News Archive

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.

Apr. 22—Construction will start this September on a 500,000-square-foot life science campus in Frederick County’s Jefferson Technology Park that the developer says will be a $140 million investment in the community.

The Labs at Jefferson Park will include about 200,000-square-feet of research and development lab space, said Eric Fischer, a managing director with Trammell Crow Co., the project’s developer. It is slated to be finished next year.

TUCSON, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / April 20, 2022 / AURP, the leading non-profit representing research parks, innovation districts and regional technology clusters, today announced its BIO Health Caucus will take place in-person, June 12-13, before the start of the 2022 Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) International Convention in San Diego, CA.

AURP’s BIO Health Caucus, with its theme “Designing, Building And Financing Research Space For Growing Bio Companies And Bio Clusters,” will include discussion of BIO’s new report on bioscience economic development: “Driving the Bioscience Economy Forward During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Best Practices in State and Regional Economic Development Initiatives.”

• Phase 1/2 clinical trial of COVID-19-Influenza combination vaccine candidate indicates vaccine is well-tolerated and immunogenic
• Data from this combination trial will inform planned Phase 2 dose confirmation trial, scheduled to begin by the end of 2022
• Immune response confirmed in stand-alone influenza vaccine and combination vaccine with potential path forward for both

GAITHERSBURG, Md., April 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX), a biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing next-generation vaccines for serious infectious diseases, today announced initial results from the Phase 1/2 clinical trial of its COVID-Influenza Combination Vaccine (CIC). The CIC combines Novavax’ COVID-19 vaccine, NVX-CoV2373, and its quadrivalent influenza vaccine candidate. The CIC trial demonstrated that formulating the combination vaccine is feasible, well-tolerated and immunogenic.

“We continue to evaluate the dynamic public health landscape and believe there may be a need for recurrent boosters to fight both COVID-19 and seasonal influenza,” said Gregory M. Glenn, M.D., President of Research and Development, Novavax. “We’re encouraged by these data and the potential path forward for a combination COVID-19-influenza vaccine as well as stand-alone vaccines for influenza and COVID-19.”

The safety and tolerability profile of the combination vaccine was consistent with the stand-alone NVX-CoV2373 and quadrivalent nanoparticle influenza vaccine reference formulations in the trial. The combination vaccine was found to be generally well tolerated. Serious adverse were rare and none were assessed as being related to the vaccine.

Join ETC and Squadra Ventures on May 18, 2022 from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm at Monument City Brewing for the second Open Mic Pitch Night!  This is an opportunity for the Baltimore community to embrace new technology and foster connections. This is where entrepreneurs can practice pitching their startup or idea to an audience and receive feedback from a group of like-minded peers, investors, and tech leaders in a safe space.

Pitches will be casual – no presentations – simply get up on stage and spend 2 minutes telling the audience about your company or idea. During the networking hour, audience members will have the opportunity to ask companies questions.

To apply to pitch; please fill out this form by Tuesday, May 17th, 2022 at 11:59 PM. After completing the form you will receive an email with instructions on what to expect, your pitch timeslot, and any other information you may need. If you have any questions, please contact Breonna Massey at bmassey@etcbaltimore.com.

Happy hour drinks and light appetizers will be provided.

Click here to register.

The Life Sciences Advisory Board added three new members, Ellington West of Sonavi Labs, Michael Weingarten of the National Cancer Institute, and GlaxoSmithKline’s KaShauna G. Rohlehr.

Ellington West West was tapped to serve as chief executive officer of Sonavi Labs in 2018. Along with Ian McLane, she is the co-founder of the Johns Hopkins startup digital stethoscope technology company. West was the founder of West Labs Research Group at Johns Hopkins where the company’s core Feelix technology was developed.

Image: https://biobuzz.io

April 19, 2022 12:00 UTC   — Kite’s Global CAR T-Cell Therapy Manufacturing Network Increasing Capacity by 50% to Meet Patient Demand for New Cancer Therapies — Scalable and Adaptable Facility Provides Flexibility for Current and Future Cell Therapy Innovation   SANTA MONICA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Kite Pharma, a Gilead Company (Nasdaq: GILD), today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved commercial production at the company’s new CAR T-cell therapy manufacturing facility in Frederick, Maryland. The site will produce Kite’s FDA approved CAR T-cell therapy used to treat blood cancer.