By Bethanie Glover, ffu4bm@virginia.edu January 15, 2025 – The commonwealth’s biotechnology and innovation footprint is expanding, thanks to an award from the state’s GO Virginia economic development program and a close partnership between the University of Virginia and CvilleBioHub.

The award will add a vital business component to the state’s existing biotech ecosystem to bolster the success of high-potential, early-stage life sciences companies.

GO Virginia approved a $14.3 million funding package to three Virginia biotech accelerator organizations in response to a multiregional proposal called “Project VITAL: Virginia Innovations and Technology Advancements in Life Sciences.”

AIN becomes the second selected VCLP to support the next generation of technology innovation

COLUMBIA, Md., (January 15, 2025) — TEDCO, Maryland’s economic engine for technology companies, announces the selection of AIN Ventures as one of the early-stage venture capital fund managers supporting the management and investment of up to $10 million in U.S. Department of Treasury State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funding.

“As a mission-driven organization, we are excited to work with early-stage entrepreneurs and TEDCO to strengthen Maryland’s innovation ecosystem and support the successful deployment of valuable SSBCI funding,” said Sherman Williams, co-founder and managing partner of AIN Ventures.

GO Virginia, University of Virginia, Manning Family Foundation, and local Economic Development support the three-year project driving life sciences entrepreneurship.

Charlottesville, VA (January 14, 2025) — The biotechnology and innovation landscape in Virginia is set for significant growth, thanks to a recent award from the state’s GO Virginia economic development program and a strategic partnership between CvilleBioHub and the University of Virginia (UVA).This award will inject a crucial business component into Virginia’s existing biotech ecosystem, bolstering the success of high-potential, early-stage life sciences companies. GO Virginia has allocated a $14.3 million funding package to three biotech organizations across Virginia as part of the multiregional initiative “Project VITAL: Virginia Innovations and Technology Advancements in Life Sciences.”

ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — REGENXBIO Inc. (Nasdaq: RGNX) and Nippon Shinyaku Co., Ltd. (Nippon Shinyaku) today announced a strategic partnership for the development and commercialization of RGX-121 for the treatment of Mucopolysaccharidosis II (MPS II), also known as Hunter syndrome, and RGX-111 for Mucopolysaccharidosis I (MPS I), also known as Hurler syndrome.

Under the terms of the agreement, REGENXBIO will receive $110 million at closing and up to an additional $700 million if certain milestones are achieved, consisting of $40 million in potential development and regulatory milestones and $660 million in potential sales milestones. REGENXBIO will also receive meaningful double-digit royalties on net sales in the U.S. and Asia (collectively, the “Licensed Territory”).

January 14, 2025 – Vicky Hatch – Osteosarcoma is a type of aggressive bone cancer that most commonly affects children and young adults between the ages of 10 and 20, during times of rapid bone growth. Although rare, it has a significant impact on young people and their families as treatment can require surgery or amputation. The cancer also has the potential to spread to other organs, most commonly the lungs. Because osteosarcoma is so genomically complex, it has been challenging to identify what genetic mutations drive the disease. As a result, there has been little advancement in treatment options over the past 40 years. 

New research, published in the journal Cell, solves the mystery of what drives the genomic rearrangements causing the aggressive development and evolution of osteosarcoma tumours. By analysing the largest collection of whole-genome data from osteosarcoma patients, the researchers identified a new mutation mechanism, called loss-translocation-amplification (LTA) chromothripsis, which is present in approximately 50% of high-grade osteosarcoma cases. 

In an unprecedented new study in the journal Cell Reports, researchers have shown neurotransmitters in the human brain are released during the processing of the emotional content of language, providing new insights into how people interpret the significance of words.

The work, conducted by an international team led by Virginia Tech scientists, offers deeper understanding into how language influences human choices and mental health.

Spearheaded by computational neuroscientist Read Montague, professor of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and director of the institute’s Center for Human Neuroscience Research, the study represents a first-of-its-kind exploration of how neurotransmitters process the emotional content of language — a uniquely human function.

COLLEGE PARK, Md., January 14, 2025–(BUSINESS WIRE)–IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), a leader in the quantum computing and networking industries, today announced a landmark partnership with the University of Maryland and the State of Maryland with the aim to establish Maryland as the “silicon valley” of the quantum computing industry. The proposed initiative will aim to fuel the growing quantum economy of the U.S. capitol region, provide access to IonQ’s cutting-edge quantum technology, and dramatically strengthen Maryland’s workforce with new quantum-focused jobs.

As part of today’s announcement of the “Capital of Quantum” initiative’s goal of catalyzing more than $1 billion in investments towards Maryland becoming the “Capital of Quantum,” IonQ intends to anchor a state-of-the-art quantum intelligence campus based at the University of Maryland at College Park.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., Jan. 14, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to obtain exclusive commercial rights in the U.S. and Canada to Hikma Pharmaceuticals’ KLOXXADO^® (naloxone HCl) Nasal Spray, an 8 mg naloxone agent that is approved for the emergency treatment of known or suspected opioid overdose, as manifested by respiratory and/or central nervous system depression.¹ This six-year agreement complements and strengthens Emergent’s mission to protect, enhance, and save lives by helping to reduce opioid overdose deaths —providing compelling product options, combined with a commitment to increasing naloxone access, awareness, and education.

NORTH CHICAGO, Ill. and ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — AbbVie (NYSE: ABBV) and REGENXBIO Inc. (Nasdaq: RGNX) today announced updates to the ABBV-RGX-314 clinical program.

ABBV-RGX-314 in Wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration (wet AMD), Subretinal Delivery
Data from the ATMOSPHERE^® and ASCENT^™ pivotal trials evaluating the safety and efficacy of the subretinal delivery of ABBV-RGX-314 in patients with wet AMD are expected in 2026.

ABBV-RGX-314 in Diabetic Retinopathy (DR), Suprachoroidal Delivery
AbbVie and REGENXBIO will plan a Phase 3 clinical program. The clinical program will utilize the in-office SCS Microinjector^® to deliver gene therapy to the suprachoroidal space of the eye.