News

AstraZeneca today announced the successful completion of the acquisition of Gracell Biotechnologies Inc. (Gracell, NASDAQ: GRCL), a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative cell therapies for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, furthering AstraZeneca’s cell therapy ambition.

Washington DC: The heart of the BioHealth Capital Region

The BioHealth Capital Region (BHCR) encompasses Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C., and more than 1,800 life science and companies are established there. BHCR is among the top-performing biotech clusters in the U.S., with first-class educational facilities, innovative companies, and over 70 federal labs. While the area of Washington D.C. is smaller than Virginia and Maryland where companies are spread across, Washington is still a destination of choice with innovative biotech companies and events. 

The BHCR was ranked third biopharma cluster in the U.S. by Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News behind the San Francisco Bay Area and the Boston/Cambridge area. The criteria to measure the performance of these hubs were the National Institutes of Health funding, venture capital funding, the number of biotechnology patents, the total lab space, and the number of jobs. This region, with Washington D.C. at its heart, is one of the most dynamic in the biotech industry.

Contention over the Bayh-Dole march-in rights provision is in the news again. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) proposes using the process as a “back door” for drug price controls. In comments on NIST’s Draft Interagency Guidance Framework for Considering the Exercise of March-In Rights, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) states that the clause cannot be used for price controls.

First Lady Jill Biden announces funding as first major deliverable from new White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research 

As the first major deliverable of the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), today announced the ARPA-H Sprint for Women’s Health, which commits $100 million towards transformative research and development in women’s health. ARPA-H, which was created in 2022 as part of President Biden’s bipartisan Unity Agenda, seeks to advance and accelerate health solutions. 

COLUMBIA, Md. (February 21, 2024) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced the findings of an independent economic impact study detailing the contributions of TEDCO’s six core programs to the state of Maryland. 

Conducted by the University of Baltimore’s Jacob France Institute, the study found that TEDCO continues to be a significant economic driving force in Maryland creating nearly $2.7 billion in statewide economic activity as of 2023.  TEDCO has invested in or supported the growth of a portfolio of 442 of Maryland’s leading technology companies, more than doubling the number of companies identified in the first TEDCO impact study in 2008.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Feb. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS), a global company providing solutions that address public health threats and delivering life-extending products to market, today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Joseph C. Papa as president and CEO, effective February 21, 2024. Mr. Papa succeeds Haywood Miller, who will step down from his role as interim CEO, effective February 21, 2024.

“Following a thorough search process, we are pleased to appoint Joe Papa as president and CEO of Emergent,” said Zsolt Harsanyi, Ph.D., chairman of the Board of Directors. “He is a recognized industry leader with unparalleled experience in all facets of the pharmaceutical and healthcare industry. Joe has a solid track record of driving growth and successfully navigating companies through periods of transformation. His leadership will be instrumental in strengthening Emergent’s balance sheet and returning to growth, as we continue to deliver on our mission to protect and enhance life. On behalf of the Board, I would also like to thank Haywood Miller for his leadership and contributions during this interim period.”

The National Institutes of Health is investing $515 million more into long COVID research efforts, three years after launching the initiative with $1.15 billion.

The cash infusion for the Recover program, announced Tuesday, will bolster ongoing research into the underlying biology and potential treatments for long COVID. NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., said in a release that nearly 90,000 people were participating in ongoing Recover observational trials across more than 300 sites. 

By Sara Gilgore – Staff Reporter, Washington Business Journal – Feb 15, 2024 – 

It was her mother’s 86th birthday when Michelle Riley-Brown received a call that would change the trajectory of her career.

Holding the phone to her ear in her Houston home on March 3, 2023, the veteran health executive learned she was not only the first woman — but the first African American woman — to be named president and CEO of Children’s National Hospital in D.C.

The New Orleans native and youngest of five siblings — four of whom went into health care — immediately thought of her late father, a general surgeon who dedicated his life to medicine.

In January, a team of multidisciplinary doctors performed the first case in the world of using bilateral high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) pallidotomy on Jesus, a 22-year-old patient with dyskinetic cerebral palsy.

The procedure is part of a clinical trial led by Chima Oluigbo, M.D., pediatric neurosurgeon at Children’s National Hospital.

FREDERICK, Md., Feb. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Waisman Biomanufacturing, a leading contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) which is strategically part of the University of Wisconsin Madison, announced today a strategic partnership with RoosterBio, Inc., a leading provider of human mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs), highly engineered media solutions, and bioprocess development services.

Through this collaboration, Waisman Biomanufacturing will incorporate RoosterBio’s cutting-edge MSC and exosome bioprocessing products, manufacturing protocols, and analytical services into its portfolio of biologics manufacturing services, expanding Waisman Biomanufacturing’s capabilities for the production of advanced therapies for clinical trials.