BioHealth Innovation Weekly for December 10, 2024

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December 10, 2024

BHI at TEDCO’s 10th Entrepreneur Expo: A Celebration of Maryland’s Innovation Ecosystem

On December 4th, TEDCO hosted its 10th Entrepreneur Expo in Baltimore, bringing together over 1,000 entrepreneurs, investors, and industry leaders for a day of connection, learning, and celebration. As a premier event in Maryland, the Expo showcased the state’s vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem through workshops, roundtable discussions, and exhibitions, featuring 95 speakers and 84 companies, including 34 startups. The BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI) team was proud to participate in this dynamic gathering, further strengthening its commitment to fostering growth and commercialization in the BioHealth Capital Region.

Children’s National, FDA collaborate to advance pediatric device regulatory tools

WASHINGTON (Dec. 4, 2024) — In a significant collaboration to help advance pediatric health, Children’s National Hospital and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories (OSEL) in the Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) have signed a five-year research collaboration agreement to develop regulatory science tools (RSTs) intended to assist in the technical evaluation of pediatric and perinatal medical devices.

This partnership aims to address long-standing challenges in testing novel medical devices for children and for perinatal care. By sharing de-identified clinical data and leveraging advanced technologies such as multimodal imaging and machine learning, the collaboration will generate data that may help inform the design and development of new pediatric and perinatal device-centered RSTs.

NextCure Secures FDA IND Approval to Launch Phase 1 Trial of LNCB74 Antibody-Drug Conjugate for Cancer

BELTSVILLE, Md., Dec. 10, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NextCure, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXTC), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company committed to discovering and developing novel, first-in-class, and best-in-class therapies to treat cancer, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) accepted an Investigational New Drug (IND) application for initiation of a Phase 1 clinical trial to evaluate LNCB74, a B7-H4-targeting antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) as a therapeutic for treating multiple cancers.

FY25 MBIA Commercialization Innovation Grant Applications Open December 10

The Maryland Business Innovation Association (MBIA), with support from TEDCO, has announced the launch of the FY25 MBIA Commercialization Innovation Grant (MCIG). Designed to provide strategic funding to Maryland-based innovative companies, the program opens its application window on Tuesday, December 10, at 12pm noon ET. The MCIG offers eligible companies the opportunity to secure funding that supports entrepreneurial advancement and commercialization efforts, driving growth in Maryland’s innovation ecosystem and economy.

BDC and Maryland Department of Commerce Announce Board of Estimates Approval of Conditional Loan for 4MLK Flex Lab Space

Baltimore, MD—The Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC) and the Maryland Department of Commerce are pleased to announce the Baltimore City Board of Estimates' approval of a $200,000 conditional loan to support the establishment of 4MLK Connect Labs, a state-of-the-art flex lab space in the University of Maryland BioPark in Baltimore, Maryland. This joint funding effort marks a significant step toward strengthening Maryland’s position as a national leader in the life sciences industry.

The $200,000 convertible loan from Baltimore City, combined with the state’s $2 million conditional loan, awarded through Advantage Maryland (formally known as MEDAAF), will fund specialized scientific lab equipment for approximately 35,000 square feet of flex lab space. The space will be operated by 4MLK Connect Labs JV LLC, a joint venture formed by affiliates of Wexford Science & Technology, LLC, and Ventas, Inc. It is projected to create at least 100 full-time permanent jobs in Baltimore by 2028.

Advancing MRI Metabolic Imaging: Join NCI's Upcoming Technology Opportunity Webinar

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) Technology Transfer Center is hosting a webinar on an exciting new technology that could revolutionize MRI metabolic imaging. Scheduled for Wednesday, December 18, 2024, at 11:00 AM ET, this free webinar will introduce a novel Signal Amplification By Reversible Exchange (SABRE) catalyst technology, co-developed by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and NCI. This innovation promises to enhance MRI imaging capabilities, enabling groundbreaking advancements in the detection and monitoring of cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and traumatic brain injury.

Cartesian Reports Positive Phase 2b Results for Descartes-08 in Myasthenia Gravis and Previews Phase 3 Trial

FREDERICK, Md., Dec. 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: RNAC) (the “Company”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company pioneering mRNA cell therapy for autoimmune diseases, today announced updated efficacy and safety data from the Phase 2b trial of Descartes-08 in participants with generalized myasthenia gravis (MG) and provided details on the design of its planned Phase 3 AURORA trial. The updated data will be presented today at the 2^nd Annual Cell Therapy for Autoimmune Disease Summit being held in Philadelphia.

Annapolis' Alphyn Granted U.S. Patent Covering First-in-Class Treatment for Atopic Dermatitis

ANNAPOLIS, Md., Dec. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Alphyn, a clinical-stage dermatology company developing first-in-class Multi-Target Therapeutics^®, announced today that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted the company a patent covering compositions and methods of use for the drug formulation of Zabalafin Hydrogel (AB-101a) for atopic dermatitis (AD). The patent covers Zabalafin Hydrogel through 2042 and is eligible for listing in the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Orange Book, which provides additional protective benefits once Zabalafin Hydrogel receives FDA approval.

Frederick's Alithea Genomics Launches Full-Length DRUG-Seq to Unlock Full Power of Transcriptomics for Drug Discovery

Multiplexed, extraction-free, full-length library preparation technology facilitates large-scale RNA sequencing, combining ever more content with high throughput

FREDERICK, Md., Dec. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Alithea Genomics, a leader in the field of large-scale RNA sequencing and transcriptomics, announced today the launch of MERCURIUS™ Full-Length DRUG-seq library preparation technology, which combines, for the first time, massive sample multiplexing, an extraction-free workflow and full transcript coverage in a unique RNA-seq workflow. The technology is compatible with both 96- and 384-well plate formats and up-to 384 full-length RNA-seq library preps can be performed in a single tube without RNA isolation.