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Maryland Manufacturing Extension Partnership joins City/County consortium to expand third Biotech Bootcamp in Frederick

FREDERICK, MD. (PRWEB) DECEMBER 01, 2022

Following the completion of two successful sessions, Frederick Community College, Frederick County Workforce Services, The City of Frederick Department of Economic Development, and the Frederick County Office of Economic Development are pleased to announce the next “Biotech Bootcamp” will be held in Frederick in January 2023. Maryland Manufacturing Extension Partnership (Maryland MEP) has joined the Frederick consortium to provide additional programming support aimed at expanding the program’s footprint in the future.

A year marked mostly by biopharma mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the hundreds of millions of dollars could end with a blockbuster, depending how far Horizon Therapeutics (HZNP) gets, and how quickly its talks with a trio of potential suitors, all of them being corporate giants.

Horizon shares jumped 27% from $78.76 to $100.29 on Wednesday, the first trading day after the company announced that it was in M&A talks with Amgen (AMGN), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)’s Janssen Global Services, and Sanofi (SAN, SNY), confirming a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Over the past four fiscal years, there have been 1,977 initial public offerings (IPOs) completed by companies headquartered in the U.S., according to PitchBook, yielding more than $549 billion in capital invested. These companies are located in 45 states, D.C., and Puerto Rico. Almost 20% of those companies are no longer publicly held, having been returned to private ownership, been acquired, merged or gone out of business.

Across the four years, data shows a spike of IPO size and count in 2021, with a total IPO count of 956 and total IPO size of $315.7 billion for the year.

Image: https://ssti.org

After creating the satellite-radio industry and developing a drug for her daughter’s serious disease, Martine Rothblatt is leading her biotech to test another boundary of what’s possible.

The 68-year-old entrepreneur’s newest mission is to create an endless supply of organs. Her company, the $12 billion Maryland-based biotech United Therapeutics, has already put gene-edited pig hearts, lungs, and kidneys into humans in clinical studies. Rothblatt now hopes to start making organs with 3D printing to solve the organ-supply crisis, with over 100,000 Americans on waiting lists for transplants.

Image: Martine Rothblatt, CEO of United Therapeutics, previously founded the satellite-radio pioneer SiriusXM. Elijah Nouvelage/REUTERS

Cancer continues to be a leading cause of mortality worldwide, accounting for nearly 10 million deaths in 2020. Alongside growing incidence rates each year, knowledge of molecular and tumor biology has also increased and notably affected cancer treatment paradigms. Until recently, cancer therapeutics focused on four main types of treatment: surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and targeted therapy. However, over the past ten years, immunotherapy has emerged as a novel and revolutionary approach to cancer treatment.

There is a new revolution of technology emerging based on the understanding of sub-atomic physics: quantum. This revolution leverages advanced scientific understanding and engineering capabilities at the sub-atomic level to create new solutions across critical domains such as computing, sensing, cryptography, materials, and communications. Through particle-level precision controls, technologies may provide uniquely powerful, fast, and precise capabilities that will benefit society.

You’ve Created the Technology. Put It to Work with I-Corps.

I-Corps at NIH is an entrepreneurship training program specifically designed for companies that received Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer funding from NIH and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). During this 8-week, hands-on program, you’ll learn how to focus your business plan and get the tools to bring your treatment to the patients who need it most.

I-Corps Program Benefits

• Get funding up to $55,000 to cover program costs.
• Receive training from biotech sector experts.
• Expand your professional network.
• Build the confidence and skills to create a comprehensive business model.
• Gain years of entrepreneurial skills in only weeks.

Questions about the program should be directed to the agency contact at your awarding NIH/CDC institute or to one of the contacts in the table below.

Expedited Bill 31-22 will alter eligibility requirements of the Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer Matching Grant Program

ROCKVILLE, Md., Nov. 29, 2022—Today the Montgomery County Council unanimously passed legislation that will fuel economic development by providing the County Executive with greater flexibility regarding the administration of the County’s program to match federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer grants. The legislation is sponsored by Planning, Housing and Economic Development (PHED) Committee Chair Hans Riemer and Councilmembers Will Jawando and Andrew Friedson, who sit on the PHED Committee.

Illumina Accelerator alum Polaris Genomics is investigating how genomics can help diagnose post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health issues. The Maryland-based company is developing genomic panels that could more objectively screen people for PTSD and help them get the care they need.

“Our mission is to make these invisible wounds visible using the power of genomics,” says Polaris Co-Founder and CEO Charles Cathlin. “We believe genomics is a driving force to connect mental illness to its biological underpinnings. By doing that, we can decrease the stigma, suffering, silence, and suicide.”

Image: Polaris Chief Medical Officer Dr. Anne Naclerio and Polaris Co-Founder and CEO Charles Cathlin | Photo: Noah Willman