Maryland lawmakers voted in March to unite the University of Maryland and the University of Maryland, Baltimore. This legislation, which aims to increase the prestige of the university system, goes into effect today. The MPowering the State partnership between the two schools paves the way for new initiatives to bring more funding to the campuses and attract more businesses and services to each respective community.
A mobile health company with Johns Hopkins roots earned the $50,000 top prize Thursday at Beta City’s daylong startup showcase and pitch competition in Baltimore.
Tissue Analytics, founded by JHU biomedical engineering graduates Kevin Keenahan and Josh Budman, presented its mobile application designed to help doctors and nurses track wound healing. It was one of eight startups to present business plans, according to The Baltimore Sun.
Johns Hopkins University will relocate its original FastForward business incubator in April from the Stieff Silver building near the university’s Homewood campus on Wyman Park Drive to nearby R. House at 301 W. 29th St. in Remington.
FastForward R. House will be smaller — about 9,000 square feet of office, meeting and lab space, compared to its 13,000-square-foot space at Stieff Silver — but gives Hopkins an opportunity to move its startups into a space designed with startups in mind.
Last week researchers released the first results from the UK Biobank Imaging Study, a massive effort that ultimately aims to scan the brains of 100,000 people and use the data in conjunction with detailed health information to investigate disease progression during aging. The findings from their first 5,000 subjects offer an early peek at an enormous data set that includes a treasure trove of health information from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and other measures. The study is one of several projects worldwide taking a population-level approach to better understand diseases, and is part of an ongoing movement in neuroscience toward global, collaborative brain research.
Sanaria Inc. today announced it has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Fast Track designation for its preventative vaccine for malaria, Sanaria® PfSPZ Vaccine. Sanaria believes its PfSPZ Vaccine is the only malaria vaccine to have ever received this distinction.
According to the FDA, “Fast Track is a process designed to facilitate the development, and expedite the review of drugs to treat serious conditions and fill an unmet medical need. The purpose is to get important new drugs to the patient earlier.” A drug (or vaccine) that receives Fast Track designation is eligible for Accelerated Approval and Priority Review,which can considerably speed the time to market.
The Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore is set to develop a plan focused on growing jobs in the region through innovation districts.
EAGB received a $233,500 grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration for the effort. It will allow the organization to take inventory and map incubators and other areas of clustering that already exist in the city, as well as in Baltimore County. The roadmap would have several layers, bringing in demographics and other features.
Looking over a cross-section of members of the region’s tech community, real estate developer David Cordish, Gov. Larry Hogan and Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake stood on a stage and spoke of the importance of startups and entrepreneurs for job creation.
Rawlings-Blake talked about how the new coworking space they were gathered to open, called Spark Baltimore, was a sign that “smart, young people from around the country are trying to move here.” After they flipped the switch on the ceremonial lightbulbs, Cordish, whose firm developed the space, raised both arms in celebration, as if celebrating a championship.
BrainScope Company Inc. scored a big win last week when it received clearance from the Food and Drug Administration to market a new medical device that assesses traumatic brain injuries.
Medigene AG (MDG1, Frankfurt, Prime Standard), Germany, and bluebird bio, Inc. (Nasdaq: BLUE), USA, today announced the signing of a strategic research and development collaboration and licensing agreement encompassing T cell receptor (TCR) immunotherapies against four targets.
“We are delighted to collaborate with bluebird bio, a leader in the field of cell and gene therapy, including cancer immunotherapy,” said Dolores J. Schendel, Chief Executive Officer and chief scientific officer, Medigene. “With its T cell immunotherapy expertise and outstanding gene delivery and genome editing capabilities, bluebird bio is an ideal partner for us to jointly discover and develop a new generation of T cell therapeutics to treat unmet oncology indications.”
Today, the National Science Foundation (NSF) announced $10 million in awards to 10 “Big Data Spokes” projects to initiate research on specific topics identified by the Big Data Regional Innovation Hubs (BD Hubs).
Project topics range from precision agriculture to personalized education. The data spokes reflect the unique priorities and capabilities of the four BD Hubs, which represent consortia from the Midwest, Northeast, South and West of the country.
