Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Creating a tech invention with global potential is an ambition that many of us harbor but only relatively few are able to actually achieve.
So for the co-creators of a device that monitors newborn baby vital signs and improves their chances of survival in parts of the developing world, the sense of achievement in getting their startup idea off the ground is bolstered further by a feeling of real pride in doing work that could save thousands of lives.
Altimmune, Inc., a clinical stage immunotherapeutic company, today announced that Christine Brennan, PhD, Principal at Novartis Venture Fund, has joined its Board of Directors effective immediately. Dr. Brennan replaces Florent Gros from Novartis Venture Fund.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome Dr. Brennan to our Board. She has an impressive background in the biopharmaceutical industry, and her experience and guidance will be invaluable as we continue to advance the clinical development of our three drug candidates,” said Bill Enright, President and Chief Executive Officer of Altimmune. “We would also like to thank Mr. Gros for his service to Altimmune over the past year.”
Digital health technology leader WellDoc announced today it has entered a commercial partnership agreement with LifeScan Inc., one of the Johnson & Johnson Diabetes Care Companies (JJDCC) and a world leader in blood glucose monitoring, to deliver across the United States a best-in-class digital health solution for Type 2 diabetes. The companies will integrate WellDoc’s clinically validated BlueStar® diabetes management platform and mobile application, which is the first digital therapeutic approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for adults who live with Type 2 diabetes, with LifeScan’s OneTouch Verio Flex™ blood glucose monitoring system with built-in Bluetooth® Smart Technology and the OneTouch Reveal digital system. The combined offering will seek to create a comprehensive, data-driven and payer-reimbursed program for Type 2 diabetes management.
D.C.-based Danaher Corp. (NYSE: DHR) is buying California molecular diagnostics company Cepheid Inc. (NASDAQ: CPHD) for about $4 billion in cash.
The $53 per share price represents a 54 percent premium on its Friday closing price of $34.42 per share. The deal, expected to close in the fourth quarter, would constitute a sizable addition to Danaher’s $8.2 billion life sciences and medical testing and equipment business.
ExeGi Pharma, LLC announced the launch of the new probiotic formulation, Visbiome™ and Visbiome™ Extra Strength. Visbiome contains the pioneering probiotic blend developed by Professor Claudio De Simone, M.D., Ph.D. (the “De Simone Formulation”), and it has the same strains, in the same concentrations and proportions, and is therapeutically equivalent to the VSL#3®1 probiotic blend produced before January 31, 2016. Visbiome, a medical food, delivers anti-inflammatory probiotic bacteria in high concentrations, normalizing the gut flora and providing sustained relief from symptoms of multiple gastroenterological conditions including ulcerative colitis, chronic pouchitis and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).
The Maryland Industrial Partnerships (MIPS) Program provides funding for university-based research projects that help Maryland companies develop technology-based products, combining the creative expertise of Maryland’s university faculty with the drive of the state’s entrepreneurs. Up to $100,000 per year is available for each project.
Upcoming Information Sessions
Date: Thursday, September 8Time: Noon-1 p.m.Location: Chesapeake Innovation Center, 2288 Blue Water Blvd., Building 300, Suite 310, Odenton, MD 21113
Date: Wednesday, September 14Time: 3-5 p.m.Location: Frostburg State University Sustainable Energy Research Facility (SERF), 5 Technology Drive, Frostburg, MD 21532
Johns Hopkins University, Georgetown University and the University of Virginia were among the top Washington-area universities making an appearance on U.S. News and World Report’s 2017 Best Colleges edition released Tuesday.
GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE/NYSE: GSK) today announces a series of agreements with Aspen (JSE: APN) aligned with GSK’s strategy of simplification through focusing on core therapeutic areas.
GSK will divest its anaesthesia portfolio to Aspen for £180 million plus milestones of up to £100 million. In addition to this divestment, GSK and Aspen have entered into parallel agreements to terminate their collaboration in Sub-Saharan Africa and for Aspen to exercise its option to acquire GSK’s remaining thrombosis business in certain retained markets.
$248 million in cash from Sanofi, and the same amount in a capital contribution by Verily (not in cash) have breathed life to a new company — Onduo — where the two equal partners will wage battle with a formidable enemy: diabetes.
Everyone likes to talk about innovation, but how can you stop simply talking about and start driving real innovation in biotech? We looked at some of the most ground-breaking, silo-busting movers and shakers around to bring you the “Top 5 Ways to Innovate in Biote
In opening a recent interview with Under Armour (NYSE:UA) founder and CEO Kevin Plank, the commentator described Plank as “next.”
As perhaps the most high-profile member of a cohort of younger CEOs, Plank’s overwhelming success in starting and growing Under Armour has become the stuff of business lore. Here are a few of Plank’s top quotes on a host of subjects including business, entrepreneurship, and leadership.
Gov. Larry Hogan will travel to Israel later this month in an effort to attract more overseas businesses to Maryland, particularly in the areas of biotechnology and cybersecurity.
BIO released the new report “Advancing the Biobased Economy: Renewable Chemical Biorefinery Commercialization, Progress, and Market Opportunities, 2016 and Beyond,” documenting substantial, ongoing growth in the renewable chemical industry and outlining federal and state policies that support the industry.
Funding and Research Opportunities
The following funding opportunity announcements from the NHLBI or other components of the National Institutes of Health, might be of interest:
Notices:
- Notice of NCCIH’s Participation in PA-16-414 “Innovation Corps (I-Corps) at NIH Program for NIH and CDC Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Grantees (Admin Supp)”
- (NOT-AT-16-003)
- National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health
- Notice of Clarification to NHLBI’s Policy Regarding Total Years of Support for K24 Funding
- Notice of Technical Assistance Webinars for Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa) FOAs: RFA-RM-011, RFA-RM-012, RFA-RM-013, RFA-RM-014, RFA-RM-16-015, RFA-RM-016, and RFA-RM-017
- Notice of New Expiration Date for RFA-RM-16-013 “Human Heredity and Health in Africa (H3Africa): Ethical, Legal, and Societal Issues (ELSI) Research Program (U01)”
Requests for Applications:
- Maximizing the Scientific Value of the NHLBI Biorepository: Scientific Opportunities for Exploratory Research (R21)
Mandates for the provision of telemedicine have driven insurance companies and employers to jump into arrangements with pre-smartphone era companies like Teladoc, MD Live, and American Well.
The Georgetown-based Halcyon Incubator celebrated the commencement of a new cohort on Thursday with another announcement — two years ago, to the day, the incubator itself was launched. In that time, S&R Foundation COO Kate Goodall informed the gathered crowd, the incubator has served 32 ventures, which have raised a collective $10 million in funding and “impacted” 2 million lives around the world.
Startups in the medical device industry are on pace for an uptick in financing, thanks to interest from private market investors, including corporates. We put together a periodic table of medical device companies to highlight promising startups, industry categories, exits, and active investors in the category.
Let’s face it, cells generally like having company, forming communities with other cell types to make complete tissues. However, quite often, researchers isolate cells from their 3-D environments, creating 2-D models that don’t always replicate complex biology.
The Biomedical Research Institute (BRI), founded in Rockville, MD in 1968, is a not-forprofit research institute that emphasizes basic research in schistosomiasis. BRI expanded its subsidiaries in 1985 to include the Association of Entrepreneurial Science (AES), an incubator for startup scientific companies that brings scientists and basic research findings into the realm of commercial markets. AES brings together all the accompanying business skills required for profit making entrepreneurs to bring scientific products and services to the marketplace.
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Smart money VCs are on pace to participate in fewer cybersecurity deals through the end of this year, compared to 2015. This year, through Q2’16, the top two dozen smart money VCs participated in nearly 30 cybersecurity funding rounds — deals that totaled $657M in aggregate.
The Next Phase of the FLC Awards is Here – 2017 FLC Awards
The 2017 FLC Awards is now open for nominations. One of the most coveted honors in the technology transfer field, the FLC awards have been presented to over 200 federal laboratories since their inception in 1984. Many of our winning technology transfer efforts have gone on to become products and devices that are indispensable in our daily lives.
