Who: Sona Shah, 26, and Teresa Cauvel, 23, both of whom recently received master’s degrees in biomedical engineering from Columbia University. Shah previously worked as an engineer for the pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and Co.

For the second consecutive year, President Jay A. Perman, MD, addressed the Regional BioTech Forum to discuss advances in research and commercialization by the University of Maryland, Baltimore and its partners in academia and the private sector.

Throughout the year, we publish new Lists on the top companies, executives and deals in the Washington region based on our research. This week’s Lists included the region’s biggest venture capital deals in 2015, ranked by deal value, and the region’s largest venture capital firms and largest private equity firms, both ranked by assets under management. Here are three things of note about the venture capital lending in our region.

Join us on April 27 from 4 to 7 p.m. to watch Montgomery College student entrepreneurs compete in our second annual Raptor Tank Business Pitch Competition!

Modeled after ABC's Shark Tank, this year we are excited to have five student finalist teams who will be present their service or product to a panel of judges for the potential to win a portion of more than $5,000 in total seed money! This prize money will give these MC students the chance to expand or initiate their very own business.

AstraZeneca and its global biologics research and development arm, MedImmune, have chosen Cambridge as the base for a pioneering new genomics research centre.

Over the last five years, electronic health records (EHRs) have been widely implemented in the United States, and health care systems now have access to vast amounts of data. While they are beginning to apply “big data” techniques to predict individual outcomes like post-operative complications and diabetes risk, big data remains largely a buzzword, not a reality, in the routine delivery of health care. Health systems are still learning how to broadly apply such analytics, outside of case examples, to improve patient outcomes while reducing spending.

AstraZeneca is making a bold genomics play that places it at the forefront of the precision medicine game: Company-wide, it’s going to use data insights from a huge swath of genomes to inform the future of its drug development.

The search for a new president and CEO for the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore ended before it began as the alliance appointed the woman it initially gave the post on an interim basis.

Shannon Landwehr, the alliance's executive vice president, will replace Tom Sadowski, its current top executive, who has been apppointed vice chancellor for economic development for the University System of Maryland, starting May 2.

After flying under the radar for two years, Baltimore’s Centrexion Therapeutics ready to make its mark as an emerging pharmaceutical company in the field of pain management.

The Center for Biotechnology at Stony Brook University and the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research, the research arm of Northwell Health, announced that the Feinstein Institute will be joining the Long Island Bioscience Hub (LIBH).

From Johns Hopkins in Baltimore to the NIH in Bethesda, Maryland has the talent and institutions to become one of the biggest hubs of the bio- and health-technology industry. But the region needs more entrepreneurship to get there.

Thursday May 19, 2016 from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM EDT  

Join us as we gear up for the BIO International Convention held in San Francisco this June! Life Science Professionals planning to attend BIO, along with those unable to make it to San Francisco, are invited to join us as we showcase the strengths of the I-270 biohealth corridor in Maryland.

A new report by the Economic Alliance of Greater Baltimore and BioHealth Innovation Inc. says Maryland must pick up the pace on entrepreneurship to be the national leader in biohealth

Ahead of the Johns Hopkins Social Innovation Lab’s Impact and Innovation Forum on April 21, we’re profiling the entrepreneurs that are part of the current cohort.

Here’s a look at three startups focused on building health solutions in Baltimore:

Register to attend the Celebration of Innovation and Partnerships at the University of Maryland

When: May 9, 2016 Time: 4:00-6:00 pm Where: Orem Hall, Riggs Alumni Center, University of Maryland

These new inventions will be honored at a special Celebration of Innovation and Partnerships event on May 9 as part of the University of Maryland’s “30 Days of EnTERPreneurship.” Each year, UMD honors exceptional inventions that have the potential to make an important impact on science, society, and the free market. The Invention of the Year award nominees come from three categories: Physical Sciences, Life Sciences, and Information Sciences. One invention from each category is selected to win the Invention of the Year Award.

The German conglomerate that invented aspirin over a century ago wants to take over much more of your medicine cabinet. Bayer AG is boosting its presence and brand in the U.S., the world's biggest medicine market. Bayer is increasing everything from marketing and research operations in the U.S. to the number of its nonprescription medicines in pharmacies and grocery stores.

Since World War II, the U.S. has been an innovation superpower. In virtually every advanced field, whether it’s information technology, biotechnology, agriculture, or renewable energy, America holds a leading position. Other nations may challenge in one field or another, but no one can match its depth and breadth.

Partnerships with private corporations can be valuable for universities looking to speed up the process of translating academic research to commercial products, services and companies.

Dedicated rules for conducting research with private companies could be a new revenue source for USM and could avoid another chocolate milk debacle.

The NIH is the premier biomedical research center for the world.  Its 27 Institutes and Centers employ approximately 18,000 employees doing a vast array of jobs, all supporting efforts for a healthy nation.  For information on the NIH mission, goals, and Institutes and Centers, visit NIH Overview

This position is located in the Technology Transfer Center (TTC) of the National Cancer Institute (NCI), National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Technology Transfer Center of the National Cancer Institute is seeking exceptional, dynamic candidates for the Invention Development and Marketing Supervisor. The Supervisor will mentor, empower and lead the newly formed Invention Development and Marketing Unit, and drive the strategy to accelerate and increase the volume of NCI inventions matched with partners who can commercialize federal inventions to improve public health. The ideal candidate will have an understanding of research and development in a federal setting, but bring the mindset and energy of an entrepreneur to lead the team, please visit http://ttc.nci.nih.gov/.

MedImmune has introduced the phrase “BioHealth Capital Region” to brand Greater Washington's biotech and life sciences sectors and hopes the name will grow organically.

Gov. Larry Hogan called the state’s life sciences industry the “backbone of Maryland’s economy” and said the state must do more to drive new business here.

Hogan spoke at the close of the first day of the BioHealth Capital Region Forum, a two-day event taking place at MedImmune’s Rockville headquarters Monday and Tuesday.

Everyone knows what Silicon Valley and Research Triangle Park are. What about the BioHealth Capital Region?

That's how MedImmune and a collection of regional stakeholders say Greater Washington should brand itself to better promote its biotech and life sciences industry. The name was introduced Monday as part of the BioHealth Capital Region forum at MedImmune headquarters in Gaithersburg.

The Big Idea CONNECTpreneur Forum is a Community of over 3500 Business leaders, CEOs, Entrepreneurs, VCs and angels in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

Each quarterly CONNECTpreneur Forum mashes up 350+ top founders, angels, CXOs, VCs, and business leaders for a morning breakfast event featuring awesome networking, newsmaking speakers, and a showcase of 6-7 exciting companies.

This UNIQUE EVENT is like NONE OTHER in our region, due to the high quality of our attendees and participants, as well as our programming and unprecedented networking.

TriFusion Devices from Texas A&M University emerged as the top startup company in the Rice Business Plan Competition (RBPC) tonight at Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business. The annual event is the world’s richest and largest student startup competition.

Selected by 275 judges from the investment sector as representing the best investment opportunity and taking home nearly $400,000 in cash and prizes, TriFusion Devices bested 41 other competitors hailing from some of the world’s top universities. TriFusion Devices offers breakthrough 3-D printed products and services aimed at revolutionizing the health care and sports-equipment industries in powerful and profitable ways.

Significant new prizes this year and the teams that won them include the following:

* $25,000 Rice Brown School of Engineering Tech Innovation Prize – Leuko, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

* $100,000, Cisco Internet of Everything Innovation Challenge Prize – Neopenda, Columbia University.

Join our monthly funding briefing to learn details about TEDCO's 8 funding programs. Get insights on:

• navigating through TEDCO's funding resources,
• the application process and deadlines,
• what the reviewers are looking for,
• how your company can take advantage of TEDCO supporting programs

More than 700 leaders from life science companies, academic institutions, nonprofit organizations, investment funds and government entities across Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. (MD-VA-DC) will convene today and tomorrow for the second annual Regional BioTech Forum. The event will showcase the region’s biotechnology accomplishments and its commitment to advancing cutting-edge research in the MD-VA-DC corridor. Notable speakers will include: Dr. Francis Collins, Director, National Institutes of Health; Maryland Governor Larry Hogan; Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe; and Congressman John Delaney.

Illumina is committing $100 million over 10 years to a new venture capital firm whose investment priorities will be in line with the company’s vision.

Illumina said the new firm—to be called Illumina Ventures—will be managed independently of the sequencing giant. However, Illumina will be the majority limited partner in the firm’s first fund as a result of its commitment.

The Washington, D.C. mayor has called for a vote this year on statehood for the nation’s capital.

Speaking Friday at an event commemorating the district’s emancipation from slavery, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser said, “I propose we take another bold step toward democracy in the District of Columbia,” according to the Washington Post. “It’s going to require that we send a bold message to the Congress and the rest of the country, that we demand not only a vote in the House of Representatives. We demand two senators—the full rights of citizenship in this great nation.”

Each spring Johns Hopkins honors exceptional graduate students and postdoctoral fellows at the annual Young Investigators’ Day celebration. The day is meant to celebrate the achievement and hard work of not only the award winners, but of all Johns Hopkins’ research trainees. This year two BME PhD candidates and a BME MD PhD candidate were selected to receive distinguished awards. The awards, named after notable researchers, including many who were former faculty members or graduate students at The Johns Hopkins University, were granted in recognition of outstanding research

You probably know Steve Case best as the man responsible for America Online. But two decades later, Case is continuing the charge to help the new generation of technology and business leaders define the critical path of Internet and innovation to become much more useful to society.

Precision for Medicine, part of the Precision Medicine Group, announced today that it has executed a binding agreement to acquire ACT Oncology, the leading contract research organization (CRO) specializing exclusively in the field of oncology. ACT Oncology provides drug development services focused on the design and execution of clinical trials on behalf of innovative life sciences companies and not-for-profit patient organizations.

Pharma Major Lupin Limited (Lupin) announced today that its US subsidiary, Lupin Pharmaceuticals Inc. has launched its Donepezil Hydrochloride Tablets, 23 mg having received approval from the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) earlier to market a generic equivalent of Eisai Inc's Aricept® Tablets, 23mg.

Nearly 50 new medicines are projected to be launched each year by 2020, a new report from the IMS Institute for Healthcare Informatics says. As such, a number of new drug brands will be available on the market. The majority, unsurprisingly, will be designed to treat cancer.

At the MedCity INVEST conference this week, a panel made up of two CEOs who took their companies public and a couple of venture investors talked about the advantages and drawbacks of going public compared with a strategic acquisition. They also drew attention to what’s changing in the marketplace.