BioHealth Innovation Weekly for February 21, 2024

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February 21, 2024

WBJ: New CEO at Children's National lays out her vision

By Sara Gilgore – Staff Reporter, Washington Business Journal - Feb 15, 2024 -

It was her mother’s 86th birthday when Michelle Riley-Brown received a call that would change the trajectory of her career.

Holding the phone to her ear in her Houston home on March 3, 2023, the veteran health executive learned she was not only the first woman — but the first African American woman — to be named president and CEO of Children’s National Hospital in D.C.

The New Orleans native and youngest of five siblings — four of whom went into health care — immediately thought of her late father, a general surgeon who dedicated his life to medicine.

BioHealth Innovation, Inc.’s Rich Bendis Named Finalist for the Community Builder Award in the 2023 BioHealth Capital Region Annual Awards

Rockville, MD – BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI) is proud to announce that our Founder, President & CEO, Rich Bendis, has been named a finalist for the Community Builder Award in the 2023 BioHealth Capital Region Annual Awards, hosted by BioBuzz.

Rich Bendis’ dedication to fostering innovation and supporting the biohealth ecosystem has been instrumental in driving growth and collaboration within the industry. His visionary leadership at BHI has created a platform for emerging companies, researchers, and entrepreneurs to connect with resources, expertise, and opportunities, significantly contributing to the region’s economic development and public health advancements.

Emergent BioSolutions Appoints Industry Leader Joseph C. Papa as New President and CEO

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Feb. 21, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS), a global company providing solutions that address public health threats and delivering life-extending products to market, today announced that its Board of Directors has appointed Joseph C. Papa as president and CEO, effective February 21, 2024. Mr. Papa succeeds Haywood Miller, who will step down from his role as interim CEO, effective February 21, 2024.

Fierce Biotech: NIH to invest another $515M over 4 years for long COVID research

The National Institutes of Health is investing $515 million more into long COVID research efforts, three years after launching the initiative with $1.15 billion.

The cash infusion for the Recover program, announced Tuesday, will bolster ongoing research into the underlying biology and potential treatments for long COVID. NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., said in a release that nearly 90,000 people were participating in ongoing Recover observational trials across more than 300 sites.

Waisman Biomanufacturing and RoosterBio Announce Collaboration for GMP Manufacturing of Cell and Exosome Therapies

FREDERICK, Md., Feb. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Waisman Biomanufacturing, a leading contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) which is strategically part of the University of Wisconsin Madison, announced today a strategic partnership with RoosterBio, Inc., a leading provider of human mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs), highly engineered media solutions, and bioprocess development services.

Children’s National performs first ever HIFU procedure on patient with cerebral palsy

In January, a team of multidisciplinary doctors performed the first case in the world of using bilateral high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) pallidotomy on Jesus, a 22-year-old patient with dyskinetic cerebral palsy.

The procedure is part of a clinical trial led by Chima Oluigbo, M.D., pediatric neurosurgeon at Children’s National Hospital.

Career Opportunity with BHI: Life Sciences Business Strategist

BioHealth Innovation (BHI) is an innovation intermediary that facilitates the commercialization of emerging technologies in the BioHealth Capital Region (Maryland, DC and Virginia). We are seeking an entry-level Life Sciences Business Strategist to join our team remotely.

TEDCO Generates $2.7 Billion in Economic Benefits for Maryland’s Ecosystem in 2023, According to Independent Study

COLUMBIA, Md. (February 21, 2024) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced the findings of an independent economic impact study detailing the contributions of TEDCO’s six core programs to the state of Maryland.

Conducted by the University of Baltimore’s Jacob France Institute, the study found that TEDCO continues to be a significant economic driving force in Maryland creating nearly $2.7 billion in statewide economic activity as of 2023. TEDCO has invested in or supported the growth of a portfolio of 442 of Maryland’s leading technology companies, more than doubling the number of companies identified in the first TEDCO impact study in 2008.