The National Science Foundation's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program- also known as America's Seed Fund powered by NSF - provides small businesses with equity-free funding to conduct research and development (R&D) work. The funding is intended to allow recipients to bring innovative new products and services to market that drive the commercial success of the small business. The NSF SBIR program seeks innovative proposals that show promise of commercial and societal impact in almost all areas of science and technology.

Royal Philips (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHIA), a global leader in health technology, today announced that it has acquired US-based start-up company Analytical Informatics, Inc., complementing its own innovation initiatives to expand its current offerings and accelerate the roadmap for Philips Radiology Solutions. Analytical Informatics’ products and capabilities, which include vendor-agnostic, advanced workflow tools and applications, strengthen Philips’ PerformanceBridge portfolio of operational performance solutions to optimize assets, uptime, utilization, practice, compliance and staff at the imaging department and enterprise levels. Financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed.

The stakes for research grant applications are high in today’s competitive funding environment. Yet applications are often submitted to external funding agencies before they pass any kind of internal review process. A new study from Columbia University’s School of Nursing suggests that institutions benefit from helping researchers write better grants. Specifically, it found that pilot grant applications that underwent an internal review were twice as likely as nonreviewed applications to receive funding.

emocha is bringing its work on opioid addiction treatment into the clinic.

Dallas-based Pathway Healthcare recently signed on to use the mobile health startup’s platform. Pathway operates a network of clinics, becoming the first private partner to use the technology. It comes as officials have called for an all-hands-on-deck approach to address the opioid crisis. A treatment center in Jackson, Tennessee, was the first to begin using the platform, according to the startup.

When: Thursday, November 30 5:00 - 6:30 pm

Where: Life Sciences Conference Center 801 West Baltimore Street

Please join the BioPark's Monthly Networking Event. Mingle with our honored guest, Alex Triantis, Dean of Robert H. Smith School of Business, Smith School faculty, students and alumni, BioPark tenants, and UMB faculty & staff.

As someone who loves to travel, I have a pretty intense bucket list of places I want to go to, sights to see, and events to attend. Right now, I have about 10 different countries I want to visit, and I need to squeeze in a drawing class to better hone my artistic skills, too. I also want to challenge myself at work by pitching and writing for different publications, and there’s a handful of musicians I want to see perform live at least once in my lifetime. Oh, and did I mention that I someday want to try reading my poetry at an open mic night?

I regularly hear people complain that our region lacks venture capital. Last week I asked members of our entrepreneurial community about this perceived funding gap and what they thought we should do about it.

Northrop Grumman Corp. and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County's cyber incubator are launching a new mentorship initiative to help growing cyber startups gain access to advanced technology resources.

A study of the 50 US states provides an index to indicate which states are leading in the ‘new economy’, and which are falling behind. It also reveals clear patterns, proposing ‘winning’ policy formula for economic development.

The top five states in the index are Massachusetts, California, Washington, Virginia, and Delaware. The five lowest-scoring states, from 46th to 50th, are Louisiana, Wyoming, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Mississippi.

DATE AND TIME: Wed, December 13, 2017 7:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST

LOCATION: Falls Church Marriott Fairview Park 3111 Fairview Park Drive Falls Church, VA 22042

Our CONNECTpreneur Baltimore Forum on November 16 was another sell-out. We had 380 business leaders, 8 awesome presenting companies, and epic speakers! Guests enjoyed a morning of insight, conversation and connections! 

When: December 20th, 2017 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Where: Bar Louie 150 Gibbs St. Rockville MD 20850

Join BioBuzz and annual sponsor Biohealth Innovation, Inc. to celebrate the holiday season and last BioBuzz event of the year. The celebration will be at Bar Louie in the Rockville Town Center on December 20th, 2017 from 5 - 7pm. Only a 5 minute walk from the Rockville Metro, please join us for this exciting event.

The Society of Physician Entrepreneurs and the MBA Collaborative Alumni Angel Group, in conjunction with NIH, cordially invite you to join us for our next meeting:

December 13, 5:00 – 8:30 PM, at: Institute for Bioscience & Biotechnology Research, 9600 Gudelsky Drive, Rockville, MD,

This program will be focused on start-up and emerging biotech, pharmaceutical, and healthcare companies. Referrals are coming from NIH officials and consultants as well as SoPE/CAAG members and affiliates as well as direct applications to SoPE or CAAG.

Six years ago, at age 49, Julie Gregory paid an online service to sequence her genes, hoping to turn up clues about her poor circulation, blood-sugar swings and general ill health. Instead she learned she had a time bomb hidden in her DNA: two copies of a gene variant, ApoE4, that is strongly linked to Alzheimer’s. Most Americans with this genotype go on to develop late-onset dementia.

The Inova Health System will formally open its doors to new ideas by launching its personalized health accelerator on Nov. 30.

The event begins at 6:15 p.m. and will be held at the Inova Center for Personalized Health at 3225 Gallows Rd. in Fairfax. It includes a ribbon cutting, networking, keynote speeches and a tour of the facility.

A team of five Johns Hopkins University students won first place and $5,000 at the fifth annual Pfizer Case Competition at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School earlier this month.

Fifteen Johns Hopkins scientists are among 3,000 individuals included on the annual Highly Cited Researchers list compiled by Clarivate Analytics, which was previously part of Thomson Reuters.

High-income countries are grappling with the challenge of caring for aging populations, many of whose members have chronic illnesses and declining capacity to manage activities of daily living. The 2017 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey of Older Adults in eleven countries showed that US seniors were sicker than their counterparts in other countries and, despite universal coverage under Medicare, faced more financial barriers to health care.

When: Tuesday, December 5, 2017 6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. EST

Where: All Set Restaurant & Bar 8630 Fenton St. Silver Spring, MD 20910

It’s that time of the year again! Please join Capital Region chapter of Women In Bio as we celebrate the conclusion of an amazing 2017 at All Set Restaurant & Bar in Silver Spring, MD. Come mix & mingle with friends old and new over drinks and hors d’oeuvres, learn about the opportunities and resources that you have access to as WIB members, and participate in our raffle to win exciting prices!

Funding and Research Opportunities

The following funding opportunity announcements from the NHLBI or other components of the National Institutes of Health, might be of interest:

Maryland Tech Council announced today that Nora D. Volkow, M.D., Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health (NIH) will kick off its new Innovation Speaker Series. Dr. Volkow will discuss the current state of the opioid crisis nationally and locally. Additionally, her presentation will cover what research has shown about this particular addiction, its prevention and treatment, and how science may help end the massive public health crisis. Key industry leaders are expected to attend this inaugural series event, which will take place Wednesday, November 29, 2017 at the Universities at Shady Grove from 7:30-9:30 a.m.

The Johns Hopkins University and Deerfield Management announced today the creation of Bluefield Innovations, a collaboration designed to catalyze the development of early stage therapeutics. Funded by Deerfield, an investment management firm committed to advancing health care, Bluefield Innovations will provide up to $65 million in initial funding over five years to support the commercialization of early stage therapeutic research at Johns Hopkins, with additional funding available to advance research that shows strong commercial potential.

Bioterrorism threats and infectious disease outbreaks are on the rise. Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (EBS) has a stream of revenues from FDA-approved drugs, as well as a full pipeline of drugs under development, to combat these health threats.

QIAGEN N.V. (NASDAQ: QGEN; Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA) today launched enhancements in its QIAGEN Clinical Insight (QCI) bioinformatics software automating the AMP/ASCO/CAP Standards and Guidelines for the Interpretation and Reporting of Sequence Variants in Cancer, advancing precision medicine with the first solution to offer molecular pathologists critical information needed to guide oncologists' treatment decisions.

FDA approval based on Phase III program demonstrating up to 51% reduction in asthma exacerbations, significant improvement in lung function and a 75% reduction in daily oral steroid use

Date and time: Tuesday, 21 November 5:00PM - 8:00PM EST  

Location: MedImmune 1 Medimmune Way Gaithersburg, MD 20878 United States

HBA Mid-Atlantic presents a panel of successful diverse women from the public and private healthcare sectors to share their experiences on harnessing one's power.

• Primary Competency: 8. Builds relationships and teams
• Secondary Competency: 12. Continues to learn, grow and transform

Scientists for the first time have tried editing a gene inside the body in a bold attempt to permanently change a person’s DNA to cure a disease.

David Narrow said the life of an entrepreneur is fast-paced and at times very stressful, but he has never loved any job more.

His medical technology firm, Sonavex, recently raised $3 million and took up new office space in Canton. The company is currently working on commercializing its product, which uses ultrasound technology to detect potentially harmful, post-surgical blood clots. 

Date: Thursday, November 30, 2017

Location: Inova Center for Personalized Health3225 Gallows Road, Fairfax, VA 22031

Technology innovation continues to accelerate at an exponential rate, constantly outpacing the status quo and redefining limitations. Personal healthcare stands to benefit from these newfound opportunities.

Happiness changes over the course of your life.

There is "scientific evidence that people get happier as they get older," according to a Bank of America Merrill Lynch report that analyzed Nielsen data. "While there are differing theories as to why this is, most agree that it is an acceptance of aging that promotes contentedness."

It just wouldn’t feel like a Friday without some Trump cabinet intrigue so with that in mind, Alex Azar, the former president of Lilly’s U.S. business, has been tipped to be the next Secretary of Health and Human Services, according to Bloomberg. If he’s approved, Azar would succeed Tom Price, who resigned from the post amidst fallout over the cost of his extensive use of government travel via military and private jets.

AstraZeneca and its Maryland-based biologics research and development arm, MedImmune, announced that the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) of the European Medicines Agency has adopted a positive opinion, recommending benralizumab as an add-on maintenance treatment in adult patients with a type of severe asthma.

University System of Maryland (USM) Chancellor Robert L. Caret was elected chair today of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) Board of Directors.  He succeeds University of Virginia President Teresa A. Sullivan.

Inova Health System's venture capital arm has been busy over the last year.

Since starting Inova Strategic Investments, Inova has closed three new direct company investments and two fund investments.

For the first time, the Food and Drug Administration has approved a digital pill — a medication embedded with a sensor that can tell doctors whether, and when, patients take their medicine.

The University of Maryland was honored for its contributions to the economic development of the community at the 2017 Innovation & Economic Prosperity (IEP) University Awards by the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU). As winner of the Economic Engagement Connections Award, IEP’s top prize, and the Place Award. UMD is the first two-time winner of the Connections Award, and the first institution to garner both a category award and the Connections Award in the same year. The award winners were announced at the the 2017 APLU Annual Meeting on Nov. 12, 2017.