The University System of Maryland (USM) has selected NextStep Robotics, a start-up company that has developed a personalized robotic therapy to help relieve discomforts of “foot drop” syndrome in recovering stroke patients. The robotic therapy is based on research in the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Medicine, Baltimore Veterans (VA) Affairs Medical Center, and University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP) A. James Clark College of Engineering, as recipient of the second investment from the recently established Maryland Momentum Fund.

Mid-Atlantic Angels, LLC (MAA) approaches its 2018 programming in an environment of economic optimism that leverages the economic upsurge of 2017. With the strengthening economy and accompanying confidence, angel investment is expected to surge and contribute to the growth of a vibrant regional economic landscape. The aim is to help create successful businesses while generating a return on investment for MAA member investors. In addition to scheduling a full slate of five Capital Cycles for 2018 in which entrepreneurial companies pitch for capital, MAA is adding more investor members, has lined up a valuable series of investor/entrepreneur workshops, has established a cadre of loyal sponsor organizations, is increasing its outreach to investment and entrepreneurial oriented organizations in the Frederick region, and is expanding its Board to better meet the needs of MAA and its communities.

Top life science companies perform cutting-edge research and make transformational discoveries throughout the County from the I-270 corridor of Gaithersburg and Germantown to White Oak. Add in the federal presence of the NIH and FDA, along with top talent, and tap into our strong momentum for BioHealth success. The business models vary yet our companies have important assets in common: a commitment to diversity of people, places and ideas and a spirit of innovation. Meet some of our impressive CEOs and company heads that showcase life science excellence in the County in our Think Success video series.

Join WIB–Capital Region on February 21, 2018 for a panel discussion with industry experts that will help demystify venture capital funding in the biotech space.

Maryland Technology Development Corp. made new seed investments in five Maryland startup companies, totaling $600,000.

TEDCO has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in young, growing companies across the state. The state-backed organization has 137 active investments through its seed fund.

BHI is working with several regional partners to cultivate local biohealth research talent and help those with interest and qualifications transition to industry.

In February, BHI is co-hosting with NCI, and WorkSource Montgomery two PostDoc-Industry Connections Happy Hours enabling NCI postdocs and others at NIH to learn more about local opportunities in the region's biohealth industry. Industry participants are invited to attend these complimentary networking receptions and share their thoughts regarding career paths and opportunities in the field.

Registration is free but limited. RSVPs are required.
Please RSVP using the following links:

2/15 - 6-8:00 p.m. - Waverly Street Gallery, Bethesda - RSVP here
2/20 - 5-7:00 p.m. - JHU Montgomery Campus, Rockville - RSVP here

Save the date: 6/20 - Industry Postdoc Hiring Event - NCI Rockville Campus

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.?

Who:  BioHealth Industry Hiring Managers/HR Executives

What:  Luncheon meeting where you will have the opportunity to:

• Provide feedback on a preliminary assessment of regional biohealth hiring needs
• Offer input on a proposed compensation survey, 
• Learn of local resources to assist you in your recruiting and training activities,
• Ensure you are among the first to receive copies of the Hiring Needs, and Compensation Survey reports to be published later this Spring.
• Network with peers

When:  February 13th, 12:00-2:00 p.m. 

Where:  Universities of Shady Grove (USG) 

Hosts:    BioHealth Innovation, NCI, WorkSource Montgomery, UMBC, USG 

RSVP's are required. Click HERE to RSVP.

*Due to limited space, this event is for Hiring Managers/industry HR staff only (recruiters/vendors/other excluded). This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

China’s increasing zeal for improving biotechnology and medical services is music to the ears of the British government after two venture capital firms received 8 billion yuan (US$1.3 billion) in funding commitments from mainland investors during Prime Minister Theresa May’s three-day visit last week.

AOL cofounder Steve Case is returning to Baltimore in a couple of weeks in a new event series designed to help entrepreneurs.

In covering the D.C. innovation economy comes the inevitable: funding news. Trust us, there’s a lot of it floating around the D.C. metro area, and we cover it everyday in our daily newsletter, The Beat. Here’s a roundup of all of the major funding news from the region in January: 

Qiagen has agreed to a $191 million deal to acquire STAT-Dx. The takeover will give Qiagen control of a pipeline of assay panels designed to diagnose infections affecting the respiratory and gastrointestinal systems. 

Venture backed companies can address a large market quickly, and therefore payoff investors sooner than other businesses.

While a couple of glasses of wine can help clear the mind after a busy day, new research shows that it may actually help clean the mind as well. The new study, which appears in the journal Scientific Reports, shows that low levels of alcohol consumption tamp down inflammation and helps the brain clear away toxins, including those associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

OpGen announced today that it has priced its public offering of approximately 3.7 million units of common stock and common warrants at $3.25 per unit.

Amazon made an announcement Tuesday that sent shockwaves through the health care industry and caused insurers’ stocks to plummet: The technology company is joining Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase to create an independent health care organization that will serve their employees.

Qiagen will acquire Spanish biotech STAT-Dx for up to €153M – more than 3 times the total funding it has raised so far – to produce fast and effective diagnostic tests for infections and cancer.

One Week Left to Apply!!

Deadline: Friday, February 9, 2018, 5pm

We are looking for the best university startups from schools around the world! 

Over $1 million in Prizes! 42 startup teams will be invited to compete in front of hundreds of investors. 

Join the more than 200 startups that have been successfully launched after competing at the RBPC and raised more than $1.7 billion!

Competition Dates: April 5-7, 2018

Rice University, HoustonJones Graduate School of Business

Global venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates, Inc. (NEA) today announced that Jeff Immelt has joined the firm as Venture Partner. Immelt, who recently retired from his role as Chairman and CEO of GE after 16 years at the helm of the 125-year-old company, is widely regarded as one of the world's most innovative and capable business leaders. His extensive domain and company-building expertise are closely aligned with NEA's core sectors of focus, and he will work closely with technology and healthcare companies across the firm's portfolio in this new role.

A new oncology company spun out of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine is raising up to $40.5 million to develop its platform of anticancer therapies.

The U.Va. Licensing and Ventures group is offering funding to three local health and technology startups. 

20/20 GeneSystems, Inc. finalized its first equity crowdfunding campaign this week with gross proceeds of $1.07 million, the maximum amount permitted under current SEC rules pursuant to Regulation CF. In so doing, the company became only the second medical technology firm to reach this maximum. 20/20 is now listed as one of the "Top 20 Regulation Crowdfunding Campaigns of All Time" by Crowdfund Capital Advisors. The campaign was posted on First Democracy VC, a joint venture between Indiegogo and MicroVentures and was assisted by marketing firm Enventys Partners.

Innate Pharma and MedImmune will test the combination of Innate’s cancer antibody and the checkpoint inhibitor durvalumab in patients with solid tumors.

Betamore, Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures and the University of Maryland, Baltimore are looking for five local digital health, bio-health or life sciences companies to participate in a new collaborative accelerator program.

A new study from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Sweden, suggests that replacing time spent sitting with light-intensity physical activity may benefit health more than previously thought.

March 22, 2018 5:30 – 8:00 p.m.

The Grand Lodge of Maryland 304 International Cir Cockeysville, MD 21030

Influential Marylanders was created to honor individuals who have made significant impacts in their field and continue to be leaders in Maryland. These individuals are selected by The Daily Record’s editors for their significant contributions to their respective fields and for their leadership in Maryland in the following areas: civic leadership; communications; education; finance; freestyle; general business; health care; law; philanthropy; real estate; and technology. Three-time winners are inducted into the Circle of Influence.

Funding and Research Opportunities

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

Sophie Martyr was just 13 years old when she learnt she had brain cancer and was asked to make a decision about whether she wanted to have children in the future.

At many university TTOs, a historical focus on faculty research has resulted in relatively weak support for the student innovation ecosystem – and it’s a gap that many schools are now rushing to fill. It’s true that many universities hold student innovation contests and offer mentoring programs for the most promising business-minded students. But your TTO can go further by creating an ecosystem with a strong talent pool to not only build valuable start-ups, but keep these young entrepreneurs and their companies in the region, contributing to the local economy and creating an environment that’s attractive to outside investors and industry partners.

Three corporate behemoths — Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase — announced on Tuesday that they would form an independent health care company for their employees in the United States.

A Baltimore biotechnology company is raising up to $40.5 million and working to develop pharmaceutical technology born out of Johns Hopkins University.

The team at Roche’s Basel-based underdog R&D group pRED has something to cheer about today. The FDA has designated their autism drug RG7314 (balovaptan) as a “breakthrough” therapy worthy of VIP treatment at the agency.

Summer RISE is your chance to impact the future workforce of Montgomery County for three weeks in July.  Be the organization that gives real career experiences to County youth and helps them realize the opportunities ahead of them.

Nearly all states added jobs in 2017, but the latest Labor Department data suggests most states experienced slower growth last year than in 2016.

Still, it proved to be a particularly strong year for a select group of states -- 10 of which recorded year-over-year job gains exceeding 2 percent.

Tanisha Carino, Ph.D., the respected senior executive with more than two decades of experience in academia, government, and the private sector, is joining the Milken Institute as executive director of FasterCures, the center devoted to saving lives and improving the medical research system.

The new year is off to a great start for the partnership between University of Maryland (UMD) and Shanghai’s East China University of Science and Technology (ECUST).  This partnership began five years ago when Prof. Greg Payne, from UMD’s Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR) and Fischell Department of Bioengineering, was appointed a Chaired Professor in ECUST.  The goal of this partnership has been to integrate UMD’s expertise in biofabrication with ECUST’s translational research in biomedical materials.  Prof. Changsheng Liu, ECUST’s Vice President and a member of the Chinese National Academy of Sciences, initiated this collaboration as part of ECUST’s efforts to attract international participation in their research programs.  “Our work with Maryland has been one of our most successful examples of international collaboration and has led to numerous technical advances while enhancing our graduate student training,” noted Liu.