News Archive

Inova announced today that Milton L. Brown, MD, PhD, has joined Inova where he will serve as director of the new Inova Center for Drug Discovery and Development and as deputy director for Drug Discovery for the Inova Schar Cancer Institute (ISCI). Dr. Brown is a physician scientist who has expertise in the design, synthesis, and evaluation of new drugs and is one of only a handful of physician scientists in the United States who hold a PhD in synthetic chemistry and an MD. He comes to Inova from Georgetown University Medical Center where he was founding director of the Drug Discovery Program (DDP).

Lingering for more than two years, the revamped 21st Century Cures bill, unveiled in late November, has now been approved by the House and Senate and President Barack Obama has said he will sign it.

The 996-page bill includes major tweaks to the way in which the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates drugs, devices and biologics, while providing the agency with $500 million over 10 years to implement provisions that seek to move such products to patients more quickly, while maintaining the same standard for safety and effectiveness that the agency has adhered to in the past.

Entrepreneurs can’t sit still for long.

Four months after announcing his departure from Google Ventures (now GV), which he cofounded and led, Bill Maris is reportedly raising a fresh $230 million VC fund that will focus on healthcare investments.

AbbVie (ABBV), a global biopharmaceutical company, and the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine today announced that they signed a five-year collaboration agreement with the goal of advancing medical oncology research and discovery at both organizations.

Designed to build strong collaboration between AbbVie and Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers, the agreement will focus on several areas of oncology research, which could include lung, colorectal, breast, prostate and hematological cancer.

President-elect Trump didn’t talk a lot about the Food and Drug Administration while he was on the campaign trail, but judging from what he did say, he will want the FDA to approve new drugs and products much faster.

BioBuzz Workforce Foundation, Inc., a social community organization whose mission is to build a more connected bioscience industry in the region, today announced a partnership with The City of Frederick Department of Economic Development and the Frederick County Chapter of BioBeers Meetup group. This new collaboration will give Frederick companies access to BioBuzz’s BioHive Platform and showcase them as important components within the ecosystem.

WorkSource Montgomery, Inc., the workforce development resource for Montgomery County businesses and career seekers, is collaborating with Montgomery College, which will serve as the lead on a $5.6 million America’s Promise grant. The grant will provide IT and cybersecurity training for students to ensure Montgomery County is better equipped to meet local business needs.

Sean Parker decided to take on cancer by throwing so many deep-rooted basics of research tradition out the window that he very nearly drove away the academics he wanted to attract.

As part of its longstanding commitment to Africa, Johnson & Johnson today announced the launch of the Africa Innovation Challenge, an initiative to support Africa’s vibrant and growing innovation ecosystem and to help develop important and locally sustainable consumer health solutions. The challenge is the latest initiative in the company’s comprehensive approach to advancing health and innovation worldwide. The Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies’ presence in Africa dates back more than 80 years and includes business operations, public health programs and corporate citizenship.

MedImmune, a global biologics research and development arm of AstraZeneca, and Abpro, an integrated life sciences company at the forefront of synthetic biology, announced they have entered into a collaborative agreement to advance the development of a preclinical, novel bispecific antibody targeting angiopoietin-2 and vascular endothelial growth factor (Ang2-VEGF). The agreement is structured as a spin out, benefiting from both companies’ scientific expertise and AbPro’s day-to-day leadership as it oversees the new company, AbMed.