October 30, 2009

Labs-on-chips, nanotubes, and other really...really...small things

…I do apologize for the delay but I had some troubles with my Helixpod as I made my journey west, back to Pennsylvania. As you may, or may not know, my Helixpod runs off of DNA mediated energy transfer, which powers nanoelectronic thrusters in the pods core. When my pod powered down, somewhere along the New Jersey Turnpike, I had to figure out a way to make my pod fly again…then it hit me…when I was plotting my course to central Pennsylvania, I realized that there is nano @ Penn State research facilities…which is geared to nanotechnology and more specifically nanobiotechnology, at Penn State University…and if my Helixbrain serves me correctly, during my research I stumbled across the fact that they are able to manipulate matter at the atomic and molecular levels…this size scale, which is about the same as that of biological structures, would enable them to work, and potentially FIX MY HELIXPOD THRUSTERS!! I must get to this institute…immediately….but how? I sent a request to the Grand Centrifugium Assembly to grant me emergency approval for DNA reorganization transportation…which would enable me to travel anywhere I choose…but just one time. If I used this method of transport any more than once my atoms could potentially be scrambled forever and I would never be able to reconstitute myself back to my current, and might I add handsome, state. My permission was granted and I was off…to central Pennsylvania…the location where I would discover much more than just researchers who work on nanoelectric thrusters…

When I was reconstituted, I tasted a sweet nectar I have never tasted before…where am I…surrounded by mint green and little black dots…I couldn’t have been so far off in my reorganization transportation calculation that I ended up in the galaxy of Emeraldion, which has a green sky and black stars…no no no…this must be the famous Berkey Creamery at Penn State…and I am in…a tub of their delicious mint chocolate chip ice cream…

After I cleaned myself off I headed off to find nano @ Penn State research facilities, but was interrupted by my Bio Strength Locator, which was pointing me towards the Huck Institute of the Life Sciences…what is this place?...I asked a scientist who was entering one of the labs and he told me that the Huck Institute is dedicated to strengthening research in the life sciences, preparing students for successful careers, and encouraging new perspectives across disciplinary boundaries…it’s unbelievable to me that once I think I reach a point where it would be merely impossible to impress me anymore, something else does…I quickly got back on track but received a transmission from the Grand Centrifugium Assembly saying they have received coordinates for a location called Strategic Polymer Sciences, and that I should research this place immediately. I have included my transmission below for your review.

Research Transmission to GCA- log 432AZA – Strategic Polymer Sciences, Inc. I have discovered the coordinates you, the Grand Centerfugium Assembly, had sent me. The following is my investigative report. Strategic Polymer Sciences (SPS) is dedicated to enabling technologies to improve the quality of living. SPS develops new materials and device technologies that are in the process of revolutionizing energy storage, energy generation, and medical therapeutics. The medical therapeutics include implantable cardiac defibrillators and the creation of lower cost, more efficient, and more effective steerable medical catheters for cardiac and other applications. Their areas of specialty range from medical devices, energy harvesting, automotive, communications, and electronics…this assembly is truly remarkable…I feel that Beakeris has much to learn...
Research Transmission to GCA- log432AZA – Strategic Polymer Sciences, Inc. END

I decided then to resume my original mission, discovering nanobiotechnology labs at Penn State University, where hopefully, I would find someone who would be willing enough to fix my Helixpod…I then discovered that the Huck Institute and the Materials Research Institute work together to provide seed funding for collaborative research in areas such as biological and chemical sensing, drug delivery via nanoparticles, high frequency ultrasound sensing at the cellular level, lab-on-a-chip technologies, and the development of nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes, silicon nanowires, and zinc oxide nanorods for advanced genomics, proteomics and drug discovery…all I knew was that they specialized in all things small…and that’s what just what my thrusters needed…so I traveled to the Materials Research Institute...there they informed me that the application of nano techniques and tools to human health has the potential for enormous returns in the near to mid term, with new methods for delivering targeted anticancer drugs or new medical techniques for the battlefield…all of this information absolutely astounded me! I could not get over the fact that they could develop something so small that had such a gargantuan impact on the quality of human life! The researchers here told me that they work very closely with clinicians at The Penn State Milton S. Hershey College of Medicine and that their collaboration would produce some incredible outcomes within the next decade…amazing…just amazing…

I contracted the help of a scientist who thought he could help get me back to the skies…after a long journey, a few famous Penn State Diner Grilled Stickeys, a few cups of coffee, and an explanation of what a Nittany Lion is, we were back on the Jersey Turnpike, and my new found friend was busy fixing my nanoelectric thrusters, which he repaired in what seemed like a few nanoseconds…I was glad I could safely resume my journey within the safety of my Helixpod…and still make it to Biotech 2009 on time…only 17 days left…I can’t help but wonder if some of my new friends at Penn State will be presenting during the Innovation Corridor at the Symposium…I truly hope they show off their new, cutting edge, and groundbreaking technologies to the region…then the world…and then…BEAKERIS!

Until we meet again.

Helixman

October 20, 2009

The Road Ahead

I headed north again to New Jersey and along the way I was thinking about the impact of the medical technologies I learned about in Washington D.C. As I flew, my mind began to race at the thought of other areas of biotechnology that would shape the future of medicine.

One area I have heard a LOT about is stem cell research. I remember lots of debate and questions about what they were and what they could do from places like California and Wisconsin. I wondered to myself, are there any companies working in stem cell science in New Jersey?

There was only one way to find out. I re-routed my BioStrength Locator to search for stem cell science and I was hit with an intense alarm and flashing as it indicated that I was definitely in the right place.

I landed and called up the readout which showed a company called Progenitor Cell Therapy, LLC. This company is based in Hackensack and provides critical services that companies involved in cellular therapeutic development need to produce and deliver their cutting-edge medicines. This includes cGMP-compliant cell manufacturing and consulting across regulatory, financial, technical, process and quality groups. They also specialize in support for process and product development, validation and tissue collection, processing and storage.

Next on my list was Stem Cell Innovations, with offices in Scotch Plains. This cell biology company has a proprietary stem cell platform called PluriCells™, which can differentiate into a broad range of human cell types. This platform has the potential to make a major impact on the dynamics of drug discovery and to affect a broad range of critical diseases.

Finally, I pulled up the file for Celgene Cellular Therapeutics. I had heard of Celgene Corporation, but Celgene Cellular Therapeutics, or CCT, was new to me. CCT, it turns out, is a subsidiary of Celgene that is focused on developing therapies from stem cells derived from the human placenta – a safe and almost unlimited source. CCT’s multipotent stem cells are highly versatile, with the potential to repair and regenerate a broad range of damaged or diseased tissues. These therapies hold tremendous promise as they are scalable to a traditional pharmaceutical level and PDA001, the first of these stem cells, is already in human clinical studies to treat Crohn’s disease. Last, the science at CCT is truly groundbreaking. I learned that in the August edition of Nature Biotechnology, an article on the landscape of stem cell patents was published and CCT holds two of the “top 20” patents highlighted.

Then it hit me like a ton of test tubes! There has to be information regarding my findings during the Hot Topics in Science track at Biotech 2009…in fact, there is! The second session on Tuesday, November 17th…Regenerative Medicine for Brain Injury: From the Battlefield to the Clinic! I can’t believe it…this is fantastic…and as each day passes, I become exponentially more and more excited for this symposium…this grand event…my Mecca for all things regionally bioscience! Only 28 more days…and to think…I still need to register!

As I resumed my journey, I felt a surge of hope and pride after learning that New Jersey is truly on the cutting edge of medical science.

Until next time...

Helixman

October 14, 2009

Adventures at AdvaMed 2009

I have made my way to Washington D.C., more specifically the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, for AdvaMed 2009. During my short stay here I have seen and been in contact with many medical technology CEOs and executives, not to mention policy-makers, media, financiers, and many other industry leaders from around the world. I, however, am the only intergalactic guest attending this event…for this year at least. I’m sure, that after I bring back to Beakeris all of this information I have collected, all of the medical technology conference’s intergalactic registration rates will increase exponentially!

I have listened in on a couple plenary sessions, which featured speakers such as former President Bill Clinton. There are roughly 40 companies from the Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania region participating here, including Meta Biomed Inc., NeuroInterventional Therapeutics, Kaplan EduNeering, and Southern Lights Biomaterials, not to mention a handful of the renowned speakers…which is incredible for the tri-state region! It truly shows the size and strength of the medical device sector and the level of innovation harbored there. As I have been making my way through the exhibit hall, marveling at all of the incredible companies and their various medical technologies, I have been dreaming about Biotech 2009, and how it will also feature an entire session track on Drug Delivery, Device, and Diagnostics.

…aaah to think…in just 34 days I will be sitting at the Pennsylvania Convention Center…listening to the exciting and enlightening session on new trends in drug delivery of biotechnology-derived therapeutics on Monday at 10:30 a.m….or maybe the forward thinking and incredibly innovative advancements for the diagnostics and treatment of neurological disorders session with panelists Paul Gilbert, CEO of MedAvante, Inc., John Mordock, president and CEO of Neurologix, Inc., J. Howison Schroeder, president and CEO, Neuro Kinetics, Inc., and Dan Skovronsky, CEO of Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Inc…and maybe…just maybe…I may be fortunate enough to catch a word or two with David Holveck, president and CEO of Endo Pharmaceuticals - Biotech 2009 dinner keynote speaker of course…or Schering-Plough Corporation Chairman and CEO Fred Hassan, Tuesday’s luncheon keynote speaker…snap out of it Helixman…you have a mission to accomplish here…to gather as much information as you can for the Grand Centrifugium Assembly!

I will continue my adventure at AdvaMed and then retrace my route back to the tri-state region and see what else I can uncover there, but later stop at the conveniently located Hotel Helix for some rest and relaxation…it seems more than adequate for a double helix like myself.

Until next time…

Helixman

October 12, 2009

Bio Strength Locator Unknown Alert...

Something very interesting happened just moments ago…as I was soaring through the skies in and around New Jersey, my mind still reeling from the massive amount of information I gained about the incubator system here, my Bio Strength Locator sent up an instant alert…but it wasn’t from Delaware, New Jersey, or Pennsylvania…it was from Washington D.C.

What could be happening that pinged by B.S.L. at such a high level of bio strength units, from a location that I was not tracking? Wait…the signal is coming in clearer and much stronger…A-D-V…A-M-E-D…2..0…09. What is this? Could it be? A conference solely dedicated to Medical Technology?

My locator may have picked up on the fact that there are companies from the tri-state region of Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania presenting there, like ElectroCore, LLC from New Jersey and two companies from Pennsylvania, NeuroInterventions, Inc. and Vytrace Corporation. This will be a wonderful opportunity for those companies to show off their strengths, as well as the strengths of the medical device sector in the tri-state region.

Hmm… Immediately initiating helixpod overdrive sequence…setting coordinates for the Walter E. Washington Convention Center…thrusters go…helixpod overdrive charged…systems ready to be engaged…away to AdvaMed 2009!

So long Garden State! I will return soon…

Helixman

October 9, 2009

Holy centrifuges...I just discovered the NJ Incubators

Holy centrifuges. I was looking for the next addition to my journal while cruising above the New Jersey Turnpike in my Helixpod like a celestial Bruce Springsteen when all of a sudden my BioStrength Locator started to go off the charts.

The words bioscience incubators started flashing through my visual cortex connectors with a pulsation so strong that for a moment I thought I was flying down the midway of another exotic land in New Jersey called the boardwalk. I was blinded by the light.

What are these incubators? What do they do?

Using my scanning sensors, I quickly learned that New Jersey has a network of business incubators that literally runs from one end of the state to the other.

Showing great wisdom, this incubator network offers a nurturing environment where early-stage companies are provided critical support services including coaching, access to capital, technical and business resources and networking opportunities. The incubators offer flexible office or laboratory space in a professional business environment.

The names and locations of all the incubators are too numerous to mention, but I’ve made a note to check them all out during my travel, including the Burlington County College High Technology Small Business & Life Science Incubator in Mount Laurel and the Enterprise Development Center on the campus of NJIT in Newark.

I’ve decided to get a better look at one of these amazing places and set down at the Commercialization Center for Innovative Technologies (CCIT) in North Brunswick.

As I observed scientists running from lab to lab and colleagues having “big thoughts” in conferences room, I came to learn that the CCIT, which is operated by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, is one of the more significant incubation facilities in the nation dedicated to life sciences and biotechnology companies.

Located in the heart of the state's "Research Corridor" between Princeton and Rutgers universities, the 46,000-square-foot CCIT facility offers the most wet labs in the state for incubation. Customizable office, production, and "plug-in ready" wet and dry laboratory space is available to qualified tenants at below-market rent.

One of the best advantages of locating in CCIT is being a part of the unique corporate technology transfer initiative. This program has been established to spur collaboration and business opportunities by linking small life sciences and biotechnology startup businesses with major corporations in the state. The initiative encourages a more rapid transfer of discoveries from the laboratory to the marketplace, and fosters collaborations with public research and medical research.


You probably have already guessed that soft landings are important to a fellow like me and I was impressed to learn that in recognition of its success, the center has become one of only 10 business incubation programs in the world that have earned the Soft Landings International Incubator designation since the National Business Incubation Association began the program in 2005. The Soft Landings designation recognizes an incubator's focus on welcoming non-domestic firms into its domestic market with translation services, help cutting through governmental red tape, access to capital, domestic market research, and other programs.

“Yeah, but does that all really work,” I whispered into my data transponder and to my great amazement it chided me for not knowing that among the center’s graduates, Amicus Therapeutics in Cranbury and Chromocell of North Brunswick both announced significant expansions in the past year.

“OK,” I responded trying to defend myself, “but what does this have to do with Biotech 2009?”

My personal “Hal” shot back again, “Make sure you pay a great deal of attention to the posters being presented at the Innovation Corridor at Biotech 2009. You’re going to see some fantastic ideas from budding scientists and entrepreneurs who are located in incubators in Delaware, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.”

I will I promised myself, and as I started to resume my journey and wondered for a moment if I should be trading in my Helixpod for a sweet little pink Cadillac.

On to the next exciting adventure.

Until next time.

Helixman

October 7, 2009

H1N1…

I have visited the offices of CSL Biotherapies, GlaxoSmithKline, MedImmune, and sanofi pasteur…all companies who are gearing up to distribute the H1N1 vaccine. This is truly innovation at its finest. These companies are providing a way to prevent the spread of this H1N1 virus…and they are here in Pennsylvania! This is fantastic…the Grand Assembly will be overjoyed when they hear this information…but wait…I was just thinking about Biotech 2009…as I always do…and I noticed here in my handy brochure that there is a session on FDA and industry interactions in the face of a developing pandemic...which is included within the regulatory track! I wish I could go now so I can get a seat early…I’m positive this session will be extremely crowded…

Until next time.

Helixman

October 5, 2009

H1N1…the worst four character series of them all…

Since my arrival here on Earth, I have heard many four character words…especially as I journeyed the Pennsylvania and New Jersey Turnpikes…some worse than others…however the worst…and certainly most contagious and dangerous combination of four characters that I have discovered in my brief stay on this otherwise wonderful planet is the following…….H1N1.

The information I have gathered thus far is that H1N1 is a new influenza virus causing illness in people and is contagious from human contact, much like the regular, seasonal flu virus. When the 2009 H1N1 outbreak was first detected in mid-April, earth year two thousand and nine, the Centers for Disease Control began working to collect, compile and analyze information regarding the H1N1 outbreak. These studies included the numbers of confirmed and probable cases, as well as the ages of the people. The conclusion of this study was that the H1N1 virus has caused greater disease burden in people younger than 25 years of age than older people. I should inform my good friends from all of the research institutions I have visited of this news…

…initiating targeted helixbrain communication…THIS IS HELIXMAN…HEED MY ADVICE IN RESPONSE TO H1N1…COVER YOUR NOSE AND MOUTH WITH A TISSUE WHEN YOU COUGH OR SNEEZE….WASH YOUR DNA STRANDS…excuse me…I MEAN HANDS WITH SOAP AND WATER…AVOID TOUCHING YOUR EYES, NOSE, OR MOUTH…TRY TO AVOID CLOSE CONTACT WITH SICK PEOPLE…closing targeted helixbrain communication…

There must be a preventive measure for this outbreak! How will it be contained this flu season? I have run a specialized tracking program to help me find companies that are working on producing H1N1 vaccines, or killed or weakened microbes administered to stimulate the human immune system to recognize the microbe more quickly, thereby preventing disease. I must transmit word of these vaccines back to the Assembly at once.

The closest organizations in proximity to my current location are CSL Biotherapies, GlaxoSmithKline, MedImmune, and sanofi pasteur…I must travel to these companies to discover more about these vaccines.

I will communicate more information once this situation unfolds…

Helixman