Biohealth Innovation - 502nd Edition, April 5, 2022

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April 5, 2022

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Ellume Officially Opens Production Facility in BioHealth Capital Region

FREDERICK, Md., March 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital diagnostics company Ellume, a producer of at-home COVID-19 test kits, today officially opened its new, 215,000 square foot production facility in Frederick, Maryland. Joined by Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, Ellume Founder and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Sean Parsons inaugurated the new facility, which has the capacity to produce approximately 15 million COVID-19 Home Tests per month and will create hundreds of new jobs.

"From the very onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ellume has been committed to supporting the U.S. government's response. With this new facility, we now have the capacity to substantially scale production to meet any future surge in demand for home tests, while also accelerating innovation in developing solutions for the public health needs of today and tomorrow," said Dr. Sean Parsons, Ellume Founder and CEO. "We are grateful for the support of the US Department of Defense, US Department of Health and Human Services, our partnerships with the State of Maryland, the Governor's office and Frederick County, as well as the highly skilled workforce in Maryland's Biotech Corridor who have helped make this facility a reality."

Adaptive Phage Therapeutics Extends Series B to $61 million with Addition of The AMR Action Fund | Business Wire

GAITHERSBURG, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Adaptive Phage Therapeutics, Inc. (“APT”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to providing therapies to treat infectious diseases, today announced that the AMR Action Fund has joined an existing $41 million Series B round as a co-investor. The round was initiated in May 2021 and led by Deerfield Management Company, with participation from a second institutional investor and Mayo Clinic. Proceeds of the AMR Action Fund’s investment are primarily intended to support APT’s clinical trials to address substantial unmet patient needs in Prosthetic Joint Infection (PJI) and Diabetic Foot Osteomyelitis (DFO).

Image: ttps://www.businesswire.com

How can your BioHealth business benefit from a review by BHI industry experts? Please register for our next Entrepreneur-In-Residence (EIR) day on April 20th and find out. To sign-up for any of the EIR dates in 2022, please follow this link.

These free 1:1 virtual sessions are an opportunity to discuss your company with experts in diagnostics, therapeutics, digital health and medical devices. If you’re a growth-stage biohealth company looking for unbiased advice on your pitch deck, commercialization strategy, evidence development or entrepreneurial challenges, our EIRs can help.

To sign-up for any of the EIR dates in 2022, please follow this link.

Gaithersburg's Altimmune Announces Initiation Phase 2 MOMENTUM Trial

GAITHERSBURG, Md., April 01, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Altimmune, Inc., (Nasdaq: ALT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced that it has enrolled the first subject in the 48-week Phase 2 MOMENTUM trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of pemvidutide1 in subjects with obesity or overweight. Pemvidutide is a novel, investigational GLP-1/glucagon dual receptor agonist under development for the treatment of obesity and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The Company also today announced the completion of enrollment in its 12-week Phase 1b clinical trial of pemvidutide in subjects with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

We Fuel a Network of Leaders Driving Virginia's Biotech Ecosystem

We are excited to announce that Virginia Bio Connect has launched the first centralized asset resource portal VABIOCONNECT.ORG! This portal is your destination for Virginia’s life sciences resources, jobs, and events. It’s a place to connect and follow people and organizations from the ecosystem. Visit https://vabioconnect.org/ and create your profile today!

Akan Biosciences, Intelligent Fusion Technology, and Seraxis Graduate from Montgomery County's Business Incubator Program in Germantown

Three portfolio companies have graduated from the Germantown Innovation Center (GIC), Montgomery County's business incubator program. The County's incubator program started in 1999 to foster the growth and development of young technology companies. Akan Biosciences, Intelligent Fusion Technology and Seraxis are the three County-based companies graduating from the program this spring.

"Montgomery County continues to be the epicenter of bio health and information technology in the region," said County Executive Marc Elrich. "Congratulations to Akan Bio, Intelligent Fusion Technology, and Seraxis on their graduation from our incubator. We are excited for their continued growth in the County. Montgomery County is committed to having an economic development environment that fosters growth and entrepreneurship, and these graduates are just the most recent example of the great work happening in our incubators and throughout the County."

MEDA Angels expands its healthcare investment reach through a Partnership with Tech Coast Angels, one of the largest and most active angel investor groups in the U.S.

MEDA Angels is pleased to announce that it has entered into a Partnership with Tech Coast Angels (TCA) of Southern California. TCA, founded in 1997, is a leading source of angel investor funding of seed-stage and early-stage companies. It has invested more than $255 million in more than 500 companies and has helped attract more than $1.7 billion in additional capital/follow-on rounds.

MEDA Angels, an angel investor group established in 2019, was founded by seasoned physician- and scientist-investors. Its healthcare-centric membership includes 50+ physicians, scientists, and other healthcare experts, as well as legal, financial, and regulatory professionals. Since its inception, MEDA Angels has invested in 12 companies, totaling nearly $2 million. With one exit providing a 2x ROI & 80% IRR, the unrealized gains from its existing portfolio investments stand at 1.9x ROI and 86% IRR.

Watch: How 3 women founders are navigating Maryland's startup community - Technical.ly

As increasing effort and attention gets spent on making entrepreneur ecosystems more inclusive and diverse, women entrepreneurs still face challenges that their male counterparts may not.

That might include imposter syndrome stemming from being the only woman or person of color in a room of investors. It might mean few available business-building resources, or connections to those resources. Or a first-time entrepreneur might also be balancing uneven family responsibilities or taking care of a newborn.

Image: Startup Grind Maryland's March event speakers. (Image via startupgrind.com)

Alexandria Venture Investments Recognized as One of the Top Five Most Active U.S. Investors in Agrifoodtech for Second Consecutive Year

PASADENA, Calif., March 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Alexandria Venture Investments, the strategic venture capital platform of 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, agtech and technology campuses in AAA innovation cluster locations, today announced that it was recognized by AgFunder in its "2022 AgriFoodTech Investment Report" as one of the top five most active U.S. investors in agrifoodtech by number of companies in which it invested (2021) for the second consecutive year. This significant recognition demonstrates Alexandria's leadership in venture activity that supports the next generation of companies in agrifoodtech. These impactful companies are accelerating and scaling technological innovation and broader transformations in the agrifoodtech sector, which are critical for the long-term health, accessibility, sustainability and resilience of the global food supply. Since 2000, Alexandria has diligently invested in and provided state-of-the-art infrastructure for innovative agrifoodtech companies advancing novel approaches with vast potential to address challenges related to sustainability, agriculture, food and nutrition.

Brian Coblitz Appointed Executive Director of GW Technology Commercialization Office | GW Today | The George Washington University

The Office of the Provost has appointed Brian Coblitz to be the new executive director of George Washington University’s Technology Commercialization Office (TCO).

TCO promotes and facilitates the transfer of technology developed at GW for the benefit of the university community and the public while leveraging GW resources by partnering with industry experts and entrepreneurs. Coblitz, who was previously interim director of the office and managed licensing for GW's life science technologies for nine years, has been with TCO since 2012.

Image: Brian Coblitz, executive director of GW Technology Commercialization Office. (Maansi Srivastava/GW Today) - https://gwtoday.gwu.edu

Biden’s new biomedical agency ARPA H fails to gain independence from NIH | Science | AAAS

It’s decided. President Joe Biden’s new biomedical research agency for high-risk, cutting-edge research won’t have the full autonomy many backers had sought. Instead, it will sit within the National Institutes of Health (NIH). But to give the agency a measure of independence, its director will report to the NIH director’s boss, the secretary of health and human services (HHS).

Image: Xavier Becerra, secretary of health and human services, testified today before a House of Representatives spending panel that oversees the National Institutes of Health.AP PHOTO/J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE

Johns Hopkins Develops Sensor for Father, More Accurate COVID-19 Tests

Researchers say the sensor combines accuracy levels approaching that of PCR testing with the speed of rapid antigen tests, and could be used for mass testing at airports, schools, and hospitals

Catherine Graham March 29, 2022

A COVID-19 sensor developed at Johns Hopkins University could revolutionize virus testing by adding accuracy and speed to a process that frustrated many during the pandemic.

In a new study published today in Nano Letters, the researchers describe the sensor, which requires no sample preparation and minimal operator expertise, offering a strong advantage over existing testing methods, especially for population-wide testing.

Updated: Biden’s 2023 budget request for science aims high—again | Science | AAAS

President Joe Biden didn’t forget research today, when he submitted to Congress a 2023 budget request that calls for a 9.5% increase in domestic discretionary spending. Biden is asking for a 19% increase at the National Science Foundation (NSF), a 9.6% boost for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), 4.5% more for the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Science, and a 5% hike for NASA’s science missions. Once again, fighting climate change and boosting sustainable energy technologies also rank high among Biden’s research priorities.

Image: https://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/president-biden/

CNBC Transcript: Johnson & Johnson CEO Joaquin Duato Speaks with CNBC’s Meg Tirrell Live During CNBC’s Healthy Returns Summit Today

WHEN: Today, Wednesday, March 30, 2022

WHERE: CNBC’s “Healthy Returns Summit: Reality, Recovery and Opportunity”

Following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC interview with Johnson & Johnson CEO Joaquin Duato and CNBC’s Senior Health & Science Reporter Meg Tirrell live during CNBC’s “Healthy Returns Summit: Reality, Recovery and Opportunity” today, Wednesday, March 30th.

Image: https://www.jnj.com/leadership/joaquin-duato