News Archive

As part of the government-wide effort to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in U.S. communities, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has updated a broad agency announcement (BAA) to focus specifically on products to diagnose, prevent or treat coronavirus infections.

The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), part of the HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR), issued the BAA, BAA-18-100-SOL-00003-Amendment 13, to solicit proposals for advanced development and licensure of COVID-19 diagnostics, vaccines, or medicines such as therapeutics or antivirals.

“Amid the expanding global outbreak of COVID-19, Americans need diagnostics, vaccines, and medicines to mitigate the potential impact of this virus”, said BARDA Director Rick Bright, Ph.D. “To accelerate the availability of these lifesaving tools, BARDA took an important step today to request proposals for development of COVID-19 diagnostics, vaccines, or therapeutics, many of which will be developed using existing platform technologies to permit rapid development.”

Facing record-high volatility and market uncertainty, one biotech is scheduled for the week ahead.

Formed by New Enterprise Associate’s orphan drug accelerator Cydan, genetic disorder biotech Imara (IMRA) plans to raise $76 million at a $301 million market cap. The Boston-based company’s sole candidate IMR-687 is a once-a-day therapy targeting sickle cell disease and beta-thalassemia by inhibiting PDE9. It is expected to begin a Phase 2b trial in the 1H20. While there is significant unmet medical need for both disorders, it is a crowded space, with three products approved in 2019.

PASADENA, Calif. and NEW YORK, March 6, 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, and its executive chairman and founder, Joel S. Marcus, were honored to receive the 2020 Navy SEAL Foundation Patriot Award. This recognition highlights Alexandria’s contributions to our nation and unwavering support for the Naval Special Warfare community, as well as its embodiment of the values that epitomize the SEAL community. Congressional Medal of Honor recipient and retired U.S. Navy Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Britt Slabinski presented the prestigious award to Mr. Marcus yesterday evening during the Navy SEAL Foundation’s 12th annual New York City Benefit Dinner celebrating the Foundation’s 20th anniversary.

With more than 378 confirmed coronavirus cases in the U.S. and more than 15 associated deaths, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is actively monitoring, and trying to contain, the transmission of the disease, called COVID-19. 

In some cases, depending on risk level, the CDC may ask individuals or families to self-quarantine or remain in isolation. Here’s a look at what that means and tips for implementing such measures.

If you’ve been on the web to learn more about the latest pandemic, chances are you’ve stumbled upon at least one or two coronavirus dashboards. These are the landing pages for interactive maps and visuals that show where the virus has spread, as well as numbers on the latest in infection rates and deaths, breakdowns of what countries are suffering from new cases and what regions are likely seeing new outbreaks, and much more.

Image: UPCODE ACADEMY

The Maryland Economic Development Association (MEDA) is proud to announce the winners of the 2020 MEDA Awards. The 2020 awards, sponsored by Miles & Stockbridge P.C., recognize the exceptional people, programs and projects that bring economic prosperity to Maryland.

“We’d like to thank all who submitted a nomination for recognizing such deserving programs, projects and individuals, and our awards judges for their hard work determining the winners,” says Pamela Ruff, MEDA executive director. “The 2020 winners exemplify the Maryland communities that are going above and beyond when it comes to economic expansion and prosperity.”

CEL-SCI Corporation (NYSE:CVM) announces that it is developing an immunotherapy with the potential to treat the COVID-19 coronavirus using its patented LEAPS peptide technology. The LEAPS peptides will utilize conserved regions of coronavirus proteins to stimulate protective cell mediated T cell responses and reduce viral load. The LEAPS peptide technology can be used to construct immunotherapeutic peptides that exhibit both antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. Consequently, these products not only target the virus infection against which they are directed, but also elicit the appropriate protective response(s) against it.

Who runs the healthcare world? Women make 80% of all buying decisions and make up over 70% of the healthcare workforce—yet in 2020 we still do not have an equal voice in the ranks of leadership.

Diversity is also an issue when it comes to venture capital. Female entrepreneurs continue to struggle to raise as much capital as their male counterparts. Although capital investment in all-female founding teams hit an all time high of $3.3 billion in 2019, it represented only 2.8% of capital invested across the entire U.S. startup ecosystem.

Join JLABS for an evening panel discussion as we tackle these issues, and discuss avenues for capital, while forging a path forward for two of the most prohibitive factors at play: a lack of a robust network of female mentors and lack of investment dollars in female-led startups. 

We would like to invite you to join leading companies from the Northern Powerhouse region of England for a morning of presentations and networking. The delegation is visiting the Capital Region to help build relationships with key decision makers and build close trade and collaboration ties.

Over the past year, the Maryland Department of Commerce has continued to foster business growth throughout the state, by simplifying the process of starting a business, prioritizing customer service, and investing in our innovative companies.

During fiscal year 2019, the department provided financial assistance to 167 different economic development projects statewide, from Kite Pharma in Frederick to Smithfield Foods in Cecil County, bringing in a total capital expenditure of $630.5 million. More than 70 of these projects fell under the small, minority, and women-owned business category, according to the recently released annual report.