You are invited to continue strengthening the Québec-Maryland collaboration!

Objectives of this webinar

• Highlight the signing of the cooperation agreement between Québec and Maryland in the field of life sciences and public health and launch the work of the advisory committee.
• Share the government's vision for life sciences and public health, particularly in the context of a health emergency.
• Create links, strengthen cooperation and mutually inspire each other with the most innovative expertise and initiatives aimed at establishing joint alliances in a sector of excellence.

Introductory remarks

Québec Delegate General in New York, Catherine Loubier 

Schedule

The importance of the life sciences sector for Québec and the State of Maryland

Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie, and
Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration, Nadine Girault

Secretary of Commerce for the State of Maryland, Kelly Schulz

Québec-Maryland collaboration agreement in life sciences and public health

Montréal's life sciences ecosystem

CEO of Montréal In Vivo, Frank Béraud

Québec City's life sciences ecosystem

CEO of Québec International, Carl Viel

Maryland's life sciences and public health ecosystem

Director of BioHealth and Life Sciences, Maryland Department of Commerce, Ulyana Desiderio

Q&A with the panelists

Register here

https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_ozdJpKpXSMC9n0Esrqo-rA

Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC)  President and CEO  Benjamin Wu Chats with Rich Bendis on BioTalk.

Listen now Apple https://apple.co/2SJB2a5, Google https://bit.ly/2SMLbmd, Spotify https://spoti.fi/34SWcrI, https://bit.ly/2SMde5j, and YouTube Audio https://bit.ly/2GSHXeu

As the President and Chief Executive Officer of MCEDC, Ben Wu leads the public-private economic development of Maryland’s largest jurisdiction which comprises 25% of the state’s economy with a GDP greater than 13 states. A Montgomery County native, Ben is an accomplished executive with over three decades of professional experience leading operations at the highest levels of our nation and state.

Join fellow biotech leaders and is presented by the Association of University Research Parks, AstraZeneca, BioHealth Innovation, Children’s National Health System, Emergent BioSolutions, George Mason University, J.P. Morgan, Johns Hopkins University, Maryland Department of Commerce, Virginia Bio, and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, P.C.

Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC set the bar high for biotech innovation. So please join us for our 6th Annual BioHealth Capital Region Forum that will highlight the accomplishments of today and chart our successes of tomorrow.

We are excited to bring you an exceptional line up of more than 55 BioHealth Capital Region industry leaders to this virtual event!

Drug- and vaccine-based methods of attacking the SARS-CoV-2 virus rely on chemical properties to identify the virus (for example surface antigens). These chemical properties can change when the virus mutates, rendering those therapies ineffective. An alternative method for identifying the virus would be to use the physical properties (size, shape, rigidity) of the viral capsule (capsid). These capsid properties make the virus easy to recognize with a microscope. Without an intact capsid, the virus cannot survive in the body. Shape Theranostics is trying to use microscopic iron devices that will take advantage of the unique physical properties of the viral capsid to identify and inactivate the virus.

In a newly published work supported by the U.S. National Institute for Aging, Shape Theranostics scientists (working with investigators at Georgetown University) showed that the micro-devices can change MRI signals in a way that depends on viral load. These signals enabled quantitative measurement of the SARS-CoV-2 in physiological solutions. The amount of iron in these investigational products would be less than for off-the-shelf oral iron supplements. Initial preclinical studies demonstrated no toxicity from the micro-devices. The publication (IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology) can be downloaded from www.ShapeTheranostics.com.

Marylad biomanufacturing companies can receive up to $20,000 in free energy engineering services, potentially saving hundreds of thousands of dollars a result while increasing productivity and workplace safety and comfort. These services are provided thru a grant program managed by the Maryland Regional Manufacturing Institute’s (RMI) Energy Edge Program.  Companies should email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for an application and more information.

American Gene Technologies International Inc. (AGT) CEO and Founder, Jeff Galvin returns to update us of their Phase 1 Clinical Trial of their lead #HIV Program, their expansion in a new facility, and what's next!

Listen now on Apple https://apple.co/2Gi2GIF, Google https://bit.ly/2GizVvu, Spotify https://spoti.fi/2GxROGd, and TuneIn https://bit.ly/3l9HK56.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has selected 19 small businesses to develop new technologies through grants totaling over $4.4 million in value. The awardees will address various technology needs under phases one and two of the agency's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, NIST said Thursday.

“5 Questions With…” is a weekly BioBuzz series where we reach out to interesting people in the BioHealth Capital Region to share a little about themselves, their work, and maybe something completely unrelated. This edition features 5 Questions with Amy Adams, Executive Director of the Institute for Biohealth Innovation at George Mason University.

As Executive Director of the Institute for Biohealth Innovation at George Mason University, Amy Adams is responsible for nurturing and advancing biohealth research and innovation interests of more than 250 faculty and thousands of students who represent a broad range of academic disciplines. Her role includes fostering partnerships with industry, healthcare, government, and academic partners.

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE:PLTR) announced today that it was awarded a $36m one-year indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract with the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS) for enterprise data integration and data management to support the NCATS Secure Scientific Platforms Environment.

Palantir’s Foundry software will be provided in various configurations to the NCATS Secure Scientific Platforms Environment, which supports several critical health missions through the integration, management, security, and analysis of any kind of scientific data, and provides controlled access to internal and external collaborators.

The Silver Spring company first filed in mid-September to trade on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

PASADENA, Calif., Oct. 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE), an urban office REIT and the first, longest-tenured and pioneering owner, operator and developer uniquely focused on collaborative life science, technology and agtech campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, today announced that it has been recognized by the Center for Active Design (CfAD), the operator of Fitwel®, as the first-ever company to achieve a Fitwel Viral Response Certification with Distinction, the highest certification level within the Fitwel Viral Response module. Alexandria's comprehensive and industry-leading COVID-19 prevention guidelines and practices, which expand upon its existing rigorous health and safety standards for its tenants, employees, visitors, service providers and key industry stakeholders, contributed to this highly impactful and tremendous accomplishment.

BALTIMORE — Johns Hopkins University is getting a $1.44 million federal grant to study potential COVID-19 testing gaps and disparities for transgender persons.

The grant is from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. The COVID, transgender research funding was announced by U.S. Sens. Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and U.S. Reps. Dutch Ruppersberger, John Sarbanes and Kweisi Mfume. They are all Maryland Democrats.

Baltimore, Md. (Sept. 30, 2020)—The Maryland Momentum Fund has invested $300,000 in Rockville-based N5 Sensors Inc., a company developing smart, microscale, wearable sensors to detect gas, chemicals and additional environmental conditions for a variety of applications, fund officials announced today.

The investment completes a financing round of more than $1 million for the company and includes funding from Blu Venture Investors.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Capital Consortium for Pediatric Device Innovation (NCC-PDI) announces six awardees chosen in its annual "Make Your Medical Device Pitch for Kids!" competition to share in $250,000 in grants funded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to support the advancement of pediatric medical devices. The competition, powered by NCC-PDI partner MedTech Innovator, focused on cardiovascular, NICU, and orthopaedic and spine devices, which are areas of critical need where innovation can significantly improve children's healthcare. The virtual event aired today as part of the 8th Annual Pediatric Device Innovation Symposium presented by Children's National Hospital in conjunction with The MedTech Conference, powered by AdvaMed.

Whether it’s “Mom and Pop” retail storefronts, family-run services companies or life science companies developing innovative, life saving products, family owned-and-operated businesses are the lifeblood of the global economy.

According to Cornell University’s SC Johnson School of Business, “There are 5.5 million family businesses in the US. (FEUSA, 2011) Family-owned businesses contribute 57% of the U.S. GDP (that’s $8.3 trillion), employ 63% of the workforce (FEUSA, 2011), and are responsible for 78% of all new job creation. (Astrachan & Shanker, 2003) 35% of Fortune 500 companies are family-controlled. (Businessweek.com, 2006).” 

One of Kansas City’s most under the radar startups is scaling up amid COVID-19 — thanks in part to a share of $250 thousand in non-dilutive funding from a Los Angeles-based accelerator and FDA sponsored pediatric device consortia.

“When COVID hit, one of the things I took from that was, ‘When you’re not selling, your process better be impeccable,’” said Chris Mathia, CEO of Innara Health, the healthtech startup behind the NTrainer — the only FDA approved solution for improving oral coordination in premature babies. 

Image: Chris Mathia, Innara Health

The state of Maryland is the global epicenter of vaccine research and development. This has never been more evident than right now as scores of Maryland companies have risen to the global challenge of developing the first approved vaccine for SARS-CoV-2. 

We’ve written extensively about the region’s push to develop a viable, effective and safe COVID-19 vaccine. Companies like Novavax, Emergent BioSolutions and Altimmune are on the leading edge with some of the most promising COVID-19 Vaccine candidates progressing through clinicals.  While Maryland as a global vaccine R&D juggernaut might be news to those outside of the region, Maryland’s life science ecosystem has been a leading vaccine R&D hub for years. 

Image: https://biobuzz-io.cdn.ampproject.org

The vaccine-related activity is creating more demand for lab space in an already tight market, further reducing vacancy rates and driving up rents. This dynamic is leading developers to consider breaking ground on spec and converting vacant office buildings to lab space, multiple experts said Thursday on Bisnow's Life Science Surge webinar.

Image: Courtesy of HFF The GSK Global Vaccine Center in Rockville 

Johns Hopkins has consolidated the university's job and internship postings onto a single website, SMILE, a new platform for finding remote and in-person experiential learning opportunities across all JHU divisions.

All positions posted on SMILE are non-credit bearing, compensated via JHU payroll, and part time. Students will continue to use the existing Handshake platform for off-campus internships and full-time positions.

The power of nurse-led innovation and know-how is more critical than ever when developing potential solutions amid a global crisis. With extensive patient experience, nurses’ ideas have the potential to profoundly improve human health.

Time is running out for nurses to submit ideas that aim to profoundly transform COVID-19 patient care in the Johnson & Johnson Nurses Innovate QuickFire Challenge: COVID-19 Patient Care in partnership with the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) and the Society of Nurse Scientists, Innovators, Entrepreneurs, & Leaders (SONSIEL).

Charlottesville-based AMPEL BioSolutions currently has an opening in its rigorous two-year postdoctoral program that trains PhD to be competitive applicants for Scientist positions in Pharma/Biotech, the NIH and universities. PostDoc positions are located in: Systems Immunology, Bioinformatics, Machine Learning or a combination of these fields. Publication and grant writing are essential components of the training period. AMPEL has a hybrid environment of remote and in-office personnel. High-caliber work suitable for presentation at scientific meetings and/or publication in the peer-reviewed literature is expected. Successful applicants will possess excellent organizational skills, the ability to think critically, prowess in written and oral communication, and the initiative to work proactively in a collaborative environment. The company has successfully implemented this program during the past few years with several postdocs successfully gaining industry and publication experience. Please send your send CV, 3 references, research interests & relevant skills/experience to the COO at AMPEL.

Visit the Ample Biosolutions Website.

Download the PDF

The BioHealth Capital Region was represented for the first time at the FRAXA Biotech Games and took home FOURTH PLACE! This national competition is hosted annually by the FRAXA Research Foundation to raise funds and awareness for Fragile X research. Fragile X is the most common inherited cause of autism and intellectual disabilities. The BioHealth Capital Region was represented by BioHealth Innovation team members Ashwin Kulkarni, Rini Pek, Salman Hasan, and Delphine Lissa. BHI’s CEO Rich Bendis proudly stated “The BioHealth Capital Region cluster ranks 4th in Genetic Engineering News and now in the FRAXA games thanks to our crack team of analysts. Going forward, we’re looking to move up in both ranking!.”

CoSolve is a new global, virtual, Open Innovation challenge at AstraZeneca, seeking to find new collaborators – those with the boldest innovations and solutions that will help us create the next wave of medicines to help transform patients' lives.

The BioHealth Capital Region Investor Forum is going Virtual on October 20^th and 21^st. To apply as an investor seeking biohealth opportunities, or as a biohealth company seeking to have your opportunity reviewed by investors, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with Investment Conference in the subject line.

The BioHealth Capital Region Investor Forum is going Virtual on October 20^th and 21^st. Contact BHI at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to apply to be a Company or Investor at this invite-only event.

Today's IPO for Graybug Vision Inc. (NASDAQ: GRAY) opened for trading at $19 after pricing 5,625,000 shares of common stock at a public offering price of $16.00 per share.

In addition, Graybug has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 843,750 shares of common stock at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions

SVB Leerink and Piper Sandler are acting as joint bookrunning managers for the offering. Needham & Company and Wedbush PacGrow are acting as passive bookrunners for the offering.

John Trizzino, Novavax Executive Vice President, Chief Business Officer and Chief Financial Officer Joins BioTalk to Discuss the Company’s History, COVID-19 Vaccine Development, and Collaboration in the BioHealth Capital Region

Listen now on Apple https://apple.co/2EJ4ucS, Google https://bit.ly/36eBQLS, Spotify, https://spoti.fi/2HDE9hr, TuneIn https://bit.ly/3kS20Z1, and Youtube (audio) https://bit.ly/3kYlHyb.

First awarded in 2016, the International Biomedical Research Alliance’s Innovation Award recognizes novel solutions in biology or medicine and acknowledges discoveries of unusual importance, application, or magnitude that make use of new or unusual methods, paradigms, or approaches to solve important problems in biology or medicine. This year, the Innovation Award was graciously sponsored by BioHealth Innovation Inc. and presented to Michael Metrick. A graduate of James Madison University, Michael is working toward completion of his PhD in the NIH Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program. The Scholars Program is a novel, dual-mentored, and international collaboration between the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland and the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, respectively, in the United Kingdom.  The Scholars Program’s elite students conduct their own biomedical research project in an average completion time of 4.2 years.  Michael is in the MD/PhD track and his MD is in progress at the University of Illinois at Chicago.  Michael is mentored by Prof. Byron Caughey at the NIH’s National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton, Montana and Prof. Michele Vendruscolo at the University of Cambridge.

Image: Michael Metrick

Her entrance comes just as Montgomery County leaders are examining what role USG can play in bringing in more business.

Image: Anne Khademian starts as the executive director of the Universities at Shady Grove in October. THE UNIVERSITIES AT SHADY GROVE

A one day symposium bringing together investigators, researchers, and clinicians from National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and Children’s National Hospital as well as other interested participants from outside institutions, to discuss the creation, progress, and evolution of this first-of-its-kind collaboration between the NIAID at the National Institutes of Health and Children's National, a pediatric academic medical center. This year, the event will highlight the current COVID-19 and MIS-C pandemic, with a specific focus on the pediatric population. Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of NIAID, will provide an overview on the infectious disease, and leading experts from Children’s National, NIAID, and other institutions will share the novel research and science being done to address this worldwide issue.

GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Governor Larry Hogan on Thursday visited a Gaithersburg laboratory, that's in the process of developing a possible COVID-19 vaccine.

Novavax Inc., was awarded $1.6 billion through the Federal Government's Operation Warp Speed to produce large-scale manufacturing, and delivery of 100 million vaccine doses as early as late 2020.

The company is just one of several in Montgomery County and Baltimore, helping to find a vaccine.

Image: Photo by: Gov. Hogan's Office Gov. Hogan visits Novavax Inc.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Sept. 24, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX), a late stage biotechnology company developing next-generation vaccines for serious infectious diseases, today announced that it has initiated its first Phase 3 study to evaluate the efficacy, safety and immunogenicity of NVX-CoV2373, Novavax’ COVID-19 vaccine candidate. The trial is being conducted in the United Kingdom (UK), in partnership with the UK Government’s Vaccines Taskforce, and is expected to enroll and immunize up to 10,000 individuals between 18-84 (inclusive) years of age, with and without relevant comorbidities, over the next four to six weeks.

Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2020

Earlier this year, the federal Department of Health and Human Services announced a four-year contract worth $354 million for Richmond-based Phlow Corp. to manufacture medication components and drugs in the United States that could treat COVID-19 and other diseases.

If extended to the maximum 10 years, the contract could be worth $812 million. Phlow is a new company, co-founded and formally launched this year by Virginia Commonwealth University College of Engineering professor and alumnus B. Frank Gupton, Ph.D., and three-time VCU alumnus Eric S. Edwards. Edwards earned his B.S. in biology from the College of Humanities andSciences in 2002, his Ph.D. from the School of Pharmacy in 2011 and his M.D. from the School of Medicine in 2013.

Image: Phlow co-founder Eric Edwards, an alumnus of VCU's College of Humanities and Sciences, School of Pharmacy and School of Medicine, speaks at a School of Pharmacy Graduate Advisory Board meeting in 2019. (Danny Tiet, School of Pharmacy)

SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Why We Vaccinate, Inc., a 501(3)(c) educational organization dedicated to provide a credible and trusted source for honest and factual information on vaccines, their efficacy, safety and importance to public health, announced today the appointment of eight new board members. These additions to the organization's leadership further its efforts to develop educational programs and facts-based messages. Our goals are to put forward information on the science and safety of vaccines, educating the population on the value of all vaccines and immunization programs.

ROCKVILLE, Md. — A broad range of 49 Montgomery County, Maryland companies made the list in this year’s annual Inc. 5000 list of the fastest-growing privately-owned companies in the United States. The recognized companies span industries that include software, IT system development, health, biotech, consumer products, advertising & marketing, construction, government services and financial services. 

Among the Montgomery County companies, there is a prevalence in software, healthcare/bio and government services—a natural fit with access to one of the country’s most highly  educated workforces and local proximity to world-class federal research institutions in science, health, medicine and cybersecurity such as NIST, NIH, FDA and NCCOE.