The National Institutes of Health is challenging science innovators to compete for prizes totaling up to $500,000, by developing new ways to track the health status of a single cell in complex tissue over time. The NIH Follow that Cell Challenge seeks tools that would, for example, monitor a cell in the process of becoming cancerous, detect changes due to a disease-causing virus, or track how a cell responds to treatment.

"Advances in cellular analysis promise earlier diagnosis and improved therapies for diseases, from cancer to Alzheimer's," said James Anderson, M.D., Ph.D., director of NIH's Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives (DPCPSI). "These prizes will also help to stimulate new businesses and economic growth in our biomedical communities."

For the third year in a row, Johns Hopkins has been recognized as one of the nation's best college campuses for dining.

Hopkins ranks second on the list of the "Best Colleges for Food in America" compiled by the website The Daily Meal, up from a No. 42 ranking a year ago. The site praised JHU's commitment to sustainability, the diversity of food offerings, and its special programming, including on-campus cooking classes and food and wine pairings for seniors.

For an incubator set on changing perceptions of where startups need to be to succeed in regulated sectors such as healthcare, education and energy, the decision to set up 1776 in Washington D.C. was a smart move. Mentors abound in a city where lawmakers, think tanks, regulators and Fortune 500 companies come to do business. In a phone interview, co-founder Donna Harris talked to MedCity News about its approach to finding and working with startups.

Harris co-founded 1776 in 2012 with Evan Burfield. Harris had previously worked at Startup America Partnership (which later changed its name to UP America) as managing director, and before that she was Vice Chair of Interpoint. Burfield founded netDecide and Synteractive.

A unique summer internship program established by the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) and funded in part by the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB), has enabled 12 students to work across disciplines in a community setting.

Based at the Rockville, Md., campus where UMB offers a growing array of programs, the eight-week internship was conducted within the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). Four graduate and eight undergraduate students experienced interdisciplinary teamwork by visiting several service agencies throughout Montgomery County.

Luminal, a Frederick and D.C.-based cloud management startup, on Thursday announced a $10 million Series B round led by New Enterprise Associates.

Joining NEA are prior investors Core Capital Partners and the Maryland Venture Fund. The latest financing brings Luminal's total funding to $13.8 million.

The following funding opportunity announcements from the NHLBI or other components of the National Institutes of Health, might be of interest:

NIH Guide Notices:

• NIH Offers Commercialization Assistance Program to Phase II SBIR and STTR Awardees
• (NOT-OD-14-110) National Institutes of Health
• Revised Policy: Descriptions on the Use of Individual Development Plans (IDPs) for Graduate Students and Postdoctoral Researchers Required in Annual Progress Reports beginning October 1, 2014
• (NOT-OD-14-113) National Institutes of Health
• Notice of NICHD's Participation in PA-14-016 "Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) Short-Term Institutional Research Training Grant (Parent T35)
• (NOT-HD-14-026)
• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Please note that most links to RFAs, PAs, and Guide Notices will take you to the NIH Web site. RFPs will take you to FedBizOpps. Links to RFPs will not work past their proposal receipt date. Archived versions of RFPs posted on FedBizOpps can be found on the FedBizOpps site using the FedBizOpps search function. Under “Document to Search,” select Archived Documents.

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) has been used for thousands of years to prevent and treat disease and promote wellness.  But, in many western countries, there had been historic resistance to its use because it “was not supported by rigorous scientific study.”

That’s not true today.

Digital health has a pretty erratic grade point average, or so says Dana Mead, a parter at venture firm Kleiner Perkins, Caufield & Byers. He outlined and graded what he called the five most important elements of the digital health ecosystem at Qualcomm Life‘s Connect2014 conference this week in San Diego, and this is how he slices it:

1. Access to Capital – A

Looking at data over the last quarter, Mead said that about $700 million in funding has been raised in digital health. That’s more than medical device startups raise, about two-thirds of what pharma and biotech raise and about a third of what software/IT companies raised in the same time period. So, not a bad showing for digital health, Mead said.

The Rockville Science Center has found a temporary office home in the midst of an ongoing search for a permanent facility.

The science center’s administrative office, previously at the VisArts at Rockville center, moved this month to the Johns Hopkins University’s campus in Rockville.

Sigma-Tau Pharmaceuticals (Sigma-Tau) has signed an exclusive US license agreement with Ireland-based Crosscare, to market and distribute Colief Infant Drops for the treatment of colic.

As part of the deal, Sigma-Tau will be responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of Colief in the US.

Sigma-Tau has planned a re-launch of Colief at healthcare professionals as well as consumers in August 2014.

The rich are getting richer when it comes to publicly traded biotechnology companies, judging by their ballooning market capitalization. It’s a product of the current Wall Street surge—some call it a bubble—that continued in the first half of 2013, with 52 companies going public and the overall market closing at record highs.

Following is a list of 25 biotechnology companies, ranked by their market cap as of July 24 as furnished by the exchanges on which they trade their shares, or by other publicly available sources, such as any of several free stock information websites. Figures of non-U.S. companies were converted to U.S. dollars from various currencies.

Monday, September 22, 2014

NHLBI’s Office of Translational Alliances and Coordination (OTAC) hosts this semi-annual Regional Innovation Conference to connect small businesses, angel investors, venture capitalists, strategic partners, and business leaders from the biotech, medical device, and pharmaceutical industries. Attendees will see featured presentations from NHLBI-funded companies, and learn from staff about recent changes in the Federal SBIR/STTR program, and other funding opportunities and cost-free resources available to small businesses.

Previous conferences have been held in Boston, MA, San Francisco, CA, San Diego, CA, and Rockville, MD.

Highlights/ Features:

• Company presentations 
• Hear about innovative technologies for heart, lung, blood and sleep disorder and disease indications from companies who have received (non-dilutive) SBIR/STTR funding 
• How to market your innovation 
• Our expert panel of investors, legal advisors, and successful entrepreneurs will talk about the highs and lows of early-stage life science investment 
• Networking 
• Ample opportunities to network with potential partners,  investors, and NHLBI staff

Johns Hopkins University’s FastForward business accelerator is so popular the school is expanding it to a second location.

FastForward, which is part of Hopkins’ Whiting School of Engineering, launched last year and is already at capacity with a total of 33 startups and projects. Administrators plan to expand the program in January to accommodate the high demand among students and faculty.

The BioMaryland Center is partnering with Maryland's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) and the Center for Medical Technology Policy (CMTP) to incorporate improved health care quality and cost reduction criteria in the selection process for the BioMaryland Center's annual Biotechnology Awards program. $1M will be awarded to projects, $50,000-200,000 each, advancing technologies toward commercialization--with preference given to projects which improve patient outcomes and reduce costs.

October 1st is the deadline to apply for the next round of Biotechnology Development Awards. More information regarding the program is available online.

How to Apply: Two application forms (the Non-confidential Applicant and Project Summary form and the Confidential Application Details form) and a business plan must be submitted electronically by 5 p.m. EST on October 1, 2014.

The Maryland Venture Fund (MVF), the equity investment arm of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED), has made follow-on investments totaling $700,000 in two of its portfolio companies. KoolSpan, developer of a suite of patented, hardware-based mobile security encryption solutions, received $400,000. BrainScope, which is pioneering sophisticated neurotechnology to quickly assess traumatic brain injury at the initial point of care, received $300,000. Both companies are located in Bethesda. The investments were made with funds raised by InvestMaryland, Governor Martin O’Malley’s key initiative designed to spur growth and development of small, high-tech companies in Maryland.

“KoolSpan and BrainScope have both made tremendous progress since the Maryland Venture Fund first invested in them, and we are excited to make these follow-on investments,” said Governor O’Malley. “In Maryland we are committed to supporting the growth of future leaders in industries that keep us safer, healthier and better connected than ever before. KoolSpan and BrainScope are perfect examples of the innovative, high-tech companies that set Maryland’s economy apart and provide the family-sustaining jobs of today and tomorrow.”

August 20th, 3-5 PM

MdBio Foundation welcomes you to an open house on the mobile laboratory MdBioLab. Tour the lab, meet the team, or just eat your ice cream - doors open 3 - 5 PM.

KICK OFF THE SCHOOL YEAR WITH AN ICE CREAM CONE AND TOUR OF MDBIOLAB.

MdBioLab will be parked at Howard Community College, 10901 Little Patuxent Pkwy, Columbia, MD 21044, Lot F - adjacent to Little Patuxent Parkway

When four professors of the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, decided to start Strand Life Sciences in 2000 to aid clinical research through genomic testing using DNA sequencing, the initiative hardly attracted attention. UTI Ventures pumped in $1.3 million a year later and, in 2002, WestBridge Capital Partners invested $1.9 million, but that did not create ripples either. However, things changed dramatically in 2013, when Strand got $10 million from San Francisco-based financial firm Burrill & Co.

It used the capital to roll out personalised genetic test services in collaboration with hospital chains and clinics across India, including Max Hospitals, Mazumdar-Shaw Cancer Center, St. John’s Medical College Hospital, Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology and HealthCare Global Enterprises.

The organizers of the 2nd Annual Symposium for Pediatric Surgical Innovation and Competition judges are seeking proposals from inventors in medical institutions, private practices, device companies, and academic researchers who have medical device concepts or ideas for use with pediatric patients.

Proposals should address a significant, yet unmet need within the pediatric population with a device idea that lends itself to commercialization. Following the competition process, two prizes will be given, each for up to $50,000.

Please follow this link http://www.pediatric-surgery-symposium.org/prizes/ to review the submission guidelines and to submit your application online by September 22, 2014 at 17:00 EST.

GlaxoSmithKline, better known as GSK, has launched a new web effort aimed at providing both information and inspiration for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, in what the company says is arguably the most engaging platform in the marketplace.

The rollout of the new COPD.com goes beyond what was previously offered, certainly by GSK but possibly many others, according to Darielle Ruderman, senior director of repository consumer marketing for the North Carolina-based company.

The mobile revolution was one of the most transformative events in IT. It set IT in a tailspin trying to secure so many different device types connecting to the network and moving outside of the organization.

After initial resistance, IT realized that by supporting mobility they were supporting user productivity. And thus an established industry of mobile device management solutions was born, allowing IT to create policies and strike a balance between data security and mobility.

Much of the discussion on big data has focused on claims information from insurers and EHRS from providers, but a collaborative effort underway at Stanford Medical School with SAP is hoping to tap into a different set – genomic data.

The possible benefits of sharing genetic data on a wide scale have great potential for both global population health and for drug makers alike, said Dr. Carlos Bustamante, who heads the Department of Genetics at the Stanford School of Medicine. Benefits range from possibly learning why certain drugs never make it out of clinical trials because of what population they are tested on to a more inclusive global snapshot at differing populations and what drives their health spending, among others.

Montgomery County Department of Economic Development (DED) announces the addition of Valerie Fremont as Senior Business Development Specialist for the County’s life sciences and health IT sectors. Fremont brings 13 years of industry experience to the County along with experience in the international, national and regional biotech community.

”We are happy to welcome Valerie to the department and fortunate to be able to call upon her vast experience in the life sciences arena,” said DED Director Steve Silverman. “Not only does she bring a wealth of knowledge of two of our most important sectors—life sciences and health IT—but she also is already well known in that community. The County and our companies in those sectors will all benefit mutually from those important connections.”

Today, the American Heart Association has launched the Chicago Open Innovation Challenge, a crowdfunding competition to uncover new innovative digital health tools to prevent or manage heart disease and stroke. The top three finalists will receive grants from the American Heart Association totaling $25,000 and a chance to present at the Heart Innovation Forum in Chicago on November 14, 2014. Each award winner will be featured on healthcare crowdfunding platform MedStartr.

Who Can Apply?  Early-stage healthcare technology and life sciences companies with novel ideas that seek to help patients, providers or medical facilities meet the American Heart Association’s 2020 Impact Goal—to improve the cardiovascular health of all Americans by 20 percent while reducing death from cardiovascular diseases and stroke by 20 percent by the year 2020—are encouraged to apply. 

The answers Bert Vogelstein needed and feared were in the blood sample. 

Vogelstein is among the most highly cited scientists in the world. He was described, in the 1980s, as having broken into “the cockpit of cancer” after he and coworkers at Johns Hopkins University showed for the first time exactly how a series of DNA mutations, adding up silently over decades, turn cells cancerous. Damaged DNA, he helped prove, is the cause of cancer.

Now imagine you could see these mutations—see cancer itself—in a vial of blood. Nearly every type of cancer sheds DNA into the bloodstream, and Vogelstein’s laboratory at Johns ­Hopkins has developed a technique, called a “liquid biopsy,” that can find the telltale genetic material.

DC I-Corps, a new, NSF-supported program designed to foster, grow and nurture an innovation ecosystem in the Mid-Atlantic Region, is now accepting applications for its fall cohort, beginning on October 9. Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis up until that date. Apply here.

Open to research teams and technology entrepreneurs from universities, federal laboratories, agencies and the general community, the free program guides researchers in exploring the commercial potential of their inventions.

Through DC I-Corps, you will:

• Significantly improve your chances for SBIR and other grant funding, as well as early stage venture investment;
• Work closely with six or more real-world advisors that have startup, venture capital, and technology commercialization experience over a six-week period; and
• Come to a clear go or no-go decision regarding the commercial potential of your technology.

The program is geared towards innovations coming from engineering fields, medical/health/life sciences, and physical and computer sciences. DC I-Corps builds upon the successful National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps program.

The program is jointly offered by the University of Maryland, George Washington University, Virginia Tech, and Johns Hopkins University. For more information and to apply, technology researchers and entrepreneurs are encouraged to visit www.dcicorps.org.

Are you a company in the fields of cloud computing, network security, interoperability, chemical and biological defense, infectious disease or vaccines?  Then you'll want to attend the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development's Defense Labs Tech Transfer event which includes panel discussions and a tech transfer showcase.   Hear from Federal Labs including NSA, DISA, RDECOM, Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC), and USAMRIID, see demonstrations, speak with inventors, discuss available patents, licenses, collaborations and commercialization of new technologies to add to your portfolio.  

Featuring:    

Tech Transfer Showcase 9:00 a.m. -  4:00 p.m. - Visit the exhibit floor and see the latest technologies being developed by NSA, DISA, RDECOM, USAMRIID, and the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center. 

As the dust settles from this past week's mammoth $1.3 billion merger, Siemens Health Services CEO John Glaser tells Healthcare IT News what led up to the Cerner deal, how his experience as a health system CIO could help smooth integration challenges and what to expect – from the two companies and electronic health records in general – over the months and years to come.

Wrap up a great summer with one last BioBuzz networking event on August 27th from 5:00 - 7:30 p.m. at American Tap Room in Rockville, MD. This location is a short walk from the Metro located in the Rockville Town Center so there are no excuses not to come.

New this month, join us for Table Talks at BioBuzz.

For a new twist to the networking events, starting this month we will be hosting "Table Talks at BioBuzz". We have enlisted industry experts on various topics who will be joining us to facilitate discussions around their industry related topics of choice. They will be strategically situated at a few tables at our venue so that you will be able to join which ever conversations interest you throughout the evening and participate in some stimulating discussions; while still enjoying the usual, casual atmosphere that BioBuzz offers each month.

This month's Table Topics and discussion leaders will be announced later this week so keep an eye out.

Dr. Marvin Malek has been yearning and advocating for a publicly financed, single-payer health care system for at least two decades. Now, as Vermont stands on the threshold of being the first state to launch such a plan, he’s confessing to trepidation.

“I am pretty damn nervous,” he confided before bounding off for rounds at the Vermont Central Medical Center, still clutching the bicycle helmet he wore on his ride to work.

At a laboratory in Baltimore, hairless mice kept in racks of plastic crates are labelled with yellow cards, each identifying a person fighting cancer. These mice are cancer “avatars”—the lumpy tumors visible under their skin come from actual patients.

The animals serve as personalized, living test tubes. Each mouse will eventually be treated with a different drug and its tumors measured. Results showing which medicine worked best will be sent back to a doctor trying to treat a difficult cancer case.

Grand Challenges Canada, funded by the Government of Canada, has announced funding of seven projects implemented in ASEAN member countries. This funding, totalling $784,000, will support projects that combine scientific/technical, social and business innovation to solve pressing global health challenges. 

The funding was announced by Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird during a visit to Burma, where he is participating in the ASEAN-Canada Post Ministerial Conference. As one of ASEAN's longest-standing dialogue partners, Canada has enjoyed positive and fruitful relations with the ASEAN region, cooperating on many issues, including regional integration, economic interests and innovation.

The Swiss pharmaceutical giant Roche is set to pay $450 million for a Danish biotech company that develops drugs that silence microRNAs (something considered key to tackling certain diseases).

Roche is targeting the Danish biotech firm Santaris Pharma, according to The Wall Street Journal. Santaris Pharma A/S is a biopharmaceutical company founded in 2003 in Copenhagen. Santaris Pharma A/S has become a leading clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that develops RNA-targeted medicines. Santaris works on developing drugs for a wide range of diseases using microRNA and mRNA. Their research focuses on infectious disease and metabolic disorders.

The FDA has given Medtronic approval to introduce its Attain Performa Model 4298 quadripolar lead and the Viva Quad XT and Viva Quad S cardiac resynchronization therapy defibrillators (CRT-D) in the U.S.

Having four electrodes on a lead allows cardiologists to select from any one of 16 available pacing configurations. Additionally, the short distance between the inner two electrodes provides more ability to finely tune CRT-D therapy.

A few days after their state's primary elections, Chinese-American community leaders in Maryland woke up to an email in their inboxes.

It was from Lily Qi - director of special projects for the government of Montgomery County, an affluent suburb of Washington - thanking them for their support in the reelection campaign of County Executive Ike Leggett, whose primary victory cleared the way for a third term.

"In a low turnout election like this one, every vote counts and the immigrant community holds great sway in tipping the balance," Qi said in her note. Throughout the campaign, Qi had tirelessly reached out to the Chinese-American community, which accounts for 5 percent of

Johns Hopkins University is teaming up with Google on a project aimed at speeding up technology commercialization.

Under a new partnership agreement with Google, Hopkins will work on the search engine giant’s Advanced Technology and Projects (ATAP) group, which focuses on developing new technology and moving it quickly to the marketplace.