News Archive

“I’m delighted by GSK’s investment, which shows the strength of UK manufacturing, and will further boost our vaccine rollout. The Vaccines Taskforce has worked hand in glove with business to successfully deliver vaccines to the whole of the UK, and this agreement will continue to support our approach. We remain on track to offer a first jab to all over 50s by 15 April, and all adults by the end of July, and I want to once again encourage everyone to come forward for a vaccine when you’re called,” said Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

TCR² Therapeutics Inc., based in Cambridge, is a clinical-stage company that develops T-cell therapies for patients with cancer. In a statement, TCR² said it signed a long-term, full-building lease for an existing 85,000 sq. ft. facility. The company will build-out the space to be used for quality control laboratories and offices as well as clinical and commercial production of gavo-cel, the company’s lead product targeting solid tumors. According to a federal form, 15 years is the initial term for the lease at 9950 Medical Center Drive.

Development of Countermeasures for Viral Diseases

The best defense against viral infectious diseases are safe and effective medical countermeasures that function at level of prevention of infection (prophylaxis) and treatment of disease (therapeutic). These include microbicides and vaccines, direct acting antivirals, and immunotherapies. This fireside chat will focus on features and characteristics of effective countermeasures, how they defend against viral infection and disease, and the preclinical development pathways to advance them from bench to bedside.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., March 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — TCR2 Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: TCRR), a clinical-stage cell therapy company with a pipeline of novel T cell therapies for patients suffering from cancer, today announced that it has signed a long-term, full-building lease with Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE) for an existing 85,000 square foot cell therapy manufacturing facility in Rockville, Maryland which is ready for Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) build-out. The site will support clinical and commercial production of gavo-cel with a capacity to treat several thousand cancer patients annually. The facility is expected to accelerate the Company’s commercial-scale manufacturing timelines with production anticipated in 2023.

BioFactura, Inc. today announced a contract option activation of over $13 million by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, as part of BioFactura’s prime contract valued at up to $67.4 million for the advanced development of a smallpox biodefense therapeutic. 

What did we learn during the pandemic, and what should we watch moving forward?

Those are two of the key questions that many professional conversations center on these days. On Thursday, they were approached by a group of digital health experts who came together for a virtual forum organized by the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore and Rockville-based BioHealth Innovation.

Image: Panelists at EAGB and BioHealth Innovation’s Digital Health Forum. (Courtesy image)

SPACE FEATURES

• Existing laboratory suite with closed and open o ices
• Grade-level loading doors
• 17′ ceiling heights • breakroom with kitchenette
• 180 free surface spaces (Parking Ratio 3.50/1,000 SF)
• Surrounded by numerous amenities
• Located 1.2 miles from the Gaithersburg MARC
• Easy access to I-270 and the new Watkins Mill Interchange

You may not know it, but one company has the capacity to manufacture bulk drug substance for more than a billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines annually: Emergent BioSolutions, a global supplier for the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and U.S. supplier for the AstraZeneca vaccine. Emergent Executive Vice President of Manufacturing and Technical Operations Sean Kirk spoke with us recently to explain what goes into the heroic production of all these doses—in other words, what it takes to help defeat COVID-19.

Image: https://www.nam.org/

The University of Maryland hosted a free webinar, Leveraging Artificial Intelligence in Human Health, on Friday, March 19, 2020. This event featured a fireside chat with Dr. Robert Scharpf (Delfi Diagnostics) and Dr. Christie Bergerson (Exponent), moderated by Rich Bendis (BioHealth Innovation/BioTalk podcast). 

Together, the group shared insights into how artificial intelligence is impacting biomedical engineering and the wider world of human health, and spoke candidly about future applications for these and other biotech platforms. 

Image: https://biocomp.umd.edu