Quartzy, ACD/Labs, Eli Lilly, And More: News From July 2018
July 30, 2018 | July featured exciting new, products, and partnerships from around the bio-IT community from innovating companies, organizations, and universities, including Quartzy, ACD/Labs, Eli Lilly, and more.
ACD/Labs announced the continued collaboration with ChemSpider to continue furnishing predicted physicochemical properties and chemical nomenclature to the ever-expanding platform. For over ten years, scientists have accessed this publically-available free resource to gather information on chemical compounds in preparation of research or experimentation. As the industry standard for physicochemical prediction software, ACD/Labs was chosen to generate property information including logP, logD (at various pHs), Lipinski rule-of-5 values, and boiling point, and to provide Name-to-structure (and vice-versa) capabilities. The renewal of the partnership further reflects the success of the platform and its continued importance as one of the most robust online chemical structure databases for the scientific community. As the platform advances, ChemSpider will continue to use ACD/Labs algorithms to provide quality insights to researchers. “We set out with the mission of empowering researchers with a comprehensive view of chemical data to inform R&D initiatives,” said Richard Kidd, Publisher, Royal Society of Chemistry, in a press release. “By working with ACD/Labs and utilizing its property information, we’ve been able to meet our users’ need for knowledge, which is reflected in our rapid growth since the Royal Society of Chemistry acquired ChemSpider ten years ago. To-date, property information populated by ACD/Labs’ algorithms has been among the most accessed on ChemSpider, and remains a key driver in our service.” Press Release
Vyasa Analytics announced that it has received a $1.8 million loan from MassDevelopment’s Emerging Technology Fund. The company will use the funds to hire 18 additional employees in Massachusetts, and build out a GPU-based compute infrastructure in Boston. Vyasa’s secure, highly-scalable deep learning software, Cortex, allows users to apply deep learning analytics to enterprise data. With Cortex, users can ask complex questions about large scale data types like text, images and chemical structures, and discover unexpected patterns, relationships and concepts across disparate sources. MassDevelopment’s Emerging Technology Fund helps to grow technology and advanced manufacturing companies in Massachusetts. Since its creation in 2003, the fund has provided $73.1 million in loans and guarantees to help cutting-edge companies locate or expand in the Commonwealth. Press Release
Quartzy, who recently announced expanded distribution operations, has announced three new authorized distributor agreements with Bioline, Biotium, and MP Biomedicals, enabling Quartzy’s user base of more than 13,000 laboratories to procure these suppliers’ sought after products through the Quartzy Shop. “Partner interest in joining the Quartzy community has been exceptional, and we’re continuing to onboard as many suppliers as possible,” said Adam Regelmann, Quartzy’s Founder and COO, in a press release. “Bioline, Biotium, and MP Biomedicals were at the top of our list, and it’s very exciting to be able to now offer their extensive portfolios to Quartzy’s ever-expanding user base.” Through this agreement, Quartzy will not only be able to sell products from these three suppliers through its shop, but will also be able to stock and ship many of these products from its current and future fulfillment centers. Press Release
Transcriptic announced that it has entered into a multi-year collaboration agreement with Eli Lilly, whereby Lilly will license the Transcriptic Common Lab Environment (TCLE) to enable on-demand drug discovery operations at its San Diego Biotechnology Center. The solution Transcriptic is developing for Lilly will allow researchers across the globe to remotely design, synthesize and screen investigational molecules at the Lilly Life Science Studio (L2S2). Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Transcriptic created the first robotic cloud laboratory platform for on-demand life science research. The company’s TCLE integrates laboratory processes, protocols and instruments together with IoT technologies through a single user interface to enable robust automation, scalability, flexibility and remote instrument monitoring. Using the power of automation along with artificial intelligence and machine learning, Transcriptic and Lilly will seek to shape the next generation of drug discovery and expand the reach of individual scientists to test new ideas, while reducing the cost, accelerating the speed and minimizing the environmental impact of research activities. “We are excited to extend the Transcriptic TCLE environment to our San Diego Biotechnology Center,” said Bret Huff, Lilly’s Vice President of Small Molecule Design and Development, in a press release. “We believe this capability will transform how new drugs are discovered internally and enhance Lilly’s partnerships with external innovators.” Press Release
Equus Compute Solutions announced the release of its WHITEBOX OPEN R2660 and R2660 NVME servers, part of the Equus portfolio of custom cost-optimized open-hardware server and storage platforms. Incorporating dual Intel Xeon Scalable CPUs and new open-hardware features, the R2660 servers are high-performance compute solutions for demanding applications such as content delivery, cloud services, business applications, and virtualization. These servers are ideal for content delivery network providers (CDNs), cloud services providers (CSPs), value-added resellers (VARs), and enterprise IT. The 2U 12 Bay R2660 server features 12 3.5” hot-swap HDD bays and 16 DIMMs for up to 2TB of memory. The R2660 also features OCP slots that accommodate multi-vendor cards including 1, 10, 40, 50, 100 Gbps Ethernet NICs, and NVMe/SSD storage modules. The R2660, like all of the WHITEBOX OPEN server platforms, can be customized to exact end-user specifications. The R2660 NVMe version of this server supports eight 3.5”/2.5” hot-swap HDD bays and four NVMe bays for customer applications that demand higher storage performance. The R2660 and R2660 NVMe support all the WHITEBOX OPEN features, including OpenBMC system management, which is the open-source implementation of the Baseboard Management Controller firmware stack that works across heterogeneous systems and can free companies from proprietary system management vendor lock-in. The R2660 servers also support LinuxBoot to customize the server BIOS for flexibility, improve security, and create a lightning-fast boot experience. Each server’s OCP networking enables it to utilize NC-SI (network controller sideband interface) in-band network management communication, removing the need for a separate IPMI 1GbE management port and the associated dedicated network that in turn generates cost savings, frees rack space, and reduces cabling complexity. Press Release
Sartorius Stedim Biotech (SSB) announced the launch of the ambr 250 high throughput (ht) perfusion, a new automated parallel bioreactor system. It has been specially designed for rapid cell culture perfusion process development to optimize production of therapeutic antibodies. The ambr 250ht perfusion system has been developed in collaboration with major biopharma companies. It combines 12 or 24 single-use perfusion mini bioreactors (100-250 mL working volume) with associated single-use perfusion components, all controlled by one automated workstation. The combination of this multi-parallel processing capacity and fully single-use perfusion vessel enables scientists to perform more perfusion culture experiments in a fraction of the time and cost of using traditional perfusion-enabled bench top bioreactors. This new innovation supports a range of hollow fiber perfusion applications, enabling Design of Experiments (DoE) studies for high cell density process development in a Quality by Design (QbD) approach. Central to the system is the novel perfusion bioreactor assembly, which is based on the established and award-winning ambr 250 bioreactor design. Intensified cell culture processing is enabled via new components such as high efficiency spargers, perfusion pump chambers and an industry standard hollow fibre for cell retention filter. The geometrical similarity of the mini perfusion bioreactor design to BIOSTAT STR pilot and manufacturing scale bioreactors, enables rapid scale-up of optimized perfusion processes, and shorter development timelines. Press Release
HemaCare announced two new hires in senior leadership positions. Dominic Clarke joins the company as Global Head of Cell Therapy, and Brad Taylor arrives as Senior Product Manager. The expertise by both Clarke and Taylor will enhance HemaCare in the development of new products and services which support cell therapy and product lifecycle management. Dominic Clarke joins the company in Los Angeles after previous positions held at Charter Medical and BioLife Solutions. At Charter Medical, Clarke successfully launched their first FDA 510(K) approved product for cell & gene therapy manufacturing use and was instrumental in positioning the company as a leading supplier to the industry. While at BioLife, Clarke led the research and development to support the critical role of biopreservation in maintaining viable, functional cell-based materials. With a Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology from Binghamton University in New York and a postdoctoral fellowship in cell and developmental biology from SUNY Upstate Medical University, Dr. Clarke will offer scientific insight, product development strategy, and advanced support to HemaCare’s growing customer base. Brad Taylor, formerly a Product Manager at Perkin-Elmer, will manage the HemaCare product lifecycle strategy and work to maximize opportunities with existing products, as well as launch new products. Taylor holds a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Genetics from Friedrich-Alexander University in Germany and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the department of surgical oncology at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Press Release
leon-nanodrugs announced that its proprietary MicroJet Reactor (MJR) nano-technology has been selected by Takeda for a feasibility assessment that could potentially lead to the development of an innovative formulation of one of their current pipeline products. leon-nanodrugs announced that the company has started a feasibility assessment collaboration with Takeda. Under this collaboration, leon will support Takeda`s formulation efforts to optimize solubility, bioavailability and stability for one of Takeda’s current pipeline products for drug delivery using leon’s proprietary nanotechnology platform –MJR. leon`s platform can be used from early compound screening to production of market batches. Positive results from this feasibility study could potentially result in a long-term collaboration between the companies, and additional compounds may also be considered. Press Release
Inscripta announced two significant milestones. First, the USPTO granted Inscripta its first patent covering systems using MAD7, the company's first free CRISPR enzyme, as well as patent coverage for systems using another MADzyme, MAD2. Second, Inscripta released new data run by external partners showing MAD7 can edit mammalian cells. "Today marks a major step forward in the gene-editing revolution we started seven months ago when we released our own, unique CRISPR enzyme (MAD7)," said Kevin Ness, CEO of Inscripta, in a press release. "We and our partners have shown that MAD7 is an effective tool in editing microbial and mammalian cells. All researchers, both academics and industrial scientists alike, can use MAD7 confidently, and Inscripta is committed to providing a license to its related patents for customers to perform free research and development using the enzyme." The new data confirms the potential for using MADzymes in human therapeutic and diagnostic applications, as well as biological development and manufacturing in a wide array of cell lines. Press Release
Pharnext announced that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has agreed with its pediatric investigation plan (PIP) for PXT3003 in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A (CMT1A). “The EMA agreement with our PIP represents a significant step forward in our efforts to bring PXT3003 to patients in Europe,” said Daniel Cohen, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Pharnext, in a press release. “Given that much of the progression of CMT1A occurs in the first two decades of patients’ lives, we believe that by intervening in childhood, we can have a greater impact on patients’ disease trajectory. In our Phase 2 study, PXT3003 was observed to stablilize and slow the progression of CMT1A, and also demonstrated clinical improvement in patients. We are dedicated to providing the estimated 14,000 children in Europe living with CMT1A a safe therapeutic option that may offer significant long-term relief.” As part of the regulatory process for registering new medicines with the EMA, pharmaceutical companies are required to provide a PIP that outlines the clinical development strategy for studying the investigational product in children. EMA agreement with the PIP is required before a company can file a marketing authorization application (MAA) for any new medicinal product in Europe. Press Release
New England Biolabs (NEB) announced the launch of the NEBNext Direct Custom Ready Panels. The new panels — coupled with the proprietary NEBNext Direct target enrichment technology — enable the rapid development and deployment of a customized target enrichment panel by allowing users to select from an extensive library of genes to produce sequencing data with high specificity and coverage uniformity. “Targeted next generation sequencing panels for genomic profiling are generally plagued by design difficulty and high cost due to the wide variation in interrogated genes that are specific to a given study,” Andrew Barry, Product Marketing Manager, Target Enrichment at NEB, said in a press release. “As a result, we developed a library of pre-synthesized ‘baits’ that are optimized and specific to the full exonic content of ~850 genes associated with a range of human diseases, which can be readily combined into customized panels. Not only does this give researchers more freedom in panel design, but also it allows them to simply and quickly do more meaningful work with clinically relevant samples.” Press Release
miR Scientific, formerly known as miR Diagnostics, announced the appointment of Laurence Klotz to the role of Chief Medical Officer, effective immediately and sponsorship of the Fourth Friends of Israel Urological Symposium also co-chaired by Klotz that was held from July 3-5 in Israel. “Laurence brings a wealth of urological expertise to miR as a clinical trialist, urologic oncologist and collaborative research partner during an exciting time in our company’s growth,” said Sam Salman, Chief Executive Officer of miR Scientific, in a press release. “His ability to synthesize his decades of experience as an industry leader will help guide miR Scientific’s clinical development efforts and regulatory strategies. With the addition of Laurence to our team, we are well positioned to maximize the high priority opportunities available to us through our urogenital cancer platform, which includes advanced, non-invasive liquid biopsy screening tests to diagnose bladder and prostate cancers. His active participation in this year’s Friends of Israel Urological Symposium highlights the esteemed position he holds amongst world renowned colleagues.” Klotz currently serves as the Chairman of the World Urologic Oncology Federation and Member of the Institute of Medical Science and Graduate Faculty at the University of Toronto since July 2005. Press Release
