News Archive

Montgomery County is well known for many transformative firsts in life sciences. First to sequence the human genome; first gene therapy for sickle cell, first cell therapy for COVID-19 — and that’s just the start.* Montgomery County is an epicenter for translating knowledge into life-changing treatment and cures, with gene and cell therapies representing some of the most promising advancements in human health.

Image: Being part of the industry that delivers building solutions to help scientists do their work is what drives Pat Larrabee, CEO of Facility Logix. – https://www.bizjournals.com

In biotechnology, speed matters.

Emerging technology has opened a new world of possibilities for treating — and potentially curing — diseases. Scientists are developing cell and gene therapies designed to help patients with cancer, heart disease, liver disease, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s and many other conditions. The faster they can get these therapies from the laboratory through clinical trials and into production, the sooner people will be able to benefit.

Home to nearly 18 federal agency headquarters, 36 federal labs, and more than 300 life science companies, it’s no surprise Maryland’s Montgomery County is a leader in the life sciences industry.

The six life sciences companies highlighted here consider Montgomery County critical to their success.

MaxCyte, Inc.

“The Montgomery County community has an expansive amount of experience and a perpetual abundance of innovative ideas based on excellent science,” says Doug Doerfler, CEO of MaxCyte, Inc. MaxCyte provides technologies to advance innovative cell-based research and next-generation cell therapeutics. The company’s Flow Electroporation® platform facilitates complex engineering of a wide variety of cells, currently focusing on immuno-oncology and gene editing.

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RIVERDALE, Md., April 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Medcura, Inc., a commercial-stage medical device company, today announced the expansion of its senior management team to include Dr. Kenneth Renkens as its Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Renkens is a thought-leading neurosurgeon who co-founded the Indiana Spine Group and has been involved in the development and commercial success of numerous innovative products now widely used in operating rooms around the world.

Chosen for his deep expertise in neurosurgery and past involvement with numerous implantable surgical innovations, Dr. Renkens joins an experienced team with a demonstrated track record of execution in delivering groundbreaking hemostat innovations. The Medcura team is now narrowly focusing its attention on bringing more disruptive technology to the Operating Room (OR).

Top companies in the life sciences industry choose to locate in Virginia – and flourish here – because of the state’s top talent, advanced culture of innovation, outstanding logistical advantages, competitive costs, and top-ranked business climate. Virginia’s life sciences sector has gained significant momentum in recent years, with 20 life sciences industry projects announced in just the past three years, representing over 1,400 jobs and $1.2 billion in investment. Recent announcements include U.S. Pharmacopeia, AMPAC, Civica, Merck, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), Bausch + Lomb, and Virginia-grown biotech firm Grenova.

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RIVERDALE, Md., April 26, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Medcura, Inc., a commercial-stage medical device company, today announced the expansion of its senior management team to include Dr. Kenneth Renkens as its Chief Medical Officer. Dr. Renkens is a thought-leading neurosurgeon who co-founded the Indiana Spine Group and has been involved in the development and commercial success of numerous innovative products now widely used in operating rooms around the world.

Chosen for his deep expertise in neurosurgery and past involvement with numerous implantable surgical innovations, Dr. Renkens joins an experienced team with a demonstrated track record of execution in delivering groundbreaking hemostat innovations. The Medcura team is now narrowly focusing its attention on bringing more disruptive technology to the Operating Room (OR).

Image: https://biobuzz.io

Emmes, a global, full-service Clinical Research Organization (CRO) dedicated to supporting the advancement of public health and biopharmaceutical innovation, today announced that Casimir’s research on the development of the Duchenne Video Assessment (DVA) scorecards was published in PLOS ONE.  Emmes acquired Casimir in March 2022, and the group is now part of Emmes’ Rare Disease Center, Orphan Reach™.

The DVA is a novel, home-based clinical outcome assessment that measures ease of movement among those with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) through identification of compensatory movement patterns.  Caregivers video record patients performing specific movement tasks at home using a secure mobile application.  The paper describes the development of the scorecards that DVA-trained physical therapists use to score the videos.

The medical science publication Stat just published an article about Congressional interest in the location of ARPA-H headquarters, the new $6 billion effort to fund high, risk-high reward health research and cures. We are about to witness a biotech version of the Amazon HQ2 competition, with states and jurisdictions across the country angling to land this headquarters facility.

It is great to see the national interest in housing ARPA-Headquarters, but this project should not distract jurisdictions from planning for the far more important and
numerous other opportunities emerging as Congress and the White House put the finishing touches on current and new programs and projects to fund applied science and health research programs. Both the science community and commercial real estate (CRE) industry should take notice.