News Archive

Global venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates, Inc. (NEA) today announced the promotion of Sara Nayeem, M.D., to Partner. Dr. Nayeem joined NEA’s healthcare team in 2009 and is focused on investments in biopharma.

“This promotion recognizes Sara’s acumen as an investor and her deep commitment to the entrepreneurs and founders with whom she partners,” said David Mott, General Partner and head of NEA’s healthcare investing practice. “We are pleased to acknowledge her many contributions to NEA’s biopharma practice and to our firm, and look forward to her continued success in this new role.”  

Personal Genome Diagnostics, Inc. (PGDx), a provider of advanced cancer genome testing products and services, today announced that it has raised $21.4 million in a Series A funding round led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA).  Other new and existing investors, including Windham Venture Partners and Nanjing Kaiyuan Growth Capital Investments, also participated in the financing.

PGDx was founded in 2010 by cancer researchers from Johns Hopkins University (JHU), who are pioneers in cancer genome sequencing and liquid biopsy technologies.  Under the leadership of co-founders and JHU researchers Luis A. Diaz, MD, and Victor Velculescu, MD, PhD, the company has achieved consistent growth by successfully commercializing novel clinical and investigational products and services for researchers, drug developers, physicians and patients. PGDx’s service offerings for researchers are complemented by the clinical services it provides through its CLIA-certified laboratory. 

University of Maryland (UM) Ventures and Glycocept, Inc. announced today that the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) has granted Glycocept worldwide, exclusive licensing rights to a UMB patent and technology to modify monoclonal antibodies to alter their effector functions. Eric J. Sundberg, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), and Co-Director, Division of Basic Science, Institute of Human Virology (IHV), and Beatriz Trastoy, Ph.D., post-doctoral fellow at Dr. Sundberg’s laboratory at the IHV/UMSOM are the patent inventors. Biopharmaceutical industry veteran Ronald P. Dudek, who most recently served as Vice President of Commercial Strategy at Juno Therapeutics, Inc., is Glycocept’s President and Chief Executive Officer.

University of Maryland (UM) Ventures and Educational and Scientific LLC (ESL), announced today that the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) granted ESL exclusive licensing rights to its interest in the commercial development of a molecule whose anticancer properties were jointly discovered by ESL and UMB. The molecule has consistently demonstrated its potential for the treatment of a variety of cancers, particularly lung, Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, pancreatic and prostate cancer.

Henry Lowe, Ph.D., D.Sc., F.R.S.H., an Adjunct Professor of Medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UM SOM) is the Founder of ESL. Dr. Lowe collaborated with Dr. Joseph Bryant, DVM, Associate Professor of Pathology and Director, Animal Models Division, at the UM SOM Institute of Human Virology (IHV) in the realization of this discovery.

Northwest Biotherapeutics (NASDAQ: NWBO) (“NW Bio”), a U.S. biotechnology company developing DCVax® personalized immune therapies for solid tumor cancers, announced today that the Company has entered into agreement for funding of $30 million from Woodford Investment Management in the UK (“Woodford”).

Woodford will purchase $30 million of the Company’s common stock at $5.50 per share, for a total of 5,454,545 shares, raising Woodford’s total holdings to 25,915,937 shares, or about 28.1% of the Company.  The purchase will take place in a closing on or before October 22, 2015.

Baltimore-based AgeWell Biometrics has been selected a member of the inaugural startup class with Relevant Health, a health technology startup accelerator in Rockville, officials of the accelerator said Tuesday. “Relevant Health chose candidates who have a vision and business model for a product that promises significant positive impacts in the health sector,” stated Rich Bendis, BioHealth Innovation…

This year’s FLC Mid-Atlantic regional meeting will take place in conjunction with the Innovation 2 Commercialization (I2C) Conference November 2 – 3 at the Universities at Shady Grove Conference Center in Rockville, Maryland. Attendees will have the opportunity to attend a variety of technology transfer (T2) sessions and network with regional entrepreneurs.

Centering on the theme of “Innovation Through Collaboration,” this year’s meeting highlights will include:

• Strategic T2 training sessions
• Technology industry needs panels
• FLC Mid-Atlantic regional awards presentation.

Onevest, a New York based investment crowdfunding platform focused on funding start-up entities, has announced the launching today of its new “1,000 Angles” crowdfunding vehicle. Touted as the “world’s largest digital-first, invitation-only investor network,” Onevest seeks to modernize the way venture capital funds are formed and how they invest.

1000 Angels will include OneVest co-founders Tanya Prive and Alejandro Cremades but the new spin on VC investing has added Erica Duignan Minnihan as Managing Partner, Barry Shereck as CFO and Dasha Sukovatitsyn as Membership Co-ordinator.

Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett has named the 11 local business leaders who will be charged with steering the county’s nascent economic development corporation.

The nonprofit Montgomery County Economic Development Corp. will replace the county’s Department of Economic Development when it launches in the spring. Change happens fast: Leggett first suggested the idea in February, formally proposed it in May and earned County Council approval in July.

More than 770 health care innovation companies are operating in Washington state, representing 6 percent of jobs in the state’s health-care industry, but producing more than 13 percent of the industry’s overall output, as measured by the value of the goods and services they produce.