
She calls herself a hotel brat — but she also owns an RV.
Image: Dr. Christine Dingivan is president and CEO at Emmes. © EMAN MOHAMMED

She calls herself a hotel brat — but she also owns an RV.
Image: Dr. Christine Dingivan is president and CEO at Emmes. © EMAN MOHAMMED

FREDERICK, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– The Maryland Tech Council (MTC) announced today it will receive a $378,000 federal CARES Act grant to significantly expand its Business Continuity Task Force to assist more entrepreneurs in Maryland as they navigate COVID-19’s economic impact. Awarded by the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the grant enables MTC to expand the task force’s mentoring services to tech and life science businesses in the City of Baltimore, Baltimore County, and Prince George’s County at no cost.
The task force pairs tech and life science executives with experienced mentors who specialize in finance, accounting, engineering, innovation, and founders issues. The goal is to provide these entrepreneurs free and practical advice on leading a business through economic uncertainty from experts who navigated crises like the 2008 recession.

In tiny tubes filled with strands of human DNA, Robert Figliozzi carefully extracts what could be breakthrough science in the fight against the coronavirus.
The samples are mixed and sorted into data through machines. Figliozzi then identifies what are called biomarkers, indicators that predict the severity — even what type — of COVID-19 symptoms a patient will have.
“That, hopefully, will lead to those individual patients getting the right types of therapy and medical attention that they need,” said Figliozzi, a lab coordinator at the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore.

University of Maryland (UMD) bioengineers reached a new milestone in their efforts to design an immunotherapy strategy to treat multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune diseases. The team’s findings, published this month in ACS Nano, used nanomaterials to manipulate inflammatory pathways that might one day help slow or reverse MS without compromising a patient’s immune system.
Nearly 2.5 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with MS, an autoimmune disease that causes the body’s immune system to wrongfully attack myelin, the insulation that surrounds and protects nerve fibers in the brain and spinal cord. When this happens, nerve fibers and cells are damaged, leading to a loss of motor function and other neurological complications that greatly impact the patient’s quality of life.
Image: Dr. Robert “Smitty” Oakes (front) and Dr. Christopher Jewell (back)

Long home to federal institutions like the National Institutes of Health and leading universities, suburban areas like Montgomery County have long been home to a cluster of talent and companies working to commercialize pharmaceuticals, biotech and medical devices. Then came the pandemic. The federal government needed to invest in new treatments to stop the spread of COVID-19. In Maryland, the companies around the NIH and FDA figured prominently in the solution, as many had expertise that left them poised to jump into the fight.
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BOSTON) – CARB-X is awarding Novel Microdevices, Inc. of Baltimore, Maryland, USA, up to $3.6 million in non-dilutive funding, and, subject to available funding, up to an additional $10.2 million if certain project milestones are met, to develop a new rapid molecular test to diagnose sexually-transmitted bacterial infections, including Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoeae. Novel’s new device would diagnose infections in about 25 minutes from a vaginal swab or urine sample, and detect antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including those resistant to ciprofloxacin and 3rd generation cephalosporins, the only antibiotics that are still effective as treatments for most strains of the gonorrhoeae bacteria.
Image: https://carb-x.org
BHI is working with Montgomery College and Montgomery County to support their work growing and retaining the county’s workforce. Did you know Montgomery College’s Germantown location has a mock-cGMP training facility, and that they are experienced providers of scientific skills, business management and clinical trials project management, and soft skills training for your employees? They also partner with and/or feed into the many institutions at the Universities of Shady Grove which are part of the University System of Maryland.
To help Montgomery County provide useful training and workforce resources to you in the future, please provide your feedback on this program using this brief survey:
http://survey.constantcontact.

BioHealth Innovation, Inc., (BHI) a non-profit organization which strives to facilitate the development of commercially viable bio health products and companies by connecting market relevant research assets to appropriate funding, management and markets, is seeking a Senior Analyst.
JOB TITLE – SENIOR ANALYST
Reporting to the Lead Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR), the Senior Analyst

BioHealth Innovation (BHI) is an innovation intermediary that facilitates the commercialization of emerging technologies in the BioHealth Capital Region (Maryland, DC and Virginia). We are seeking a Life Sciences Business Strategist to join our team remotely.
The right candidate will be an energetic and continuous learner who is passionate about accelerating the adoption of new technologies to improve lives. The position is geared toward an early-career scientist (generally in their first 5-7 years after receiving their PhD) who wants to engage with the biohealth industry in new ways.
Our Strategists support selected growth-stage businesses beyond commercialization plans and federal grant proposals—they cultivate important relationships with client entrepreneurs and innovators. The Strategists’ work also includes collaborating with expert Entrepreneurs-In-Residence from around the country and other professionals in BHI’s network who have built careers at the intersection of business and science.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., April 04, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS) today announced that the Company continues to be on track with its manufacturing agreements related to COVID-19 vaccines and confirmed that there are no changes to its financial guidance for 2021. In addition, the Company received a contract modification to increase the original task order by $23 million from Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), which is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS).