BHI Weekly Newsletter Archives

SAN DIEGO — Kimryn Rathmell, director of the National Cancer Institute, gestured toward the screen and asked an audience of clinicians, researchers, and patient advocates what they thought they were looking at. Projected behind her was a patchwork of purple, red, pink, and blue squares.

Moments later, a larger-than-life image of Taylor Swift flashed in the middle of the pattern, and laughter rippled through the room here at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting as attendees realized they were staring at a poster of the singer’s “Eras Tour.”

Senators Cardin and Van Hollen requested more than $1 million to fund this new program

COLUMBIA, Md., (April 11, 2024) — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, has received $1,150,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending to advance its Federal Lab Leveraging Innovation to Products (FLLIP) Pilot Program. The direct spending request was sponsored by U.S. Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and included in the Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Services and General Government funding bill, which was signed into law last month as part of a FY24 appropriations package.

“Maryland is home to more than 70 federal labs, from the NIH in Silver Spring to the Frederick National Lab for Cancer Research and the Army Medical Research and Development Command,” said Senator Cardin. “With this federal investment, we’re making it easier for traditionally underserved businesses in the healthcare industry to take full advantage of the resources right in their backyard. Community partnerships like the FLLIP Program drive innovation in the state and help build a more equitable, prepared and developed health care system.”

WASHINGTON, April 03, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: SXTP; SXTPW) (or the “Company”), a pharmaceutical company focused on developing new medicines for infectious diseases, announced today that the Company will sponsor a pilot study of tafenoquine, the active molecule in its U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved human malaria prevention medication, ARAKODA^®, for the treatment of babesiosis in dogs. The study will support a broader effort now being led by 60 Degrees Pharmaceuticals to evaluate tafenoquine for various babesiosis indications.

Tafenoquine has not been proven to be effective for treatment or prevention of canine babesiosis and is not approved by the FDA for such an indication.

Be Biopharma to use MaxCyte’s Flow Electroporation® technology and ExPERT™ platform within its Engineered B Cell Medicines programs

ROCKVILLE, Md., April 02, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — MaxCyte, Inc., (Nasdaq: MXCT; LSE: MXCT), a leading, cell-engineering focused company providing enabling platform technologies to advance the discovery, development and commercialization of next-generation cell-based therapeutics and innovative bioprocessing applications and Be Biopharma (“Be Bio”), a company pioneering the development of Engineered B Cell Medicines (BCMs) to dramatically improve the lives of patients who are living with genetic diseases, cancer, and other serious conditions, today announced the signing of a strategic platform license (SPL) to support the development of Be Bio’s BCMs programs.

Under the terms of the agreement, Be Bio obtains non-exclusive research, clinical and commercial rights to use MaxCyte’s Flow Electroporation® technology and ExPERT™ platform. In return, MaxCyte is entitled to receive annual licensing fees and program-related revenue.

COLUMBIA, Md. (April 1, 2024) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a recent $50,000 Pre-Seed Builder Fund investment in LASARRUS, a medical device company dedicating to supporting Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients. TEDCO’s Pre-Seed Builder Fund is housed under TEDCO’s Social Impact Funds which were created to engage and invest in economically underserved founders and communities.

“With our innovative device, we are looking to bring current monitoring practices for COPD patients to a new level,” said Lloyd Emokpae, co-founder, CEO and chief technology officer of LASARRUS. “Thanks to TEDCO’s investment we can accelerate our mission to enhance care for COPD patients and ultimately support more COPD patients across Maryland and beyond.”

Altimmune on Wednesday said its experimental drug helped patients shed weight but also minimized the loss of muscle mass in a midstage trial, a finding that could set it apart in a potentially crowded market.

Altimmune is one of several smaller biotech companies that are pushing to compete directly with Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly in the growing weight loss drug space, or to get scooped up by larger drugmakers that can help bring their treatments to market.

The results are an early sign that the biotech company can address a major concern around those treatments, which have drawn unrelenting demand and investor interest over the last year.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – March 26, 2024 – AMPEL BioSolutions announces a breakthrough in personalized precision medicine that will revolutionize the way doctors manage the autoimmune disease Lupus.  Revealed in the peer-reviewed journal Genome Medicine and being made available to patients through a US follow-on study, the LuGENE^® blood test forecasts patient flares and drug targets from gene expression utilizing predictive AI.

The LuGENE^® lab test is now launching at several Lupus practices around the country including those in medical centers, concierge practices and healthcare systems as a practical decision support biomarker test that could greatly impact day-to-day healthcare for patients with Lupus.  The blood test predicts flares before they happen and provides specific information about a patient’s disease abnormalities leading to symptoms, allowing physicians to make evidence-based decisions regarding therapy including whether a patient is stable on their current therapeutic regimen.  There are a million and a half lupus patients in the US that could benefit from LuGENE^® by preventing unexpected flares and shortening the time to disease-controlling therapy.

BALTIMORE, MD, March 19, 2024 –, CoapTech, Inc., a medical device company delivering transformative solutions for minimally-invasive surgery, announced today the market launch and historic first bedside use case of its second generation magnetic balloon catheter. The magnetic balloon catheter is a key component of the PUMA-G System™ which enables ultrasound placement of gastrostomy tubes (i.e. permanent feeding tubes), necessary to nourish patients to recovery. The PUMA-G System is manufactured in Baltimore in collaboration with The LaunchPort™.

This first bedside use case was completed in the critical care unit (better known as ICU) at the University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center (UM BWMC) and was performed by Darwin Ashbaker, MD, and Stephen Griffin, PA, on February 27, 2024.

ROCKVILLE, Md., March 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Expert Systems, a leader in AI-enabled drug discovery, proudly announces a significant milestone in partnership with Eilean Therapeutics LLC: the start of Phase 1 trial of balamenib (ZE63-0302), a highly selective inhibitor of the menin–KMT2A binding interaction, under the Clinical Trial Notification (CTN) scheme of the Australian Therapeutics Goods Administration (TGA).

“Balamenib has a highly differentiated pre-clinical profile which indicates important advantages over molecules in the same class in safety, tolerability and feasibility of outpatient treatment,” commented Bill Farley, CBO at Expert Systems. “We are proud that our comprehensive hybrid AI-based platform has helped accelerate the development of a new promising & safe treatment for AML.”

Life science company working to develop ultrasonic bone fracture healing technology

 COLUMBIA, Md. (March 11, 2024) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a recent $200,000 Seed Funds investment in Sonogen Medical, a medical device company based in Maryland.

“Roughly eight percent of the seven million bone breaks annually in the United States fail to heal on their own. At Sonogen Medical, we are combining decades of experience to create a device that supports faster more efficient healing processes for patients,” said Jason Winder, CEO of Sonogen Medical. “Thanks to TEDCO’s investment we can continue our research and development efforts, propelling us towards an efficient, cost-effective solution.”

Maryland company continues toward goal of supporting improved patient safety

COLUMBIA, Md. (February 29, 2024) – TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announced a recent $400,000 investment into Linshom Medical, Inc., a medical device company developing an innovative wearable sensor technology to support patient respiratory monitoring. This recent investment came in two parts – $250,000 from the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funding and $150,000 from the Venture Funds – and was done in conjunction with Abell Foundation.

TEDCO’s SSBCI funds were provided after the State of Maryland chose TEDCO to be one of the various stewards of this essential funding, allowing for more investments in target communities and areas with small, micro and Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individual (SEDI) businesses. Click here to learn more.

MANASSAS, Va. & TEL AVIV, Israel–(BUSINESS WIRE)–ATCC, the world’s premier biological materials management and standards organization, and Tissue Dynamics, a disruptive pharma-tech company integrating advanced artificial intelligence tools with bionic human organoids, today announced a partnership to develop workflow friendly cardiac organoids-based kits for improved cardiac safety testing in drug development. The collaboration will be done under the Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation (BIRD) framework, which awarded both companies a two-year grant. The BIRD Foundation, established in 1977, bolsters transformative partnerships that stimulate, promote, and support industrial research and development in a wide range of technology sectors.

Join us for an engaging episode of BioTalk as we sit down with Lance Kawaguchi, Chief Executive Officer of the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation. Lance’s career trajectory from global finance to non-profit leadership is as inspiring as it is impactful, driven by a personal mission to combat brain cancer following the loss of his mother.

Listen now via your favorite podcast platforms:
Apple: https://apple.co/48uln2K
Google: https://bit.ly/48uzlBC
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3IeTEIy
Amazon Music: https://amzn.to/3OVRFwE
TuneIn: https://bit.ly/2M60Wmx

In this episode, we explore Lance’s journey from senior investment banker to non-profit leader, propelled by personal loss and a vision for change. We delve into the SouthPoleTrek4Cancer initiative, spearheading a global effort to raise awareness and funds for brain and rare cancer charities, culminating in a historic journey to the South Pole. We recognize Lance’s leadership achievements, including ringing the Nasdaq bell twice as a cancer charity CEO, and his success in bringing the GBM AGILE Clinical Trial Platform from the US to Australia, accelerating breakthrough research efforts.

Being a university in Washington DC poses interesting challenges, but Georgetown University’s Tatiana Litvin-Vechnyak is determined to turn them into opportunities.

Weirdly, being located at the heart of the US capital doesn’t always help Georgetown University when it comes to creating spinout companies. State universities often have economic development mandates that they can follow, but in Washington DC Georgetown is in something of a vacuum — with little direction for what to focus on, less set funding and fewer people pushing to advance the technologies coming out of the institution.

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.

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.

BioHealth Innovation (BHI) deeply mourns the loss of Dr. William G. Hearl, a former BHI Board member and a prominent contributor to the BioHealth Capital Region. Rich Bendis, BHI’s President and CEO, shared, “Bill’s unwavering commitment and leadership in our region have been instrumental to its growth. His dedication to fostering innovation and supporting emerging entrepreneurs and the biotech community was truly remarkable. We have lost not just a great leader but a friend who inspired many.” Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family, friends, and colleagues at Immunomic Therapeutics. To read more about Dr. Hearl’s legacy, visit https://www.immunomix.com/in-loving-memory-dr-william-g-hearl-immunomic-therapeutics-founder/

Germantown, MD, USA (February 07, 2024) – Amarex Clinical Research, LLC, an NSF company, announces December 2023 marked its 25th year advancing patient access to safe and effective clinical products through delivery of outstanding regulatory and clinical trial services to Sponsors within the life sciences industry.

Amarex was founded in 1998 by scientists from diverse backgrounds in academia, industry, and the FDA. Born from a vision of wanting better services from CRO vendors by correcting the many inefficiencies and deficiencies in the management and conduct of clinical trials, our founders revisited the clinical trial process and developed improved, cost-effective methods for clinical product development without sacrificing quality. Amarex’s unmatched value to Sponsors continues to differentiate Amarex from the competition by assigning senior level staff to every project, optimizing time and cost with efficient and effective processes and procedures, building true collaborative partnerships with Sponsors, and through a commitment to long-term client relationships in order to achieve successful clinical development program outcomes.