Darryll J. Pines, President, University of Maryland, Joins BioTalk to discuss all things relating the University to the BioHealth Capital Region from Quantum to Workforce Development to Diversity and Equality

Listen now on Apple https://apple.co/3Iq9gqf, Google https://bit.ly/37NHFms, Spotify https://spoti.fi/3KZNziz, Amazon https://amzn.to/3ImyYvP, and TuneIn https://bit.ly/3IrYakN

Darryll J. Pines serves as president of the University of Maryland as well as the Glenn L. Martin Professor of Aerospace Engineering. 

Formerly the Nariman Farvardin Professor of Engineering and dean of UMD’s A. James Clark School of Engineering, where he has been on the faculty since 1995, Pines amassed a record of academic leadership and research accomplishments that have dramatically elevated the school’s rankings and stature nationally and internationally.  In 2019, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering for his “inspirational leadership and contributions to engineering education.” 

FREDERICK, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Maryland Tech Council, the largest technology and life sciences trade association in the state, today announced it has received $2.45 million in federal funding to accelerate innovation in Maryland. The community project funding is included in the fiscal year 2022 omnibus appropriations bill and made possible by the leadership of Senator Chris Van Hollen (MD), chair of the Senate Appropriations Financial Services and General Government subcommittee.

To make innovation a priority, hospitals and health systems must harness innovation efforts from the pandemic to stay ahead of the curve. Here, four health system and hospital innovation leaders share habits that are killing innovation.

Christine Brocato. System VP, Strategic Innovation of CommonSpirit Health (Chicago). Health systems are just recovering from the last COVID surge and there's a lot of concern about staffing levels and financials, which has hindered innovation as health systems have been focusing on immediate issues rather than future investments in innovation. 

The Prince William County Department of Economic Development, in partnership with Holladay Properties, cordially invites you to the Northern Virginia Bioscience Center Grand Opening Celebration on March 29, 2022 at 11:30 a.m.

Join us to commemorate the completion of 30,000 square feet in new commercial wet lab space reflecting more than $17.3 million in capital investment. Meet with elected officials from the Board of County Supervisors, GMU faculty and researchers, biotech business owners, and many more.

Lunch will be provided with attendee giveaways and opportunities to tour tenant spaces. Attendance is free, but please RSVP at pwcded.org/nvbc-rsvp by Friday, March 25, to advise of your attendance. We hope to see you there!

RSVP Here

Two years after beginning a collaborative strategic visioning process, only to pause in response to the urgent demands of the COVID-19 pandemic, Johns Hopkins University is relaunching the work of evaluating Johns Hopkins' Ten by Twenty strategic vision and mapping the next phase of the university's future.

ROCKVILLE, Md., March 15, 2022—Today the Council voted on a resolution spearheaded by Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Nancy Navarro to create a Biohealth Opportunity Zone Incentive Program which will provide grants to attract Biohealth Priority Campuses to the County’s Opportunity Zones.  

The Biohealth Opportunity Zone Incentive Program approved today by the Council will provide a grant of $250,000 to any Biohealth Priority Campus located in a County Opportunity Zone, upon its receipt and occupancy permit. 

BioHealth Innovation and the BioHealth Capital Region mourn the loss of TaylorMade Experience LLC (TME) COO Juvale Regala (Jae). Jae has been an integral part of the annual BioHealth Capital Region Forum and Investment Conference, contributing to both events' planning and implementation. Without Jae's dedication, professionalism, and kindness, these events wouldn't have been the successes they were over the years. As a stage 4 acute lymphoblastic leukemia, Jae was a fighter for herself and her four daughters. As a result, a gofundme has been created to help her family financially during these difficult times. Please visit https://bit.ly/JaeRegala to donate to this worthy cause. Our deepest condolences to Jae's family and the TME team. We miss you, Jae.  

Rich Bendis, President & CEO, BioHealth Innovation

March 11 marked the sobering two-year anniversary of the World Health Organization’s declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic. COVID-19 made clear that it can’t be business-as-usual with the medicines supply chain, not when lives are at stake. Since then, policymakers in Washington have committed billions of dollars to address vulnerabilities in pandemic preparedness infrastructure.

Sally Allain, Head of JLABS @ Washington, DC, and Dr. Kurt Newman, Pres/CEO of Children’s National Hospital sit down with Tien and Anthony to discuss how JLABS and Children’s National are impacting pediatric healthcare in our region and nationally, and why they partnered to create a research and innovation campus at the old Walter Reed Army base.

Image: https://jlabs.jnjinnovation.com/about-us/team/sally-allain

President Joe Biden last week got his wish for a new agency to fund high-risk, cutting-edge biomedical research when Congress created the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) and gave it a $1 billion startup investment. That’s a fraction of the $6.5 billion Biden had proposed, but advocates say it’s plenty to launch ARPA-H.

The 2022 spending bill does not resolve, however, a debate over whether to make ARPA-H a standalone agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) or part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Instead, it gives HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra 30 days to decide.

Image: https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Collins

BALTIMORE, MD (March 15, 2022) — Global biotechnology business Miltenyi Biotec is expanding its operations in Maryland and transferring its North American headquarters to Gaithersburg. The company is working on expanding its 1201 Clopper Road facility to support additional manufacturing, research and development, quality assurance, and more. Miltenyi Biotec plans to add 130 new full-time jobs in Maryland, giving it a total of 300 employees in the state by the end of the year.

“By selecting Maryland for its North American headquarters, Miltenyi Biotec will help us continue growing our industry and further our efforts in remaining one of the top 10 life sciences clusters in the nation,” said Governor Larry Hogan. “We welcome the company’s continued investment in Montgomery County and look forward to supporting their efforts in Maryland and across the globe.”

GAITHERSBURG, MD, March 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NexImmune, Inc. (Nasdaq: NEXI), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing a novel approach to immunotherapy designed to orchestrate a targeted immune response by directing the function of antigen-specific T cells, today announced a research and evaluation collaboration with The Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and part of NYU Langone Health. The collaboration is centered around NexImmune’s artificial antigen presenting cells' (aAPCs) ability to expand neoantigen-specific CD8+ T cells in apheresis material provided by melanoma patients. Dr. Jeffrey S. Weber, Deputy Director of the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center will guide the research and evaluation.

New investment will enhance immunochemistry and chromatography services, helping pharma and biotech customers accelerate drug development  

March 14, 2022 08:36 AM Eastern Daylight Time  

WILMINGTON, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced it will invest $97 million to expand its clinical research operations in Richmond, Virginia. The facilities, which include laboratory operations acquired with the purchase of PPD, Inc. in December 2021, will support increasing demand across biopharma for consistent, high-quality laboratory services to accelerate drug development.  

“What do you envision for your company’s future?” is a typical question for startups. And many of the 45 companies pitching in nine categories during the 14th annual SXSW Pitch Event showed they had a clear strategy for where they want to take their business next.

But no matter what the future holds, we all benefit from the inspired and imaginative minds solving today’s problems in both emerging and traditional industries like artificial intelligence and robotics, health, immersive, and transportation.

Mutual self-interest provides a strong basis for transatlantic cooperation in biotechnology based on shared recognition of its vast potential to provide solutions to some of civilization’s most pressing problems. Thanks to explosive advances in our understanding of the many ways in which promiscuous nature has been manipulating DNA and RNA for the past billion years, it is widely anticipated that the 21st century will belong to biology.1 We are now at the point where our ability to innovate is constrained less by technical capability than by the limits of our imaginations. Multiple laboratories and companies on both sides of the Atlantic (and throughout the world) are pursuing promising applications, and experience confirms progress would be accelerated by cooperative approaches. But there are some considerable challenges, especially in agricultural and industrial contexts.

Ken Malone, Co-Founder and Managing Director of Early Charm Ventures, Joins BioTalk to discuss his career path, loving Baltimore, and what he sees as next for the BioHealth Capital Region

Listen now via Apple https://apple.co/3MRn94f, Google https://bit.ly/3tTPIpg, Spotify https://spoti.fi/36gfJXw, Amazon https://amzn.to/3MNckQG, and TuneIn https://bit.ly/3i3H3e7.

Ken Malone is a co-founder of Early Charm Ventures, a venture studio founded in 2012 in Baltimore (Charm City) that converts science to business. Early Charm specializes in taking brilliant scientific discoveries made at universities and turning them into companies focused on growth. They don’t chase quick exits. They build companies that create sustainable value.

Click here to view the transcript.

-  'We Do Vaccines' and 'Know Our Vax' are new educational efforts that provide information regarding vaccines

-  Programs explain Novavax' commitment to vaccine development and innovation

GAITHERSBURG, Md., March 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Novavax, Inc. (Nasdaq: NVAX), a biotechnology company dedicated to developing and commercializing next-generation vaccines for serious infectious diseases, today announced the launch of its global unbranded 'We Do Vaccines' and 'Know Our Vax' programs, educational efforts aimed to help protect the health of people everywhere in the fight against COVID-19 and other deadly infectious diseases, such as influenza.

GAITHERSBURG, Md., March 11, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE: EBS) today announced that it has dosed the first participant in its Phase 1 study to evaluate the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics, and pharmacodynamics of stabilized isoamyl nitrite (SIAN), a treatment being developed for known or suspected acute cyanide poisoning. Under an existing multi-year contract with the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), and in collaboration with the Southwest Research Institute, Emergent is developing a single-use intranasal spray intended for administration by first responders and medical personnel following a cyanide incident.

“Emergent’s R&D efforts are grounded in our mission – to protect and enhance life,” said Kelly Warfield, Ph.D., senior vice president, research and development at Emergent BioSolutions. “We are committed to advancing unique programs like SIAN, which addresses the need for an easily administered first-line treatment for cyanide poisoning. Intranasal SIAN is being developed for potential use by both civilians and first responders and is part of our portfolio of medical countermeasures focused on priority public health threats identified by the U.S. government.”

The Bethesda-based developer is preparing two developments under the moniker "EvolutionLabs" to take advantage of the growing life sciences demand in the county, including a 550K SF development near Pike & Rose, the developer announced Thursday. 

That project, EvolutionLabs at North Bethesda, is planned to include three buildings at the intersection of Old Georgetown and Banneker roads. The first groundbreaking there would be in 2024, according to the release. Stonebridge is under contract to acquire the land for that project, Stonebridge principal Kent Marquis told Bisnow in an email. 

The property will take advantage of the "urban, walkable, transit-oriented," spaces under development near the White Flint Metro station, Marquis said.

Image: Courtesy of Cannon Design Stonebridge and Principal Real Estate's EvolutionLabs concept at 9713 Washingtonian Blvd.

In 2003, a group of University of Maryland officials approached then-mayor Martin O’Malley with a development plan for vacant land along West Baltimore Street, adjacent to University of Maryland, Baltimore’s campus. Today, this ambitious project, the University of Maryland BioPark, boasts nearly three dozen life science companies, ranging from leading global firms to mature companies to early-stage ventures. In recent years, the BioPark has attracted a cluster of early-stage medical device companies. For these young companies, the BioPark offers something even more important than a corporate headquarters: a location on UMB’s campus and in the heart of Maryland’s biomed ecosystem.

Image: https://technical.ly/

BALTIMORE — The University of Maryland Medical System and Johns Hopkins Medicine have announced they will send more than $4 million worth of medical supplies to support Ukraine, and plan on sending more.

The two major hospital systems are sending items including airway aspirators, medical air compressors, beds, oxygen concentrators, positive pressure ventilators, face masks and shields, respirator kits, gowns, gloves and syringes, according to a press release.

The donation will help clinicians in Ukraine provide emergency medical care in the wake of Russia's invasion.

Mohan Suntha, president and CEO of UMMS, said he plans "to send additional supplies in the future."

Image: Photo by: University of Maryland Medical System Supplies for Ukraine

The Maryland Tech Council has launched two new regional satellite chapters to directly focus on the burgeoning technology sectors in Greater Baltimore and Prince George's County.

The tech council (MCT) is Maryland's largest technology and life sciences trade association with more than 450 members. The Baltimore and Prince George's regional councils are the first sub-chapters launched by the organization.

Image: Marty Rosendale, CEO of the Maryland Tech Council, said the organization created regional chapters "to intentionally unite and empower stakeholders through local advocacy, outreach and growth." Maryland Tech Council

Human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are being used in the clinic to prevent or treat SARS-CoV-2 infection, and experience thus far suggests that combinations of antibodies are potentially able to sustain broad recognition of viral variants as they arise, but developing, testing and approving mAb combination products is complex. One approach to reducing the logistical challenges of combination products is the development of bispecific antibodies (bsAbs) (Fig. 1). In this issue of Nature Immunology, Li et al. report the development and testing of an engineered bispecific human mAb against SARS-CoV-21.

Image: https://www.nature.com

Casimir Further Differentiates Emmes' Industry-Leading Rare Disease Research Capabilities

ROCKVILLE, Md., March 10, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Emmes, a global, full-service Clinical Research Organization (CRO) dedicated to supporting the advancement of public health and biopharmaceutical innovation, today announced that it has acquired Casimir, a U.S.-based CRO. Casimir has experience in more than 20 rare diseases and has worked with regulators, sponsors and patients to develop outcome measures that capture the nuances of disease progression and treatment benefit.

– Reports Promising Early Data from Lead Clinical Program, JK07, for the Treatment of Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction –

– Initiates Enrollment in Second Cohort of JK07 Phase 1 Dose Escalation Study –

(Gaithersburg, MD) – March 7, 2022 – Salubris Biotherapeutics, Inc. (SalubrisBio), a clinical-stage biotechnology company dedicated to discovering and developing novel complex biologic therapeutics, today announced it received $32 million in financing from China-based Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals Co., Ltd. The investment, which was completed in the fourth quarter of 2021, will be used to advance the current pipeline, including continuation of an ongoing Phase 1b clinical trial and initiation of two additional Phase 1b clinical trials in 2022, and to further expand the pipeline through R&D.

For a small business with a brilliant new idea in the life sciences, a funding infusion can do wonders to help translate that concept into reality. Did you know that the NIH small business programs are the largest source of early-stage capital for the life sciences in the U.S.? These programs set aside over $1.2 billion non-dilutive funds every year -- specifically to support small business research and development. 

Indeed, in 2021, the U.S. bioscience industry represents a unique confluence of characteristics essential for addressing these challenges and realizing societal and economic progress: extraordinary innovation that’s saving and improving lives through advancements in biomedical, energy, and advanced food and industrial technologies, along with an expanding mix of employment opportunities with incomes that support a quality standard of living.

The industry is at the forefront of a host of major global challenges related to diagnosing, treating, and curing disease—especially COVID-19 and other infections with pandemic potential. The industry is also ensuring that the world can rely on a safe, affordable, and more sustainable food supply to feed a growing population, as well as developing biobased fuels, chemicals, and other industrial products to help us address climate change.

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) and Council of State Bioscience Associations recently released Driving the Bioscience Economy Forward During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Best Practices in State and Regional Bioscience Economic Development Initiatives. The biennial report provides a summary of state programs serving the bioscience industry.

This year’s report devotes substantial attention to incentives. Many of the incentive policies are intended to support the leading trends in state bioscience support (see below). These include incentives to provide funding for companies coming out of university partnerships, industry workforce training and development, and facility development. Others are intended to provide capital to bioscience companies at the early-stage, mid-stage, and manufacturing stage of development, such as angel investor and seed capital tax credits, R&D and innovation investment tax incentives, and tax exemptions, abatements or discounts.   

Image: https://smartincentives.org

FREDERICK, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The Maryland Tech Council is proud to announce the finalists for its annual Industry Awards Celebration. The event honors individuals and companies in the life sciences, technology, and government contracting industries that have made a significant impact in their respective fields. For the first time in two years, the awards ceremony will be held in person, with the winners announced live on May 12th at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel & Conference Center. Last year over 9,000 people tuned in to the virtual Industry Awards Celebration. Click here to learn more about the event. 

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN

• As new markets are embracing the Life Science industry, why are users feeling bullish in investing and developing in the Mid-Atlantic area? How is our region competing with different markets? 
• Strategic Design & Development: How are investors and developers meeting the latest demands when it comes to design and amenities? What is being implemented to ensure purpose-built life science facilities? 
• How are developers and tenants finding more space as demand for facilities continues to rise? Are we seeing more vacant buildings being converted into labs and other biotech facilities to meet the high demand? 
• With the rise in market opportunity, where is the public and private funding coming from for life science real estate? 
• I-270 Corridor Update: What are the newest projects and investments in the development pipeline? What is expected for this life science & biotech corridor in terms of tenants, investments and development in 2022? How are DC & NoVa competing against this corridor and securing their spot in the asset class?

BALTIMORE, March 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- GlycoMantra, a University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) startup company developing therapeutics for unmet medical needs in prostate cancer, NASH liver fibrosis, and type 2 diabetes, has been granted worldwide, exclusive rights to a UMB technology to advance the company's pipeline of therapeutics for treating drug-resistant metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

According to the American Society of Cancer Oncology, colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer death among men and women in the U.S., totaling about 53,000 deaths per year. Drug resistance to CRC is a primary challenge and mCRC remains a lethal disease. Although 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)—one of the current standards of care for patients with mCRC—exerts clinical benefit, all patients have acquired resistance to the drug over time.

“I never had been in an ecosystem that had more potential, more assets, that was more disconnected, than this region was at that time.” -Rich Bendis of BioHealth Innovation, Inc. on why Maryland was a great place to grow the BioHealth Capital Region.

Watch: https://bit.ly/3trKMYm

Robert Gourdie, a trailblazing cardiovascular scientist at the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC, is the first Virginia Tech researcher to receive an Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

The seven-year, $6.4 million grant is funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the NIH. Known as an R35, the grant provides Gourdie with increased freedom to carry out inventive research concepts that aren’t tethered to specific, finite projects.

Image: Robert Gourdie, the Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund Eminent Scholar in Heart Reparative Medicine Research and director of the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute’s Center for Vascular and Heart Research, is Virginia Tech’s first recipient of a National Institutes of Health Outstanding Investigator Award. Photo by Clayton Metz for Virginia Tech.

March 2, 2022 -- The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will offer reimbursement for software from Medimaps Group that performs osteoporosis risk fracture assessment via trabecular bone scores (TBS).

The agency assigned the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code 77089 for Medimaps' TBS iNsight, which provides a trabecular bone score for x-ray and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry. It was effective January 2022.

Image: https://www.auntminnie.com

Foresite Capital, a firm that invests in early-stage healthcare and life sciences companies, today launched a $173 million fund designed to further finance startups launched by its Foresite Labs entrepreneurial innovation hub.

The new fund will be one source of capital for Foresite Labs startups, which will continue to be funded through the $969 million raised last year by Foresite Capital—consisting of the $775-million Fund V and a $193.75 million fund for selectively making additional investments in their highest conviction Fund V portfolio companies, called the Opportunity Fund.

Image: Vikram (Vik) Bajaj, PhD, a managing partner with Foresite Capital and the Co-Founder and CEO of the firm’s Foresite Labs entrepreneurial innovation hub.