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Maryland-based biopharmaceutical company receives funding from TEDCO’s Venture Funds’

COLUMBIA, Md., (July 23, 2024) — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a recent $500,000 investment in Solaxa Inc. This investment is from TEDCO’s Venture Funds, with $200,000 being allocated from the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funding.

“At Solaxa, we are developing neurorestorative treatments for children and adults suffering from rare neurodegenerative diseases and acute nerve injuries,” said Christian Walker, CEO and founder of Solaxa. “Thanks to TEDCO’s investment, we can accelerate our work to serve patients with spinocerebellar ataxias for whom our first drug has already been shown to deliver significant clinical improvement in gait, balance and speech.”

On July 25, 2024, the FDA will host a significant virtual public meeting, “Home as a Health Care Hub – Stakeholder Listening Session,” from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM ET. This session aims to explore how integrating home environments into the healthcare system can enhance health equity and patient care. The FDA seeks input from various stakeholders to identify both barriers and opportunities in this integration. Additionally, the initiative includes developing VR prototypes for managing conditions like diabetes.

Stakeholders are encouraged to register, participate, and submit comments or presentations ahead of the event.

For more information and registration details, Click here.

GERMANTOWN, Md., July 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Precigen, Inc. (Nasdaq: PGEN), a biopharmaceutical company specializing in the development of innovative gene and cell therapies to improve the lives of patients, today announced the appointment of Phil Tennant as the Company’s chief commercial officer. Mr. Tennant will be responsible for commercial strategy and execution across US and global markets. His initial focus will be on driving commercial readiness activities for the potential launch of the first- and best-in-class PRGN-2012 AdenoVerse gene therapy in recurrent respiratory papillomatosis (RRP). Mr. Tennant will report to Precigen’s President and CEO, Helen Sabzevari, PhD, and will join Precigen’s executive leadership team.

ROCKVILLE, Md., July 23, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Emmes Group, a leading specialty tech-enabled global contract research organization (CRO), today announced a multi-year strategic partnership with Miimansa AI. A critical pillar of the partnership, aimed at revolutionizing clinical research at Emmes, is the acquisition of Miimansa’s Clinical Entity Modeling tools based on advanced large language modeling (LLM) techniques and generative AI.

Artificial intelligence (AI) promises to transform all aspects of healthcare including clinical research. Emmes Group is rapidly maturing its technology platform, Veridix AI, and Miimansa’s Clinical Entity Modeling technology will serve as a critical building block to accelerate the development of state-of-the-art automated text processing solutions tailored for clinical research.

In the rapidly evolving world of life sciences, the real estate sector is experiencing significant shifts and opportunities. JLL’s latest report, U.S. Life Sciences Property Report, explores the dynamics of leasing, occupancy rates and market conditions.

To learn more about the life sciences market in Washington, D.C., we sat down with local experts, JLL Research Manager Kate Paine and Executive Managing Director Pete Briskman to delve deeper into these trends and gain valuable insights.

In the D.C. market, how have lease terms in the life sciences sector changed over time and what factors have influenced these changes?

Mirroring national leasing trends, lease terms in the D.C. market are shortening, especially among new leases and relocations. The average lease term for new leases (non-renewals) has fallen to just over five years, down from nearly 10 years in 2022. Shortening of lease term is a response to supply outpacing demand, which is giving the leverage back to tenants and allowing startups and pre-revenue tenants to negotiate for shorter terms. A key contributor to shortening lease terms over the past few years is the influx of spec suites that have delivered to the market, which are designed to be flexible space options for early-stage companies.

With the advent of life-changing cell and gene therapies (CGTs) to treat pediatric diseases, price is becoming a significant obstacle to care and cures.

Successful therapies can wind up shelved or in hard-to-reach clinical trials for a litany of reasons: high manufacturing costs, significant regulatory burdens, a lack of enthusiasm from the pharmaceutical industry in the small pediatric market and the simple fact that insurance companies resist paying the price of $1 million or more for a therapeutic. When successful treatments are set aside and become victims of this market failure, leaders in pediatric medicine say the drug has been relegated to the “Valley of Death.”

Experts at Children’s National Hospital and other leading U.S. research institutions are working to ferry drugs across it.

By: Patrizia Cavazzoni, MD, Director, Center for Drug Evaluation and Research and Peter Marks, MD, PhD, Director, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research

An estimated 10,000+ rare diseases affect more than 30 million people – approximately one out of every 10 people – in the U.S., and about half of these people are children. Many rare conditions are life threatening, and most do not have approved treatments. Fundamental to the mission of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is to engage patients and caregivers – to understand their unique perspectives and experiences and keep these front of mind as we review medical products for rare disease patients.

The Rare Disease Innovation Hub
Recent rapid advances in the identification of promising drug targets and development of gene therapies offer momentum and potential to meet the needs of patients with rare diseases. In 2023, over half of all the novel drugs and biologics approved by the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) and the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER) were to prevent, diagnose or treat a rare disease or condition.

The National Cancer Institute’s (NCI) Technology Transfer Center invites you to the 2024 Technology Showcase on September 4th, at the Frederick National Laboratory Advanced Technology Research Facility in Frederick, MD. This free, in-person event will present a remarkable lineup of cutting-edge technologies ready for commercialization. Industry experts will share their insights through engaging presentations, panel discussions on successful collaborations, and a competitive poster session highlighting innovative research.

Attendees will have the opportunity to connect with industry leaders, investors, and entrepreneurs, fostering meaningful networking and potential partnerships. The keynote speaker, Steven Walker, will deliver a compelling address on the future of biotechnology and its impact on cancer research.

The event is an exceptional platform for biotech stakeholders to discover new technologies and explore collaborative ventures. Whether you’re a company, investor, or entrepreneur, the 2024 Technology Showcase offers invaluable insights and connections.

BioMaP-Consortium Project Agreement Will Combine Sustainable Biochemical Production with AI To Demonstrate a Scalable Platform for the Quick Manufacture of Pharmaceutical Ingredients.

STERLING, Va., July 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Many ingredients that make up the pharmaceuticals Americans rely on are manufactured overseas. When supply chain issues or shortages occur, as witnessed during the COVID pandemic, it can negatively impact millions of Americans and affect national security. The White House issued an Executive Order in 2022 to stimulate U.S. biomanufacturing. Increasing American biomanufacturing, will provide more control over pharmaceutical production, boost the economy, and encourage creation of greener manufacturing methods.

Under a new $7.5 million, two-year project agreement awarded to Capra Biosciences through the BioMaP-Consortium, Capra will demonstrate the ability of its platform to rapidly scale and manufacture biologically derived small molecule active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Capra has a demonstrated history of using its biofilm-forming microbes and proprietary bioreactors to transform low-cost feedstocks into a variety of chemicals, including their first commercial product, retinol.