Virginia BioTechnology Research Park

April 2011

Biotech Park News

An Injection of Patience
It takes patience to be in the drug business. Richmond drug device maker Intelliject has been at it since 2004, working its way through the labyrinth of FDA approval processes and domestic and international patent filings. It’s even in the midst of a patent infringement suit filed against it by a major pharmaceutical company, all before Intelliject has even seen its flagship product, the EpiCard, make it to market. The EpiCard is a credit card-size device that allows patients to inject themselves with a drug. Twin brothers Evan and Eric Edwards founded the card and the company almost seven years ago.
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Green Business Can Mean Greenbacks for Virginia Companies
Just what green business is depends on how it’s defined, economists and officials said. Depending on who’s talking, nuclear energy, mass transit, coal-fired power plants using carbon sequestration, corn and soybean farming, and accountants and secretaries working in green industries are all part of the green economy, as well as more obvious activities such as manufacturing wind turbines or retrofitting homes to be more energy efficient.

Founded in November 2009, the nonprofit Dominion Resources GreenTech Incubator in Ashland is trying to replicate the success of the biosciences business incubation program at the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park in downtown Richmond by accelerating growth of early-stage U.S. and foreign clean-energy businesses.
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Governor McDonnell Signs Legislation Supporting Virginia’s Growing Innovation Economy
Governor Bob McDonnell ceremonially signed the first part of his “Opportunity at Work” legislative package, along with other economic development legislation, at a morning event at the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park in Richmond. The 10 measures signed are designed to help attract new businesses to Virginia and help existing businesses grow and expand. The Governor was joined at the signing ceremony by Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling, Secretary of Commerce and Trade Jim Cheng, Senior Economic Advisor Bob Sledd, Secretary of Technology Jim Duffey, Secretary of Education Gerard Robinson and members of the General Assembly.
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Intelliject Receives VA Healthcare Innovator Medical Device Award
Nearly 250 community leaders from across the state participated in the first Virginia Healthcare Innovators Awards event at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens in Richmond, Virginia. The awards honor Virginia organizations that have developed innovative ways to improve healthcare quality and efficiency. The Virginia Biotechnology Association (VaBIO), along with many other prominent organizations, sponsored the awards. Mark A. Herzog, executive director of VaBIO, presented the award for the Medical Product or Device category to honor companies involved in the development, manufacture or distribution of medical products or devices (e.g., pharmaceuticals, biologicals, implantable devices, medical equipment, etc.).  Intelliject, a Richmond-based specialty pharmaceutical company that has developed a credit card-sized, novel epinephrine auto-injector, won top honors for the Medical Product or Device category.
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Dominion GreenTech Incubator Hosts Five Israeli Companies As Part of Clean Tech Gateway USA Program
The Dominion Resources GreenTech Incubator (DRGI) Commercialization Program hosted five Israeli companies as part of the Clean Tech Gateway USA Program on March 30, 2011 at their facility in Ashland, Virginia.  This is a follow-up to the initial interviews which took place with over 30 Israeli companies by the Dominion Resources GreenTech Commercialization team in Tel Aviv, Israel from January 9-13, 2011.  The Israeli companies are in the Richmond area for three days, from March 29-31, 2011 and have had a series of meetings with Dominion Resources technical and business experts, as well as a number of additional meetings that the DRGI has arranged for each company.  The Wednesday morning presentations were open to all potential investors, technical experts, local and state officials and others who may have been able to assist the Israeli companies with U.S. market entry.
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Health Diagnostic Laboratory, Inc. (HDL, Inc.) Partners With Gamma Therapeutics to Offer Breakthrough Diagnostic Assay for Heart Attack and Stroke Risk
Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc. (HDL, Inc.) announced its partnership to develop a novel laboratory developed test with Gamma Therapeutics, Inc., an Oregon-based biotechnology venture developing diagnostic test and surgical therapy solutions for the cardiovascular disease industry. Cardiovascular disease (CVD), coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke are responsible for 16.7 million, or 29.9% of total global deaths associated with some type of disease, according to the World Health Organization. In 2010, CVD became the leading cause of death in developing countries. At least 20 million people survive heart attacks and strokes every year; many require continuing costly clinical care.
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VCU News and Research

Officials Announce $25 Million Gift to VCU School of Medicine
Virginia Commonwealth University officials and Gov. Bob McDonnell announced a $25 million donation to the VCU School of Medicine by James and Frances McGlothlin. Officials also announced that in recognition of the gift — one of the largest in the university’s history — and the McGlothlins’ longtime support of the VCU School of Medicine, the new medical education building now under construction will be named the James W. and Frances G. McGlothlin Medical Education Center. The donation itself was made in recognition of Dr. Harold Young, director of the Harold F. Young Neurosurgical Center at the VCU Medical Center.
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VCU Massey Cancer Center Recognized by U.S. News as Richmond’s Only Nationally Ranked Cancer Care Provider
Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center provides the only nationally ranked cancer care in Richmond, Va., according to U.S. News & World Report. For the first time, U.S. News ranked the hospitals in America’s 52 largest metropolitan areas. Ranking at the top of all 20 hospitals in the Richmond metro area is VCU Medical Center, which includes Massey’s oncology patient care. VCU Medical Center is the only hospital in Richmond with four nationally ranked specialties, including cancer care at Massey, which ranked 38th in the country. VCU Medical Center was also high-performing in nine other specialties, more than any other hospital in the area.
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VCU Pharmacology and Toxicology Professor Named Jefferson Science Fellow
Robert L. Balster, Ph.D., director of the VCU Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies and a Butler professor of pharmacology and toxicology at Virginia Commonwealth University, is one of 13 tenured, research-active scientists and engineers selected nationwide as a 2011-2012 Jefferson Science Fellow at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. Jefferson Science Fellows advise and educate policy officials, including the Secretary of State, about complex, scientific issues and their potential impact on U.S. foreign policy and international relations. Following a one-year term, Balster will return to VCU, but remain available to the U.S. government as an expert consultant for short-term projects for a period of five years.
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Discovery in Liver Cancer Cells Provides New Target for Drugs
Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center and the VCU Institute of Molecular Medicine have discovered a novel mechanism in gene regulation that contributes to the development of a form of liver cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma. Currently, there is virtually no effective treatment for HCC, and this breakthrough identifies a promising new target for therapeutic intervention.
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Beverly Warren Appointed Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
Virginia Commonwealth University President Michael Rao announced the appointment of Beverly Warren, Ed.D., Ph.D., to the position of provost and vice president for academic affairs. Warren’s appointment as VCU’s chief academic officer follows a national search and is effective April 20.
Warren has served as interim provost since April 2010.
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