News Archive

The Company’s Fifth Acquisition Deepens Ophthalmology Credentials and Enhances Global Reach

ROCKVILLE, Md., Sept. 28, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Emmes, a global, full-service Clinical Research Organization (CRO) dedicated to supporting the advancement of public health and biopharmaceutical innovation, today announced that it has acquired Clinical Edge. Clinical Edge trains and certifies visual function examiners at investigator sites conducting Phase I to IV ophthalmic clinical trials.

The combination of Optym, Emmes’ ophthalmology certification unit, and Clinical Edge will make the organization a leader in ophthalmic certification and training services.

Emmes officially rolled out the new name – OptymEdge – and branding ahead of the American Academy of Ophthalmology annual meeting, which takes place in Chicago from September 30 to October 3.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Sept. 26, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) announced today that it has completed its acquisition of exclusive worldwide rights to TEMBEXA® (brincidofovir), the first oral antiviral approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for all age groups for the treatment of smallpox, from Chimerix. TEMBEXA was approved in June 2021 and is indicated for the treatment of human smallpox disease in adult and pediatric patients, including neonates.

The completion of the acquisition follows the satisfaction or waiver by the parties, as applicable, of all closing conditions, including expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 (HSR Act), as amended, and receipt of consent from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, for a sub-contract agreement between Chimerix and Emergent.

Today, President Joe Biden announced his intent to appoint Dr. Renee Wegrzyn as the first director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), a new agency established to drive biomedical innovation that supports the health of all Americans.  On the 60th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot speech, Dr. Wegrzyn will join President Biden today at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library in Boston as he discusses his bold vision for another American Moonshot: ending cancer as we know it.

ROCKVILLE, MARYLAND, September 26, 2022 – When it was announced that the winner of the 7^th Annual BioHealth Capital Region Crab Trap would be the recipients of a larger than ever prize pool, organizers didn’t expect that two companies would benefit thanks to unique circumstances. The main winner, Neuroene Therapeutics, a biotech company focused on discovering, developing, and commercializing novel therapeutics for difficult-to-treat neurological disorders, was selected from five finalists as the company with the most commercial potential at the 7^th Annual Crab Trap Competition.

Gaithersburg-based Neuroene Therapeutics and its approach to treating a rare form of epilepsy were crowned the winner of the seventh annual Crab Trap Competition, which highlights the commercialization potential of biohealth technologies throughout the BioHealth Capital Region.

The company was largely recognized for its lead asset, NT102, a Vitamin K analog demonstrating broad seizure protection in preclinical animal models. In particular, the asset showed protection against seizures in Dravet syndrome, a rare genetic disease marked by severe encephalopathy and epilepsy that doesn’t respond well to current medications.

BaneBio is proud to be a sponsor of this invite-only VIP panel event I-270 Innovation Labs.

Startups. Capital. Entrepreneurship. These weren’t always terms in Amy White’s daily lexicon.

A trained scientist, White dedicated 15 years to teaching microbiology, focusing on the world that happens within the laboratory.

“I really never thought beyond the pipette, right,” she recalled at a recent biotech event, Game Changer Week, that was organized in Roanoke.

Emergent BioSolutions, already flush with products against public health threats like anthrax attacks and opioid overdoses, is expanding its arsenal of medical countermeasures by scooping up global rights to smallpox newcomer Tembexa.

Emergent will furnish developer Chimerix with $225 million in upfront cash plus upward of $100 million in milestone payments for worldwide rights to the med, also known as brincidofovir. The drug last summer snagged FDA approval as the first antiviral cleared to treat smallpox regardless of a patient’s age.

The Small Business Innovation Research program is a big step further away from ending.

The Senate passed a three-year authorization of SBIR and the Small Business Technology Transfer Research program by unanimous consent on Sept. 20.

Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), chairman of Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, introduced and the full body passed the SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022 on Wednesday after several months of delay because of concerns from Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) about companies abusing the program.

Image: Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) is the chairman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. – https://federalnewsnetwork.com

Fifth Milestone Achieved by HemoShear with Novel Compounds for Second Target

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Sept. 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — HemoShear Therapeutics, Inc., a privately held clinical stage biotechnology company, has earned a milestone payment for the advancement of potential lead product candidates against a second target for the treatment of gout under its collaboration with Horizon Therapeutics plc ( Nasdaq: HZNP). This milestone marks the fifth payment that HemoShear has earned in accordance with the Horizon exclusive drug discovery agreement established in January 2019.