An Annapolis firm focused on building medical devices to monitor heart disease has raised $1.5 million to help bring its first product to market.

Vixiar Medical Inc., a spinout of Johns Hopkins, is developing non-invasive devices and systems for monitoring cardiopulmonary diseases. Its seed round included investors from the U.S. Asia and Europe. Local investors include the Abell Foundation and Maryland Technology Development Corp. The company is based on technology licensed from Hopkins and invented by cardiologist Dr. Harry Silber.

GSK announced today that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a new subcutaneous formulation of Benlysta (belimumab) for the treatment of adult patients with active, autoantibody-positive SLE who are receiving standard therapy. Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) is the most common form of lupus, a chronic, incurable autoimmune disease producing autoantibodies that can attack almost any system in the body. The approval marks the first subcutaneous self-injection treatment option for patients with SLE.

Since 2013, Shire has been stepping up its strategy to become the world’s leading company for people with rare diseases. McKinsey senior partners Martin Dewhurst and Andy West recently talked with Shire’s CEO, Flemming Ørnskov, about the company’s efforts to transform and the importance of staying three steps ahead of the organization you’re leading. In this interview, part of our Biopharma Frontiers series on how the pharmaceutical industry is evolving and how leaders can adapt, Ørnskov discusses his vision for the future and the critical elements of leadership. An edited transcript of their conversation follows.

Elon Musk just tweeted that his Boring Company tunnel project has received “verbal [government] approval” to build a hyperloop connecting New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, DC.

Master of Professional Studies in Technology Entrepreneurship

The University of Maryland’s Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Technology Entrepreneurship educates and empowers students to launch and lead innovative startups and corporate ventures. Our unique experiential learning model incorporates online instruction and coaching, global networking opportunities, and funding opportunities with leading investors. This 100% online offering is a 15-month, part-time program for approximately $20,000.

Live Information Session July 24, at 1 p.m., EST

A startup that spun out of research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine was acquired 18 months after forming.

In a deal announced this week, Living Pharma was acquired by Lentigen Technology Inc., a Gaithersburg-based subsidiary of Miltenyi Biotec GmbH. Terms were not disclosed.

VLP Therapeutics, LLC ("VLP"), a biotechnology company focusing on the research and development of therapeutic and preventative vaccines and antibody agents, today announced the appointment of Jacob Licht as Chief Operating Officer. 

Richard Mason is head of J&J Innovation for the EMEA region, and identifying and investing in the most promising early-stage drug ideas outside the company is one of his key roles.

This ‘open innovation’ strategy is being pursued by all the big pharma companies – and now it’s simply a matter of who executes best on this approach.

The Maryland Department of Commerce has an opportunity for you to soft land in the Hague Security Delta (HSD) — the largest security cluster of Europe — providing you with access to the full EU market.

Benefits of participating in the program:

• Access to shared office space at the HSD Campus — the national innovation centre for security in The Hague — at no cost to you.
• Mentorship from HSD, InnovationQuarter and the Dutch Chamber of Commerce.
• Greater exposure to global partners and opportunities to pursue clients.
• Support in accessing financial resources, engaging strategic partners, and refining business models for market opportunities in the EU region.
• Option to apply for Commerce’s ExportMD program to partially fund your travel and marketing costs.

The 2017 American Small Business Cybersecurity Xchange on October 12th will bring together cybersecurity thought leaders from government and industry and executives from small and  edium-sized businesses (SMB) in a unique one-of-a-kind event. Cyber Crime Expert and Author Kevin Poulsen will give a keynote addressing this year’s theme, Preparing for Current and Emerging Threats. Designed exclusively for SMBs, the conference establishes a trusted forum for insights and action where attendees come to:

• Gain insights about current and emerging cybersecurity threats to their organizations
• Learn about new and upcoming regulatory, legislative, and supply chain requirements for cybersecurity
• Hear from government and industry experts about best practices and solutions to improve SMB cybersecurity
• Network with other SMB executives to promote information sharing and collaboration
• Learn about available cybersecurity tools and resources

Lentigen Technology Inc., a subsidiary of Miltenyi Biotec GmbH, announced today its acquisition of immunotherapy start-up Living Pharma, Inc. Eduardo Davila, PhD, Living Pharma Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer, who is also a faculty member of the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), along with Koji Tamada, MD, PhD, UMSOM, invented Living Pharma’s anti-tag-chimeric antigen receptor (AT-CAR™) technology.

Emergent BioSolutions has agreed to acquire GlaxoSmithKline’s (GSK) anthrax monoclonal antibody, raxibacumab, for around $96m.

Raxibacumab is a fully human monoclonal antibody, which secured approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment and prophylaxis of inhalational anthrax due to Bacillus anthracis.

Emergent Biosystems (NYSE:EBS) inks an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (NYSE:GSK) to acquire raxibacumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody for the treatment and prevention of inhaled anthrax, for $76M in upfront cash and up to $20M in milestones.

OpGen, Inc. (NASDAQ:OPGN) announces the closing of its previously announced public offering of 18,164,195 units at $0.40 per unit, and 6,835,805 pre-funded units at $0.39 per pre-funded unit, raising gross proceeds of approximately $10 million. The Company intends to use the net proceeds of this offering for general corporate purposes, including working capital and product development, particularly development of its rapid antibiotic resistance diagnostic product, and repayment of all outstanding bridge financing notes.

OMNITEC Solutions, Inc.’s Health Services Division will continue and expand their support of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Data Archive (NDA) with a $38 Million firm-fixed-price contract award.

Since 2008, OMNITEC has supported the NIMH making the NDA the model for data sharing and computational science infrastructure at the NIH. Initially created to support 11 autism grants, the NDA now supports and shares data in mental health and substance use from over 800 projects, representing a public and private investment of $1.5 Billion. 

We all have some preconceived ideas about the nature of entrepreneurialism. But, according to business master himself, Tony Robbins, starting a company or two does not an entrepreneur make. Financial savvy and business acumen may be enough to get a startup off the ground. But it takes a true entrepreneur to see beyond the creation of a project, propel past the daily managerial duties and take the all-important risks to achieve greatness.

SBIR Program Contract Solicitation

PHS 2018-1

Deadline October 20, 2017, 5:00PM ET

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute invites small business concerns to submit research proposals under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Contract Solicitation. Firms with the capability to conduct research and development (R&D) in any of the health-related topic areas below and to commercialize the results of that R&D, are encouraged to participate.

• Devices for Transcatheter Surgery
• Tapered Guidewires for Transcatheter Electrosurgery
• Reagent Development for Small Cell Number ChIC-seq

The BIO International Convention is the industry conference for those in or doing business with the biotech industry. MCEDC’s Lynne Stein Benzion, Director of Business Retention and Expansion, is a veteran of several BIO conferences and offered her reflections on this year’s event, which took place June 19-22 in San Diego and drew more than 16,000 industry leaders from 48 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and 73 countries. 

Noble Life Sciences, a contract research organization (CRO) providing services to support the development of drugs, vaccines, and medical devices, is pleased to announce that it has been granted a renewal of full accreditation by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) International Council on Accreditation. Noble was first awarded AAALAC full accreditation in October 10, 1989.

Accenture Interactive, Marriott International, and 1776, a leading global incubator and network for startups, today announced the launch of the Travel Experience Incubator, a new program designed to discover and foster startups working on innovative technologies and solutions to improve the travel experience. The incubator will bring together the hospitality industry expertise of one of the world’s most innovative companies, Marriott International, and its official Travel Experience Incubator partner, Accenture Interactive, along with participating startups, to co-create unique and inventive new experiences for travelers.

SNNLive spoke with Richard Bendis, President and CEO of BioHealth Innovation, Inc., a private company, at the BioMaryland Pavilion at the BIO International Convention 2017 in San Diego, CA.

In monetary terms, D.C.’s tech scene has been doing pretty well with investors lately: Local start-ups took in about $435 million between April and June 2017, compared with $298 million over the same period four years ago, according to Pitchbook investment data analyzed by the National Venture Capital Association.

Southern Maryland Entrepreneurs / small business owners! Join SMIT and the Startup Maryland STRT1UP Roadshow to pitch your technology concept, prototype, product or service innovation.

Since 2012, Startup Maryland has roamed the state celebrating entrepreneurs and giving them the opportunity to video tape their pitch on the Startup Maryland STRT1UP Roadshow pitch bus. Here's how it works: Entrepreneurs register to pitch at https://startupmd.typeform.com/to/cMTP0f, then prepare and practice practice practice a 3 minute pitch. When the bus arrives, entrepreneurs enter the bus where a video studio has been set up to capture thier pitch. Pitches are then edited and ready for viewing! Pitches are judged by a panel of expert serial entrepreneurs, investors and economic development officers and compete for the opportunity to be selected to pitch at other state-wide events such as TEDCO's Annual Entrepreneur Expo and other prizes.

George Mason University announced Tuesday it has signed a memorandum of understanding with six other Virginia research universities to advance the life sciences industry in the state.

Emergent BioSolutions Inc. (NYSE:EBS) announced today that it has entered into an agreement to acquire the ACAM2000®, (Smallpox (Vaccinia) Vaccine, Live) business of Sanofi in an all-cash transaction with a total value of up to $125 million, consisting of $97.5 million upfront and up to $27.5 million in near-term contingent regulatory and manufacturing-related milestones.  

A Brooklyn-based biotech company was awarded $32.3 million in incentives over 10 years from the state’s Economic Development Authority to move its headquarters to the 116-acre former Hoffmann-La Roche North American headquarters campus on the border of Nutley and Clifton.

OpGen announced today that it has priced a previously announced $10 million public offering of 25 million units of common stock and common warrants at $.40 per unit.

The US National Institutes of Health (NIH) would see its budget rise by US$1.1 billion in 2018, to $35.2 billion, under a spending proposal released on 12 July by lawmakers in the House of Representatives.

A new startup accelerator program based at the Johns Hopkins University’s FastForward East will target companies developing health and fitness technologies.

Hopkins is teaming up with the University of Maryland, Plank Industries, Brown Advisory and the Abell Foundation to launch the 16-week program, called M-1 Ventures, in September.

A Food and Drug Administration panel opened a new era in medicine on Wednesday, unanimously recommending that the agency approve the first-ever treatment that genetically alters a patient’s own cells to fight cancer, transforming them into what scientists call “a living drug” that powerfully bolsters the immune system to shut down the disease.

Who We Are

5 startups. 16 weeks. 1 mission.

M-1 Ventures is an accelerator for startups developing technologies that improve health outcomes, promote fitness and streamline health care. The program features mentorship from connected health and fitness experts at Johns Hopkins and the University of Maryland.

QIAGEN (Suzhou) Translational Medicine, a China precision medicine company, raised $25 million in a Series A funding led by Qiming Venture Partners. QIAGEN (Suzhou) was founded in 2013 by QIAGEN, a global molecular diagnostics company headquartered in Germany, and BioBay, the Suzhou life science technology park. It specializes in developing biomarkers and stratifying patients in clinical trials. QIAGEN (Suzhou) said it plans to use the new capital to build a factory and expand its scientific team.

Baltimore, Maryland-based Protenus, the company famously behind monthly Breach Barometers, is expanding its capabilities.

As part of a new effort, the organization will use its analytics platform to shed light on other problems in the world of healthcare. One example includes detecting suspected employee theft of prescription opiates.

The world's top medical technology companies are turning to robots to help with complex knee surgery, promising quicker procedures and better results in operations that often leave patients dissatisfied. Demand for artificial replacement joints is growing fast, as baby boomers' knees and hips wear out, but for the past 15 years rival firms have failed to deliver a technological advance to gain them significant market share.

The 17th annual New York Venture Summit, presented by youngStartup Ventures, is the premier industry gathering connecting venture capitalists, corporate VCs, angel investors, technology transfer professionals, senior executives of early stage and emerging growth companies, university researchers, incubators and premier service providers.

Whether you are an investor seeking access to new early stage deals, or a CEO or Founder of a new venture looking for funding, visibility and growth, New York Venture Summit is one event you won’t want to miss.