Company News

The National Capital Consortium for Pediatric Device Innovation (NCC-PDI) announces five awardees chosen in its prestigious annual “Make Your Medical Device Pitch for Kids!” competition to share $150,000 in grant funding from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to support the advancement of pediatric medical devices. In an unprecedented decision, the competition judges determined that all …

Industry Veteran Will Lead HST5040 and Future Rare Disease Clinical Programs HemoShear Therapeutics, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company developing drugs for rare metabolic disorders, has appointed Patrick Horn, MD, PhD, as Chief Medical Officer, effective January 1, 2022. Dr. Horn will lead the company’s growing clinical operations, clinical development, regulatory affairs, medical affairs, biometrics …

The coalition will compete for up to $100 million to supercharge the economy of Central Virginia The coalition of public and private organizations in support of creating an advanced pharmaceutical cluster in Central Virginia was named by the Economic Development Administration (EDA) as a finalist in the $1 billion Build Back Better Regional Challenge.  The …

RIVANNA®, developers of world-first, imaging-based medical solutions, announced they have entered into a partnership with BOMImed, a recognized manufacturer of anesthesia and critical care related consumables to represent and distribute the Accuro® portfolio of products in Canada. BOMImed is a choice distribution partner for RIVANNA as its focus is within the fields of anesthesia and critical …

The Virginia Catalyst, also known as the Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corporation (VBHRC), today announced that it is accepting letters of intent (LOI) for Grant Round 13 to fund the development and commercialization of life science projects that address major unmet needs for improving human health and advance Virginia’s economy. “When you combine world class research with …

Adial Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for the treatment and prevention of addiction and related disorders, today announced the appointment of Cary J. Claiborne as Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Claiborne will continue to serve on the Board of Directors. In his new role, Mr. Claiborne will be responsible for overseeing …

The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) is proud to announce the launch of the NIH Technology Accelerator Challenge for Maternal Health (NTAC: Maternal Health) in conjunction with the White House Maternal Health Day of Action.  NTAC: Maternal Health is offering up to $1,000,000 in cash prizes to reward the development of low-cost, point-of-care molecular, cellular, and/or metabolic sensing …

Diffusion Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“Diffusion” or the “Company”), a biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapies that enhance the body’s ability to deliver oxygen to areas where it is needed most, today announced it has dosed the first participants in its Altitude Trial. The trial will evaluate the Company’s lead product candidate, trans sodium crocetinate (“TSC”), in normal …

Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC) has announced a new name for CIT GAP Funds: Virginia Venture Partners. The family of funds places equity investments in Virginia’s high-growth based technology, life science, and cleantech companies at the earliest developmental stages. This new name reflects the investment program’s renewed commitment to the Commonwealth and enduring partnerships with Virginia’s high-tech …

Athari Biosciences, a rapid-growth, minority- and woman-owned startup focused on improving equity and inclusion across all facets of healthcare, announced it has selected Loudoun County, Virginia, for its new corporate headquarters. The project includes a wet lab, a tech lab, research and development and office space and is expected to open in early 2022. The …

Landos Biopharma Inc. ,a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company utilizing its LANCE® Advanced A.I. platform to discover and develop novel oral small-molecule therapeutics for patients with autoimmune diseases, today announced that Josep Bassaganya-Riera, Ph.D., has stepped down as Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. Tim M. Mayleben, a member of the Landos Board, has been …

New York-based Marathon Asset Management LP announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Richmond-based privately held pharmaceutical company Kaléo Inc., which is known for treating allergic anaphylaxis and opioids overdoses. The total base purchase price is approximately $310 million in cash, less certain adjustments and includes potential net revenue-based milestone payments of …

BrainBox HeadSmart II Study Investigators Aim to Provide Clinicians with First-Ever Biomarkers and other Functional measurements for Acute Traumatic Encephalopathy (ATE.) A clinical trial of multi-modal diagnostic/prognostic test, already underway, is published in Frontiers in Neurology/NeuroTrauma. Investigators in a major clinical trial of patients with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI or concussion) describe for the …

Euclid Systems Corporation, a global leader in advanced orthokeratology and proactive myopia management, today announced two exceptional additions to its leadership team as well as the expansion of its manufacturing facility in Sterling, Virginia. The changes come at a time when Euclid’s next-generation of Ortho-K lens, Euclid MAX, is helping to combat the battle against …

HemoShear Therapeutics, Inc. announced today that a second target identified utilizing the company’s REVEAL-Tx™ human disease modeling platform has been selected by Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (“Takeda”) for further drug discovery activities for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). This marks the successful completion of HemoShear’s exclusive collaboration with Takeda to discover novel targets and develop therapeutics for …

Seven years after its founding as a startup business in Richmond, Grenova Inc. has moved into a new phase of development as a company. “We have been growing quite significantly,” said Ali Safavi, the founder and CEO of Grenova, which has a mission to reduce waste, pollution and costs in the global laboratory industry. Grenova, …

The Virginia Catalyst, also known as the Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corporation (VBHRC),  announced that it has awarded $1.9 million in grants to three life and bioscience projects in the Commonwealth of Virginia. These grants, which will be met with significant matching funds from partner companies, were awarded through Grant Round 12 of Virginia Catalyst’s …

CEL-SCI Corporation announced it has completed the expansion of its existing dedicated Multikine* (Leukocyte Interleukin, Injection) cGMP manufacturing facility. The expansion was undertaken in anticipation of filing a Biologics License Application (BLA) which, if approved, will allow Multikine produced in the facility to be commercially distributed. The construction, which began in 2020, expanded the facility and …

RIVANNA®, developers of imaging-based medical solutions, announced that they have received a contract from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a division of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), for the design and development of a computer-aided 3D …

Contraline, Inc., a venture-backed medical device company devoted to providing men and couples with long-lasting, safe, and effective male contraception, has closed $10.7 million in its Series A financing. The financing round was led by MBX Capital, a venture capital firm that invests in early-stage healthcare and life sciences companies. Additional investors in Contraline include: …

AgroSpheres, Inc. has been awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant for $999,653 to progress its R&D collaboration with the University of Tennessee on an RNAi biological insecticide targeting fall armyworm (FAW). Larvae of FAW are one of the most economically devastating insect pests in its native region …

Landos Biopharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: LABP), a late clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company utilizing its LANCE® Advanced A.I. platform to discover and develop novel therapeutics for patients with autoimmune diseases, announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the Company’s Investigational New Drug (IND) application for LABP-104, a novel, oral, systemically distributed LANCL2 agonist, for …

Virginia Commonwealth University is working on the development of a potential treatment for Covid-19. Michael Peters, Ph.D., a professor in VCU’s Department of Chemical and Life Science Engineering, is leading the research. Peters said he works everyday in response to the pandemic, which led him to the discovery of a possible lifesaving novel peptide therapeutic …

Nanochon, a Washington, D.C. based company in the BioHealth Capital Region, applying novel materials to replicate bone and cartilage, and high-end 3-D printing to create an implant which can permanently repair debilitating joint injuries, was selected from five finalists as the company with the most commercial potential at the 6th Annual Crab Trap Competition. This year’s …