Biohealth Innovation - 319th Edition

BioHealth Innovation

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September 5, 2018

Brian Gaines, Chief Executive Officer of the MdBio Foundation, joins BioTalk host Rich Bendis to discuss STEM Education, Workforce Development, Funding, and expanding beyond the BioHealth Capital Region

Brian joined the MdBio Foundation in November 2012 after serving as Executive Director of the Washington Redskins Charitable Foundation. He has spent most of his professional career creating and working for several entrepreneurial endeavors at the intersection of the for-profit and nonprofit worlds.Brian joined the MdBio Foundation in November 2012 after serving as Executive Director of the Washington Redskins Charitable Foundation. He has spent most of his professional career creating and working for several entrepreneurial endeavors at the intersection of the for-profit and nonprofit worlds.

In previous roles, Brian has held leadership positions with two of America’s most effective social change organizations: College Summit and KaBOOM! Brian also was the Founding Executive Director of the Joshua Venture, a national venture philanthropy fund working to launch and support innovative nonprofits. In his business career, he was the CEO and Managing Partner of a chain of Ben & Jerry’s retail outlets in the San Francisco Bay Area and served as the Western Regional Business Manager for Ben & Jerry’s Homemade, Inc. He has also helped to found several other nonprofit organizations and served as the President of the San Francisco Human Services Commission.

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National Institutes of Health Awards emocha Mobile Health $1 Million for Multi-State Study | emocha Mobile Health

emocha Mobile Health, a Baltimore-based company whose video-based technology helps people take their medications as directed, has been awarded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award from the National Institute On Minority Health And Health Disparities (NIMHD) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The award gives emocha an additional $1 million over two years to evaluate its medication adherence platform for patients with tuberculosis (TB) in several sites throughout the United States. Researchers at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine will conduct the evaluation.

Emergent BioSolutions Joins Effort to Combat National Public Health Threat From Opioid Overdose Through Acquisition of Adapt Pharma and Its Flagship Product NARCAN® (naloxone HCl) Nasal Spray | Seeking Alpha

Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (EBS) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire Adapt Pharma and its flagship product NARCAN® (naloxone HCl) Nasal Spray, the first and only needle-free formulation of naloxone approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Health Canada, for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose as manifested by respiratory and/or central nervous system depression. Total consideration for the transaction is up to $735 million consisting of an upfront payment of $635 million and up to $100 million in cash for potential sales-based milestones through 2022. The upfront payment of $635 million consists of $575 million in cash and $60 million in Emergent common stock, all of which are subject to certain adjustments under the terms of the agreement.

United Therapeutics strikes nine-figure deal with MannKind Corp. - Washington Business Journal

Silver Spring-based United Therapeutics Corp. announced Tuesday that it will pay a California company $95 million to develop a new form and delivery method of its flagship Remodulin drug to treat pulmonary arterial hypertension.

BrainScope Receives $4.5 Million Department of Defense Contract to Add Ocular Assessment to Future Concussion Products — BrainScope

BrainScope today announced that it has been awarded a research contract by the United States Department of Defense (DOD) valued at $4.5 million to create and integrate ocular capabilities into its handheld, multi-parameter mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI) and concussion products.

Immediate new opening for an NIH Entrepreneur in Residence

BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI), is a Montgomery County innovation intermediary which translates market-relevant research into commercial success by bringing together management, funding, and markets. BHI is seeking an experienced life science professional with entrepreneurial and investment experience to join the BHI EIR team and serve as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). This position will report to and work closely with our lead at the NIH Office of the Director, Office of Extramural Research (OER) at the Bethesda, MD campus. The EIR will provide product, corporate and private investment strategy for companies which have SBIR/STTR awards and are ready for the next step towards commercial success.

The NIH is the world’s largest early stage biomedical investor providing nondilutive funding for US companies in the form of grants and contracts through the SBIR/STTR program. In FY19 the Congressional funds set aside for company funding exceeds $1B USD. The EIR program supports NIH interests in commercial success of its SBIR/STTR portfolio companies.

Machfu announces move to new Headquarters - Machfu

Industrial IoT solutions innovator Machfu announced today that it is moving its corporate headquarters from the Germantown Innovation Center’s award- winning incubator program to commercial Class A office space in Rockville, Maryland. Machfu’s new headquarters will encompass 5,000 square feet of The Grove 270, a LEED Gold certified and Energy Star-awarded office complex.

IBBR Announces UPenn and Texas A&M Biomedical Polyphosphazene Collaborations

The Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR) has entered into two separate collaborations involving its polyphosphazene (PPZ) polymer platform. PPZs are synthetic, biofunctional macromolecules with the potential to advance a wide range of biomedical capabilities. IBBR Fellow, Dr. Alexander Andrianov, is working with collaborators to develop new PPZs for use as coatings for medical devices and as carriers of medical imaging agents.

Frederick Innovative Technology Center, Inc. - Success Story - Markets Insider

Rare blood disorders are on VERALOX Therapeutics Inc.'s "hit" list. The company, a small molecule drug discovery and development firm based in the Frederick Innovative Technology Center, Inc. (FITCI), launched in September 2017 with a mission to develop a first-in-class therapeutic targeting rare immune-mediated blood disorders, beginning with heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) and HIT with thrombosis (HITT). These life-threatening diseases have a high mortality rate and often require limb amputations due to complications. The drug, VLX-1005, is the only therapeutic in development that strikes at the source of HITT and has performed impressively in clinically relevant animal models. Additionally, it has demonstrated preservation of insulin secretion and promotion of beta cell survival in newly-diagnosed type I diabetes patient samples, providing significant opportunities for market expansion into diabetes.

Submit your proposal for our $100K pediatric pitch competition - Final Week to Submit

You have one week left to submit your proposal for our $100K pediatric pitch competition focused on pediatric cardiovascular devices that meet a significant unmet need. The submission deadline is Sept. 10.

If chosen as a finalist, you will have an opportunity to pitch your device to our distinguished panel of judges on Sept. 23 as part of our annual pediatric device symposium.

Johns Hopkins' new Remington space ready to welcome students, entrepreneurs - Baltimore Business Journal

A new space designed to promote student entrepreneurship is open near Johns Hopkins University's Homewood campus as the school welcomes students back to campus this week.

Mason researcher part of team awarded $2.5 million grant for investigating remedies to deadly virus | George Mason

A George Mason University researcher is heading a scientific team that has received a sizable Department of Defense grant to combat the threat of a South American disease that can cause long-term neurological problems and even death.

Maryland matches $1 million donation from Brin family for professors at UMd – Maryland Daily Record

The state of Maryland has matched a donation from the family of Google co-founder Sergey Brin to endow two professorships in computer science at the University of Maryland, College Park, the university announced Wednesday. The $1 million from the state will match a private donation to endow the Brin Family Endowed Professorships in Theoretical Computer Science.

SBA Awards Grants to 24 State and Local Economic Development Entities, SBTDCs, and Universities to Support Small Business Innovation and R&D Commercialization

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has granted 24 awards for $125,000 in FY 2018 under the Federal and State Technology (FAST) Partnership Program. Recipients include state and local economic development entities, Small Business Technology Development Centers, Women's Business Centers, incubators, accelerators, colleges, and universities that provide support to small businesses developing and commercializing high risk technologies.

Baltimore-based PathSensors detects growth opportunity in China - Technical.ly Baltimore

Baltimore biotech company PathSensors is looking to enter the Chinese market.

Virtual Reality Surgical System Comes to Children’s National Hospital – VRFocus

In healthcare, immersive technology has a number of benefits. Many of these have been demonstrated in a number of ways, whether that is through distracting from pain, or helping to train new doctors. One of the most promising is how virtual reality (VR) can assist in surgery. This technology is being introduced to the Children’s National Health System in Washington D.C.

Stryker aims to boost flagging spine division with $1.4B acquisition of K2M - MedCity News

Orthopedics company Stryker announced Thursday that it is buying K2M Group Holdings, a maker of 3-D printed implantable, minimally invasive spine products, for $1.4 billion. Analysts reacted positively pointing out that while a small player K2M will help to boost Stryker’s spine division that has not been performing well as of late.

Navigating the Life Sciences Funding Landscape - JPMorgan Chase

At each stage of growth for a life sciences firm, the funding needs change. Learn about the different types of capital investors and which ones might work best for your firm as a funding source.

Massachusetts is no longer the king of biotech R&D employment - Boston Business Journal

Massachusetts' renowned biotech cluster has relinquished its top spot on the ranking of states with the highest research and development employment to its longtime West Coast rival.

Inova Fall Entrepreneur Program FREE 3-month series designed to provide entrepreneurs a comprehensive set of skills required to execute the commercialization and growth of healthtech companies

Network & learn from industry leaders - speakers from NEA, Merritt Group, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, MPR Associates, Center for Innovative Technology, and more!

2019 FLC Awards Nominations Now Open! - Federal Labs

The 2019 FLC awards are 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 winning technology transfer efforts have gone on to become products and devices that are indispensable in our daily lives.

MAVA Announces Sixteen Technology Companies To Take Stage At TechBUZZ Fall 2018 - citybizlist

As part of its 30+ year commitment to foster the growth of exceptional and promising market-leading companies from founding to exit, the Mid-Atlantic Venture Association (MAVA) is proud to announce that 16 companies will take the stage at TechBUZZ Fall 2018 on Thursday, September 20, 2018 in College Park, Maryland from 10:00am – 7:00pm at The Hotel at the University of Maryland. TechBUZZ, a ticketed business program hosted three times annually, is MAVA’s flagship seed and early-stage program dedicated to the support of the earliest of market-ready tech and tech-enabled companies across industry sector.

The New Fabric of Baltimore - Anchor Ventures

When: Thursday, September 20, 2018 4:00 - 7:00 PM EST

Where: Columbus Center 701 E Pratt St Baltimore, MD 21202

Join us in envisioning a future that weaves together big data scientists with makers, medical doctors with apparel designers, cut & sew craftsman with artificial intelligence coders. An evening of looking back on the textile mills that once built our city and seeing the new mills of tomorrow filled with smart garments, technical textiles and wearables. Visit the displays of Baltimore companies with athletic apparel, high fashion and medical devices made with functional textiles. Most importantly, see how this new fabric of Baltimore engages you.

Innovation Is No Accident -- Invite It In With These 4 Steps

For entrepreneurs and small business owners, innovation is essential. It differentiates them from their similar-sized competitors, and it’s what allows them to compete with much larger organizations and still thrive.

BioBuzz with Immunomic Therapeutics - September 13

When: Thursday, September 13, 2018 from 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM EDT

Where: Bar Louie 150 Gibbs St Rockville, MD 20850

Please join us next month at BioBuzz and meet this year's 'Buzz of BIO' winner and Annual BioBuzz Sponsor, Immunomic Therapeutics (ITI), at Bar Louie in Rockville on September 13th. Get to know the team behind the company that is receivivng such widespread industry attention for the recent evolution of their innovative technology platform, UNITE, which has the potential to alter how we use immunotherapy for cancer, allergies and animal health.