News Archive

A new collaboration between the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) and the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) encourages SBIR applicants to license ARS technologies and be considered for a SBIR grant.

The relevant language in the SBIR’s “Request for Application” states: “Additional factors that will be considered in the review process include whether an application involves a CRADA with a USDA laboratory, or a license to a USDA technology, or is a resubmission. In the event that two or more applications are of approximately equal merit, the existence of a CRADA with a USDA laboratory or a license to a USDA technology will be an important consideration. If one application is a resubmission, this will also be an important consideration.” The SBIR Website can be found at: http://www.nifa.usda.gov/fo/sbir.

Accelerator Corporation, a US-based biotech investment and management company, has attracted a total of $51.1m for its Accelerator IV fund. The three major investors’ cash, Eli Lilly, Pfizer Venture Investments and Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation, make up $50m of the investment.

The three pharmaceutical companies and other existing investors Alexandria Venture Investments, WRF Capital and Arch Venture Partners, are joined by two new strategic investors. These are Harris & Harris, a venture capital firm, and The Partnership Fund for New York City, an evergreen fund by the city’s business and finance leaders.

Today, most healthcare organizations operate in ways that are antithetical to innovation. The trend in patient-centered healthcare is to focus on stability, predictability, standardization and the avoidance of risk. Process engineers are deployed to help hospitals and healthcare systems eliminate waste and improve their organizations using Lean and Six-Sigma principles. Few operators develop an effective focus on innovation. Therefore, few reap the rewards that innovative breakthroughs in patient care can bring.

In a recent Boston Consulting survey across different industries, 76% of executives ranked innovation as a “top-three” strategic priority for their company. Among CEOs specifically, that number rose to 85%, with nearly half of them ranking it as their #1 priority.

Orgenesis Inc. (OTCQB: ORGS), a leader in the emerging fields of cellular therapy and re-generative medicine, today announced the appointment of industry veteran Scott Carmer as CEO of the company’s North American subsidiary. Carmer has more than 25 years of diverse industry experience within both pharmaceutical and biotech companies. Orgenesis is a pioneer in the field of “cellular trans-differentiation,” a technology that has potential to regenerate glucose-responsive insulin production and restore glycemic homeostasis for patients suffering from various insulin-dependent disorders. By transforming a patient’s own liver cells into new insulin producing cells, Orgenesis hopes to develop a breakthrough therapy for people living with Type 1 Diabetes. In his new role, Carmer will oversee the Orgenesis drug development and commercialization strategy in North America, focusing on the near-term initiation of Phase I and Phase II clinical trials in the United States.

Aspiring entrepreneurs in Maryland have two great options for higher education, according to ranking website College Choice.

The University of Maryland, College Park snagged the No. 20 spot on website’s list of the 50 best U.S. colleges for entrepreneurs, while Johns Hopkins University came in a bit lower, at No. 36.

The latest outbreak of Ebola virus in west Africa is the worst ever—as of Monday, it had infected more than 1,200 people and claimed at least 672 victims since this spring. Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone all have confirmed cases. An official at Doctors Without Borders has declared the outbreak as “totally out of control,” according to NBC News. Unfortunately, doctors have no effective vaccines or therapies. Health care workers can only attempt to support patients’ immune systems (regulating fluids, oxygen levels, blood pressure and treating other infections) to help the afflicted fight off the virus as best they can.

10 a.m. – 12 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20

Join us for an open house to learn more about the Master of Liberal Arts program, which is expanding in January 2015 to the Montgomery County Campus. Classes will be available on evenings, Saturdays and online.

The Johns Hopkins Master of Liberal Arts (MLA) is a unique, non-traditional graduate degree. Whereas most graduate programs ask you to become more and more specialized, the MLA expects you to both broaden and deepen your educational experience. Established in 1962 and administered by the Center for Liberal Arts at Johns Hopkins University, the program has gained national recognition for the quality of its teaching and the breadth of its course offerings. The MLA thrives on the curiosity, passion and diversity of its students. Our community of scholars eagerly embraces the Master of Liberal Arts interdisciplinary approach and flexible curriculum to better understand more about the world—and in so doing, learn and understand more about themselves.

At the Sept. 20th open house, you will have the opportunity to meet the program directors and ask questions about the MLA degree.

Opticul Diagnostics has won a BioMaryland Center grant to work on a medical device with a France-based company that would immediately identify microorganisms in a wound at a point-of-care setting, such as a hospital.

The device would be used on burn injuries and cutaneous wounds. The rapid identification of the bacteria in the wound would allow for quicker patient treatment.

Opitcul Diagnostics, based at Johns Hopkins University’s Montgomery County Campus, is collaborating with Diafir of Rennes, France. The two companies have received funding through a partnership between BioMaryland Center and Medicen Paris Region.

Image: http://mcc.jhu.edu