt to permanently change a person’s DNA to cure a disease.

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For the first time, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a digital pill — a medication embedded with a sensor that can tell doctors whether, and when, patients take their medicine.

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The Society of Physician Entrepreneurs and the MBA Collaborative Alumni Angel Group, in conjunction with NIH, cordially invite you to join us for our next meeting:

December 13, 5:00 – 8:30 PM, at: Institute for Bioscience & Biotechnology Research, 9600 Gudelsky Drive, Rockville, MD,

This program will be focused on start-up and emerging biotech, pharmaceutical, and healthcare companies. Referrals are coming from NIH officials and consultants as well as SoPE/CAAG members and affiliates as well as direct applications to SoPE or CAAG.

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When: Tuesday, December 5, 2017 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. EST

Where: All Set Restaurant & Bar 8630 Fenton St. Silver Spring, MD 20910

It’s that time of the year again! Please join Capital Region chapter of Women In Bio as we celebrate the conclusion of an amazing 2017 at All Set Restaurant & Bar in Silver Spring, MD. Come mix & mingle with friends old and new over drinks and hors d’oeuvres, learn about the opportunities and resources that you have access to as WIB members, and participate in our raffle to win exciting prices!

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Date: Thursday, November 30, 2017

Location: Inova Center for Personalized Health3225 Gallows Road, Fairfax, VA 22031

Technology innovation continues to accelerate at an exponential rate, constantly outpacing the status quo and redefining limitations. Personal healthcare stands to benefit from these newfound opportunities.

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