News Archive

The race to develop vaccine candidates to prevent COVID-19 represents an unprecedented national and global effort. President Trump and some public health experts say encouraging early results from Pfizer and Moderna suggest the approach is working. But there are also questions about the risks of ramping up vaccine research and development at this scale and on this timeline. Miles O’Brien reports.

Image: https://www.pbs.org

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. — The U.S. Army signed a new cooperative agreement with Johns Hopkins University Sept. 30, 2020, to advance materials research using artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Researchers from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM) Army Research Laboratory will collaborate with Johns Hopkins faculty and students on four focused projects:

• Using artificial intelligence to accelerate the iterative materials design cycle by high-throughput microstructural characterization and rapid processing 
• Acoustic signature and reconstruction of defect avalanches in metals 
• Real-time monitoring of laser-material interactions 
• Toward self-repairing devices: Data-directed design of active, hierarchical colloidal assembly and reconfiguration

Image: https://www.army.mil/article/240874/army_teams_with_johns_hopkins_to_advance_materials_research

PASADENA, Calif., Nov. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE: ARE), an urban office REIT and the first, longest-tenured and pioneering owner, operator and developer uniquely focused on collaborative life science, technology and agtech campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, today announced that Alexandria LaunchLabs® at the Alexandria Center® for Life Science in New York City is the first laboratory space in the world to achieve the WELL Health-Safety Rating for Facility Operations and Management. Building on its prior recognition as the world’s first laboratory space to receive a WELL Certification for excellence in improving human health and well-being through building design, this latest evidence-based, third-party verified rating for the flagship location of Alexandria LaunchLabs—the premier startup platform accelerating the growth of early-stage life science companies—further affirms Alexandria’s longstanding, robust and meticulous initiatives to help keep its tenants, employees, visitors, service providers and key industry stakeholders healthy and safe.

Image: Alexandria LaunchLabs® – New York City. Courtesy of Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. 

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For decades, the United States and the United Kingdom have enjoyed a special relationship that crosses political, economic, and military lines. But, the two nations also share a similar comradery in the Life Sciences arena, and prominent biotech hubs like the BioHealth Capital Region and Philadelphia showcase that connection.

There are several similarities between the BioHealth Capital Region, Philadelphia, and the U.K. They all have vital programs in gene and cell therapy. And they are home to key government institutions. The Midlands in the U.K. is home to the National Health Service and multiple academic and commercial institutions. Maryland is home to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the National Institutes of Health, and other government agencies. The U.S. region is also home to multiple significant academic and commercial institutions as well. Most recently, decades-old messenger RNA work originating out of Philadelphia’s University of Pennsylvania is a major contributor to Moderna’s COVID vaccine.

Following a statewide search to identify Maryland’s most innovative start-up companies with the potential to be the state’s next major business success story, Governor Larry Hogan today announced Maryland’s Future 20.

The Maryland Future 20 is part of Innovation Uncovered, an ongoing initiative by the Maryland Department of Commerce to highlight the state’s talented innovators, entrepreneurs, and growing small businesses. The search for the Future 20 garnered 125 nominations from the business community and general public. The list was selected based on a variety of factors, including innovation, future growth potential, the company’s Maryland story, and “wow” factor.

CAMBRIDGE, Md., Nov. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — OS Therapies, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing innovative therapies to treat and cure Osteosarcoma (OS) and other deadly cancers in children and adults, today announced the acquisition of all indications for OST-HER2 (Listeria monocytogenes), including Canine. The technology that was developed and extensively tested at University of Pennsylvania, has been provisionally approved by the USDA for Osteosarcoma in canines. Phase I and Phase III trials conducted in canines have had very positive results.

When President Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19, one of the cutting-edge experimental therapies he received was a mixture of monoclonal antibodies. But now a vaccine may soon be available. So are other therapies necessary or valuable? And what exactly is a monoclonal antibody?

Over the past few months, the public has learned about many treatments being used to combat COVID-19. An antiviral like remdesivir inhibits the virus from replicating in human cells. Convalescent plasma from the blood of donors who have recovered from COVID-19 may contain antibodies that suppress the virus and inflammation. Steroids like dexamethasone may modify and reduce the dangerous inflammatory damage to the lungs, thereby slowing respiratory failure.

Image: Y-shaped proteins called antibodies are vital for attacking and destroying the virus. Dr_Microbe/Getty Images – ROYALTY FREE