Biohealth Innovation - 371st Edition

BioHealth Innovation

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September 17, 2019

FOUNDING MEMBER OF

What Does It Take to Build A Globally Competitive Biohealth Cluster? · BioBuzz

The BioHealth Capital Region (BHCR) continues to thrive and currently occupies the fourth spot in the most recent Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology (GEN) top ten U.S. biohealth cluster rankings. More importantly, the collaborative efforts across industry, academia, government and nonprofits within the BHCR have generated powerful momentum that is now producing tangible results: The region has moved up two spots in GEN’s rankings in the last five years.

Save the Date: BioHealth Capital Region Investment Conference October 15 + 16

By invitation only: For questions email BHI@BioHealthInnovation.org

Gaithersburg, MD

Come join us for the 6th Annual BioBowl!

You and your company team will be competing against other biotech firms to win the coveted BioBowl Trophy and bragging rights!

...Until next year

Date: Thursday, October 10th, 2019Time: 4:00 - 6:30 PM (TBC)Location: Bowlmor – 15720 Shady Grove Rd, Gaithersburg, MD 20877

Invitation to follow.

Hosted by BioHealth Innovation and AstraZeneca

BHI Immediate Job Opening: Analyst

BHI is looking to add to our team! We have a new opening for an Analyst. Our analysts assist in the evaluation of early-stage technologies and provide strategic planning and operational support for start-up companies. They support the BHI organization by strategically managing and providing information, intelligence and insights that drive critical business decisions. For details on this exciting role and information on how to apply click here.

How Top Companies Attract, Engage and Retain Their BioHealth Workforce · BioBuzz

Are you finding it harder to recruit, hire and retain the biotech workforce you need?

Well, you’re not alone. With the demand for talent at an all-time high, competition has never been greater.

Hard to Find Small Lab Space!

708 Quince Orchard Road, Gaithersburg, Maryland

Three move-in ready laboratory/office modules; each approximately 1,200 RSF with communal services and amenities designed to facilitate collaboration.

Fully fit out laboratory space
Office space includes one furnished office and two workstations
Communal space includes reception/lobby area, pantry, conference rooms, IT closet, autoclave, glass wash, and ice maker
BioHealth Innovation will provide their Startup and Entrepreneur-in-Residence programs and various supporting services to guide and facilitate the growth of early-stage companies
FitLab, Alexandria’s state-of-the-art fitness center, is located in close proximity

Immunomic Therapeutics Appoints Harvard’s Brain Tumor Expert, Dr. E. Antonio Chiocca, to its Scientific Advisory Board – Immunomic Therapeutics

Immunomic Therapeutics, Inc. (ITI), a privately held, Maryland-based biotechnology company, announced today that it has appointed brain tumor expert E. Antonio ‘Nino’ Chiocca, M.D., Ph.D., Harvey W. Cushing Professor of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School Neurosurgeon-in-Chief and Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery, Brigham and Women’s Hospital to its scientific advisory board. ITI is currently applying its investigational UNITE™ platform in immuno-oncology, particularly for virally driven brain cancers, and Dr. Chiocca’s extensive expertise in this field will be instrumental to these efforts.

QIAGEN Announces Change in Global Sales Structure | Technology Networks

QIAGEN N.V. has announced that it has decided to integrate its global sales resources into its Business Areas (Life Sciences, Molecular Diagnostics and Bioinformatics). This transition is expected to allow the Business Areas to oversee the full value chain from innovation to commercialization, which is expected to further increase focus and agility. QIAGEN plans to provide an update during the fourth quarter of 2019.

Viela Bio IPO: At Phase 3 Of Development With Positive Results - VIELA BIO, INC. (Pending:VIE) | Seeking Alpha

With product candidates acquired from AstraZeneca (AZN) and MedImmune, Viela Bio (VIE) is clinical-stage biotechnology to be followed carefully. Besides, at Phase 3 of development, the company could deliver positive results in 2020, which may make the share price run. After the IPO, we expect Viela to have an enterprise value between $180 and $310 million. With that, in our opinion, savvy individuals will try to acquire shares at an enterprise value of $200 million.

United Therapeutics Announces FDA Acceptance Of Trevyent New Drug Application For Review

United Therapeutics Corporation (UTHR) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the New Drug Application (NDA) for Trevyent® (treprostinil) for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). The FDA assigned the NDA a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of April 27, 2020. Trevyent is a post-phase III development-stage drug-device combination product that combines two-day, single use, disposable PatchPump® technology with treprostinil, for the subcutaneous treatment of PAH.

Maryland Startup Developing AI-Enabled Drug Discovery Technology, Insilico Medicine, Just Raised $37M in Funding from Leading Chinese VC Firm · BioBuzz

In the world of drug discovery and development, there is increasing pressure to get novel products to market faster, cheaper and ahead of the competition. This is exactly what Insilico Medicine is helping leading pharmaceutical companies to achieve through their artificial intelligence technology for drug discovery.

RegenxBio reaches licensing deal with Clearside Biomedical - Washington Business Journal

RegenxBio Inc. just locked in another deal — this one with a company working to treat eye diseases.

The Rockville biotech has reached a licensing agreement with Alpharetta, Georgia-based Clearside Biomedical Inc. (NASDAQ: CLSD) for rights to its platform to treat several eye diseases including wet age-related macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy. RegenxBio (NASDAQ: RGNX) plans to evaluate one of its own gene therapy programs, called RGX-314, using Clearside’s in-office injection as an alternative to surgery.

Baltimore-based Capsulomics wins first place at Patriot Boot Camp in Utah - Technical.ly Baltimore

Baltimore-based Capsulomics won the top award in Utah last month at a pitch competition that was part of a boot camp for early-stage companies founded by military members, veterans and military spouses.

USM investment fund has tapped mostly Baltimore, College Park startups – Maryland Daily Record

The Maryland Momentum Fund has been successful in its first couple of years but needs to do a better job of marketing itself to all of the University System of Maryland’s institutions, the fund's director told the system’s Board of Regents Thursday. The fund, which the system uses to invest in startups related to system institutions, has ...

City Business Leaders Hail Perman's Leadership - University of Maryland, Baltimore

“I think most of you know how deeply I care for this city and its people, how much I love being part of a place with so much grit, and grace, and potential,” University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) President Jay A. Perman, MD, told several hundred members of the Downtown Partnership of Baltimore (DPOB) at the group’s annual meeting Sept. 12. “I can’t imagine a higher honor than being in a position to help Baltimore reach that potential, to help it become what we know it can be.”

Lockheed Donates $3 Million to University of Maryland STEM Program

Lockheed Martin recently signed a $3 million charitable commitment to the University of Maryland A. James Clark School of Engineering. The three-year contribution will be used to fund work-related to vertical takeoff and landing research at the school’s rotorcraft lab, and high-speed flight experiments reaching up to Mach 8, or 6,000 mph.

Adventist HealthCare names new Shady Grove Medical Center leader - Washington Business Journal

The new president first joined the Rockville hospital's leadership team in 2011.

FDA Approval of Roche Cancer Drug Confirms Beginning of New Oncology Era | The Motley Fool

With nothing more than a passing glance, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration's (FDA) approval of Roche Holdings' (OTC:RHHBY) cancer drug entrectinib last month was a run-of-the-mill announcement. In fact, it was almost boilerplate in its tone and feel.

New Ways of Working Together to Heal the World at Women Building Bio - Sept. 19.

Spotlights on Inspiring New Collaborative Approaches to Discovery and Development of Treatments and Cures

Scientists discover hidden differences among cells that may help them evade drug therapy | EurekAlert! Science News

University of Maryland researchers have discovered that seemingly identical cells can use different protein molecules to carry out the same function in an important cellular process. The scientists named this newly discovered variability "functional mosaicism," and it has significant implications for the development of therapeutic treatments, which are often designed to target a specific molecule, or a gene that produces a specific molecule.

Infographic: Which Rare Diseases Are The Most Common?

Pharmaceuticals have come a long way since the apothecary days of prescribing cocaine drops for toothaches, or dispensing tapeworm diet pills.

First hint that body’s ‘biological age’ can be reversed

A small clinical study in California has suggested for the first time that it might be possible to reverse the body’s epigenetic clock, which measures a person’s biological age.

For one year, nine healthy volunteers took a cocktail of three common drugs — growth hormone and two diabetes medications — and on average shed 2.5 years of their biological ages, measured by analysing marks on a person’s genomes. The participants’ immune systems also showed signs of rejuvenation.

9 health tech trends drawing venture capital

Venture funding for digital health companies reached an all-time high in the first half of 2019, totaling $5.1 billion across 318 deals, according to a recent report.