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The life sciences industry is seeing tremendous growth in Maryland, particularly in the D.C. suburb of Montgomery County. With nearly $6B invested in life sciences ventures in 2021 alone and more than 40,000 life sciences workers in the state, Montgomery County is the anchor of the fourth-largest biotech hub in the U.S.

The county’s life sciences market continues to expand its footprint with more biotech and pharmaceutical companies setting up shop in Rockville and other areas, drawn in by its skilled workforce. Also fueling the growth is the Montgomery County Economic Development Corp., which helps companies expand, relocate or start in the county. 

“We have the skilled labor force, the support of local universities, the Maryland Tech Council and a diverse population to help expand life sciences not only in Montgomery County but the state of Maryland,” MCEDC Senior Vice President of Business Development Brad Stewart said.

Precigen Receives FDA Clearance of IND to Initiate Phase 2 Study of PRGN-2009 Off-the-Shelf AdenoVerse Immunotherapy in Combination with Pembrolizumab to Treat Patients with Recurrent or Metastatic Cervical Cancer
Published: May 31, 2023

– HPV is responsible for more than 90 percent of cervical cancer cases globally with approximately 300,000 women living with cervical cancer in the US –

– Current response rates to second line treatments in recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer are very low and associated with a high rate of toxicity –

– PRGN-2009 is designed to generate de novo T-cell immune response against HPV 16/18-positive solid tumors cells and is differentiated from other platforms due to the ability of gorilla adenovectors to enable repeat administrations –

– PRGN-2009 Phase 1 data to be presented at the 2023 ASCO annual meeting on June 3 (Abstract # 2628); PRGN-2009 in combination with a checkpoint inhibitor demonstrated a favorable safety profile and resulted in a 30% ORR in patients with heavily pre-treated HPV-associated cancers, including those who have previously failed checkpoint inhibitors –

– Phase 2 study of PRGN-2009 is in combination with pembrolizumab in the second line setting in patients with recurrent or metastatic cervical cancer previously treated with pembrolizumab for recurrent or metastatic disease –

– CMC path in place to support delivery of product for Phase 2 study as well as future framework to support potential pivotal trials –

COLUMBIA, Md. (May 23, 2023) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a Venture Funds investment of $300,000 into Pathotrak, a biotechnology company.

Javier Atencia“Until Pathotrak, producers would need to wait for the results of pathogen tests, leading to costly warehousing and refrigeration costs,” said Javier Atencia, CEO and founder of Pathotrak. “Through our innovative solution, we are eliminating this need by cutting down the time it takes to get results, which will also help prevent costly recalls and food waste.”

Pathotrak, based in College Park, Md., is a business with the mission to create a world with fresher and safer food using cost-efficient innovative technology. This technology will allow the expedition of foodborne pathogen detection, providing companies and producers with faster results, and ultimately shortening what is typically a 22-hour process down to under six hours. This rapid detection process has the potential to decrease food waste, allowing products to be placed on shelves up to an entire day earlier while also reducing the costs of food production—from the costly warehousing and refrigeration processes to the expensive recalls.

Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR) Team Continues Growth With National Institutes of Health (NIH)

ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, May 30, 2023 – BioHealth Innovation Inc. (BHI) proudly welcomes Claire Leurent, Ph.D. MBA, to its expanding Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (EIR) team. As part of BHI’s commitment to advancing disruptive technologies in healthcare, the Entrepreneur-in-Residence Program ensures that these innovations receive the necessary resources to transition from discovery to commercialization and make a measurable impact on human health. Claire will collaborate with the NIH Seed Program, supporting scientists, early-stage startups, and licensed technologies.

“We are excited to have Claire Leurent join our EIR team as we continue our collaboration with the National Institutes of Health,” said Richard Bendis, President and CEO of BHI. “Claire’s extensive expertise in venture capital investment and drug development perfectly aligns with our mission to drive innovation and transformative healthcare solutions.”

With a venture capital investor background and hands-on experience leading drug development from scientific discovery to registration studies, Claire Leurent is driven by her passion for science and dedication to improving lives through transformative technologies and business models. Her dynamic perspective and commitment to progress make her an invaluable addition to the BHI team.

Rockville, MD, United States, May 23, 2023 – Advanced BioScience Laboratories (ABL), a global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) for biotherapies,
oncolytics and viral vector vaccines, today announces it has been awarded a contract for ‘Resources to Advance Pediatrics and HIV Prevention Science (RAPPS)’ by the Division of AIDS
(DAIDS) within the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

This seven-year contract has a total potential funding value of $98.9 million. ABL will provide DAIDS with (i) preclinical gap-filling, (ii) animal models, (iii) bioanalytical services, (iv)
product manufacturing and (v) other scientific and quality/regulatory services to support preclinical research, development of pediatric formulations and advancement of next generation non-vaccine Biomedical HIV Prevention products (nBPs) such as IntraVaginal Rings (IVRs), long-acting injectables and Multipurpose Prevention Technologies (MPTs) composed of a combination of drugs that can target prevention of pregnancy, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and/or HIV.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., May 25, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Hememics Biotechnologies, Inc., developer of first-in-class, handheld, multiplexed biosensor platform that can test antibodies, antigens and molecular targets simultaneously, announced today the closing of a $2 million Seed 2 financing round. Participants of this round include a strategic investor, existing investors and Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO).

“I am extremely proud of what the company has achieved with the limited amount of resources,” said John Warden, Jr., CEO and Co-founder of Hememics Biotechnologies, Inc. “We have generated extremely favorable results from more than 100,000 biosensor experiments in the past nine months. The new funding will allow us to finalize our design, receive third-party validation, and develop early commercial customers.” 

ROCKVILLE, Md., May 23, 2023 /PRNewswire/ —REGENXBIO Inc. (Nasdaq: RGNX) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Regenerative Medicine Advanced Therapy (RMAT) designation for RGX-121, an investigational one-time AAV Therapeutic for the treatment of Mucopolysaccharidosis Type II (MPS II), also known as Hunter syndrome. RMAT designation is designed to expedite the drug development and review processes for promising new treatments, including gene therapies, and recognizes that the preliminary clinical evidence from RGX-121 indicates its potential to address unmet medical needs for MPS II. RGX-121 is currently being studied in the CAMPSIITE™ trial that is enrolling MPS II patients as part of a pivotal program that incorporates material from the NAVXpress™ platform process manufactured at the REGENXBIO Manufacturing Innovation Center and continues to support plans to file Biologics License Application (BLA) in 2024 using the accelerated approval pathway.