538th Edition, December 20, 2022

The Richmond area partnership that’s been working to revolutionize U.S. drug making has reached another milestone with the opening of a new lab space in the city.

Two groups – Phlow Corp. and U.S. Pharmacopeia – announced the opening of new laboratories that are co-located at the Advanced Pharmaceutical Development Center at the Virginia Biotechnology Park in Richmond.

Two new labs are aiming to research and develop new manufacturing technologies in the pharmaceutical industry. Those technologies are expected to benefit other pharma and biotechnology companies.

Research and development at the labs is focused on using new advanced manufacturing techniques to make “small molecule” active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), and key starting materials (KSMs). It is hoped that those processes can be used to make essential drugs more efficiently and in a more cost effective manner.

Click here to read more via Richmond.com

–   Single infusion of UltraCAR-T cells with or without lymphodepletion demonstrated robust expansion and persistence in blood and bone marrow –

–   PRGN-3006 infusion with lymphodepletion resulted in a decrease in bone marrow blasts in 60% of heavily pre-treated patients –

–   Single infusion of autologous PRGN-3006 cells resulted in 27% objective response rate (ORR) in heavily pre-treated relapsed or refractory (r/r) acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients infused following lymphodepletion –

–  PRGN-3006 was well-tolerated with no dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs) reported to date –

GERMANTOWN, Md., Dec. 12, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Precigen, Inc., a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of innovative gene and cell therapies to improve the lives of patients, today presented positive Phase 1 dose escalation data from the ongoing Phase 1/1b clinical study of PRGN-3006 UltraCAR-T® in patients with r/r AML and higher risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) (clinical trial identifier: NCT03927261) at the 64th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition (Abstract# 4633). The presentation was delivered by David A. Sallman, MD, Assistant Member in the Department of Malignant Hematology at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute (Moffitt) and a lead investigator for the PRGN-3006 clinical trial.

Novo Holdings and experienced venture capitalists on both sides of the Atlantic have come together to create a new fund focused on rare diseases. Led by VCs who spent years at Lundbeckfonden Ventures and NEA, Sound Bioventures will use its initial 110 million euros ($124 million) to back biotechs that are either in or on the cusp of the clinic.

Image: Novo Holdings framed its interest in Sound Bioventures as about more than just generating a return on investment. ((Pixabay))

The Gaithersburg biotech, which also detailed changes to a U.K. sales agreement for its Covid vaccine, saw its share price drop in after-hours trading.

The founders of Fermi Energy have an idea which, if it pans out, could revolutionize the auto industry.

That industry is already seeing the rise of electric vehicles, but electric vehicles are hampered by one thing: Their batteries require nickel and cobalt, two elements that must be imported. Fermi founders Feng Lin and Zhengrui Xu believe they can use other elements (they won’t say which ones for proprietary reasons) to achieve the same energy output, reduce the charging time – and cut costs by 20%.

Image: Here's the lab space under construction at the Virginia Tech Corporate Research Center. Photo by Dwayne Yancey.

TUCSON, AZ and COLLEGE PARK, MD / ACCESSWIRE / December 15, 2022 / Research parks, innovation districts and related entities across the United States should prepare and strategize now to compete for federal funding from the recently enacted CHIPS and Science Act of 2022, according to a new white paper from AURP, the leading nonprofit organization representing research parks and innovation districts.

The white paper, prepared by Brian Darmody, AURP Chief Strategy Officer, showcases a dynamic range of ways organizations and institutions – such as research parks, innovation districts, businesses, universities, federal labs, states, regions and local communities – engaged in science and technology-based economic development can leverage the unprecedented amount of federal grant funding authorized in the CHIPS and Science Act.

Download the White Paper by Clicking Here

Since 2000, global investment in research and development (R&D) has tripled to $2.4 trillion.

R&D spend is also casting a wider global net. In 1960, the U.S. made up nearly 70% of global R&D spending, and by 2020 this had fallen to 30%. From job creation and public health to national security and industrial competitiveness, R&D plays a vital role in a country’s economic growth and innovation, impacting nearly every corner of society—either directly or indirectly.

Image: https://www.visualcapitalist.com