354th Edition – May 21, 2019

At AURP’s BIO Health Caucus, we will explore trends in life science research, opportunity zone funding resources, the marriage of life science and philanthropy in global partnership opportunities. Discover the unique roles that biomedical innovation cluster and research parks play in innovation ecosystems around the globe. Translating discoveries from the lab to the market has never been more important. Connect with AURP at booth #3955 or One-on-One Partnering! 

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The net proceeds from the IPO, along with NextCure’s cash on hand, will largely be used to drive its lead product, NC318, through clinical trials and testing.

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Viela Bio today announced results from a pivotal study of its anti-CD19 monoclonal antibody, inebilizumab, in patients with neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) — a rare autoimmune disease characterized by unpredictable attacks that often lead to severe, irreparable disability including blindness and paralysis. Results were presented today during the Clinical Trials Plenary Session at the 2019 American Academy of Neurology (AAN 2019) Annual Meeting held in Philadelphia from May 4-10.

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BioHealth Innovation has announced the schedule for the next year’s Entrepreneur-in Residence (EIR) feedback sessions. These 1:1 Sessions with EIRs take place at BioHealth Innovation’s office in Rockville OR by videoconference. There is no charge to participate but entrepreneurs must be working on a biohealth Start-Ups/innovation in the BioHealth Capital Region (MD, DC, VA). The upcoming dates are:

2019: 5/22, 7/24, 9/4, 10/9, 11/20

2020: 1/22, 2/26, 3/25, 4/22, 5/27

Schedule your appointment online here. For questions or more information, contact BHI.

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The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) will begin procuring Emergent BioSolutions’ anthrax vaccine into the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS) to strengthen U.S. preparedness in the event of a public health threat, the company said on Wednesday.

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Qternmet XR (AstraZeneca) as an adjunct to diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

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It’s not often a piece of property with existing research facilities in a perfect location comes on the market.

So when a 12-acre portion of the former Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus in Washington, D.C., became available a few years ago, it was too good an opportunity for Children’s National Health System to pass up. The pediatric research hospital is now in the midst of building a new $190 million pediatric research and innovation campus on the site that is expected to open in 2020.

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The U.S. government invests a significant amount of money to further research and technology innovation. In 2017, the federal government invested approximately $150 billion in R&D— about one-third at the 17 federal laboratories across the country and two-thirds at universities and private sector R&D institutions, according to government reports. This represents about one-third of all U.S. R&D spending.

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The submission to Arlington County ends months of speculation.

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The angel investor market in 2018 experienced an increase in market participation in more companies, albeit at smaller amounts, according to the Center for Venture Research at the University of New Hampshire. Total angel investments in 2018 were $23.1 billion, a negligible decrease of 3.4% over 2017. A total of 66,110 entrepreneurial ventures received angel funding in 2018, an increase of 7.4% over 2017 investments. The number of active investors in 2018 rose to 334,565 as compared to 288,380 in 2017, a robust increase of 16%. The change in total dollars and the number of investments resulted in a deal size for 2018 that was smaller than in 2017, reflecting lower valuations. The increase in number of investments likely offsets a decline in activity by institutional investors in seed and start-up deals and the smaller deal size may have partially contributed to the increase in angel investors.

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AS A CHILD, Susan Hockfield took apart anything she got her hands on to figure out how it worked. One time it was a watch, another time her mother’s iron. Her interest in the anatomy of the physical world grew over time: She pursued a career in neurobiology, and went on to teach at Yale University, where she eventually became provost. In 2005 she became the first female president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology — and its first biologist-president.

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Venture capital firms are starting to launch and raise funds to invest in companies located in designated Opportunity Zones, where investors can get ..

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If 2017 was a banner year for biotech venture capital, 2018 blew it out of the water. Last year, private biotech companies reeled in a grand total of $16.8 billion, eclipsing 2017’s then-record $12.1 billion by 39%. And it wasn’t just the total spent that smashed records: The average per financing round increased too, and so did the proportion of enormous megarounds.

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Alexis Borisy, Third Rock Ventures partner, discusses the fund’s biotech investment strategy on “Bloomberg Technology

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Vaccine development has slowed over the past five years, but changes to investment strategies and a shift in focus to more technical and complex vaccines could renew the innovation engine.

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The company will use the funding to grow two business lines.

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The Maryland Stem Cell Research Commission (Commission) has approved funding to its second round of 2019 recipients for a total of $6,622,673.63. The Commission has also issued its Request for Applications (RFAs) for its first round of funding for fiscal year 2020.

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NextStep Robotics Inc., an early-stage company that has developed a personalized robotic therapy to help treat foot drop in recovering stroke patients, announces the closing of its second funding round. The $600,000 round will allow NextStep to transition from prototyping and development to manufacturing and sales. Led by the Abell Foundation, a new investor, this round includes investments from previous private investors from Vancouver, Canada and new investors the Abell Foundation, University of Maryland (UM) Ventures, and Jeff and Brad Quinn of Engineered Medical Systems, Inc. (EMS), a partner company of the newly-formed LaunchPort™ Accelerator.

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Protenus, a Baltimore data security company, has raised $13 million in new equity financing, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

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