Jeremy Summers

Life science start-up companies, event sponsors, researchers and educators received $3.58 million in loans and grants from the North Carolina Biotechnology Center during the final quarter of the fiscal year ended June 30, 2013. The awards, in 14 programs, went to successful applicants across the state to support life science entrepreneurship, technology commercialization and education. In total, NCBiotech provided 151 awards during fiscal 2013, worth more than $10.7 million. That compared to 127 awards the previous year, valued at just over $8.6 million. NCBiotech has been awarding this type of funding since it was established in 1984. Such awards...

This year’s BIO International Convention last week in Chicago addressed many of the current and future challenges facing the biotech industry. Perhaps no such issue is as polarizing or controversial as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), or organisms that have had DNA molecules from different sources combined into a single molecule, creating a new set of genes. The controversial issue was the subject of a panel entitled, “The Straight Story on Biotech in Agriculture: The Media and its Impact on Consumers.” The North Carolina Biotechnology Center hosted a free public gathering for viewing a live webcast of the discussion. The...

Targacept (Nasdaq: TRGT) has completed recruitment of patients for the Phase 2b study of its schizophrenia treatment, the Winston-Salem biopharmaceutical firm announced last week. The company has developed TC-5619 as a treatment for the negative symptoms and cognitive dysfunction caused by schizophrenia. Targacept expects promising results by the end of the year. The ongoing Phase 2b study is a double blind, placebo controlled, randomized, parallel group trial being conducted at sites in Eastern Europe and the United States. The primary outcome measure is the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS). Key secondary outcome measures include the CogState...

The fifth annual Nanotech Commercialization Conference, which took place in Winston-Salem last week, offered an overview of the stateof the nanotechnology industry in North Carolina and beyond. The conference focused not only on current trends but also on how startups and existing nanotech companies combine innovative science with sound business models to find commercial success. Several of the conference’s panels focused on successful commercialization of nanotech and other tech-driven companies and featured seasoned entrepreneurs with hard-earned wisdom giving tips for what works and what doesn’t. Hindsight Is 20/20 Running any company has many challenges, but running a tech company...

DSM Pharmaceuticals is making a big impact on the community that is home to its North Carolina manufacturing site. DSM, which has a facility in Greenville, has been selected as Pitt County’s Industry of the Year for 2012-2013. Each year, the Pitt County Development Commission receives nominations from Pitt County citizens to recognize a manufacturer or distributor that demonstrates achievement in human, social, economic and environmental sustainability. “We’re delighted to receive this award. We have a dedicated team of people that strive every day to meet the stringent needs of our customers in supplying safe, affordable medicines to patients...

Some of the most exciting technologies that come out of the life-sciences industry center on medical devices and services that can offer tremendous health benefits and improve lives. These devices often come from medical technology companies, which make up a significant portion of the life-sciences industry. New and emerging medical technology, or “medtech,” companies were a focal point of this year’s CED Life Science Conference, held last week in Raleigh. Creativity Crucial to Solving Funding Challenges The conference featured a panel discussion on new business models for medtech companies. The panel included James T. McDeavitt, M.D., chief academic officer...

North Carolina’s life science history and future were front and center at Thursday’s windup of the 2013 CED Life Science Conference. The state’s most recently elected governor, Pat McCrory, kicked off the final day of the two-day annual gathering of the clan with a promise to the entrepreneurs and innovators in his audience that he’ll fight any policies that inhibit entrepreneurship and innovation. The windup luncheon event, by contrast, featured the state’s most frequently elected governor, Jim Hunt, who is routinely acknowledged as the father of the state’s technology prowess. McCrory said he sees North Carolina’s life-sciences industry playing...

Business school students from some of the country’s top programs got a closer look at the life-sciences innovation coming out of the Triad this past weekend. The 4th Annual Wake Forest University Biotechnology Conference & Case Competition gave students a chance to learn more about the region’s biotechnology industry and even compete for some prize money. The North Carolina Biotechnology Center co-sponsored the conference, which took place February 8-9 in Winston-Salem. The conference featured a keynote address from Eric Tomlinson, D.Sc., Ph.D., chief innovation officer of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The conference served to “boost the innovative potential...

The deadline is Monday, Feb. 25 to request a chunk of the $1.1 million in grants from the Biofuels Center of North Carolina to expand biofuels activity in western North Carolina. This year’s focus on the western part of the state is an effort to help achieve the center’s plan for increased biofuels development across the state. The Biofuels Center funds projects and activities supporting its legislatively mandated mission of implementing a statewide strategic plan for biofuels leadership. These projects are in line with the goal of the center, which is to have 10 percent of the liquid transportation...