Derek Norman

Yesterday this impressive article by Matt Blois was published - he did an excellent job covering #bioherbicide efforts around the world. He wrote it in layman's terms and so I think you'll find a very clear analysis of the market, research, and development, including the nuances. As mentioned in the article, our The Toothpick Project has one of the first bioherbicides to be commercialized in the world What has been holding us back? We have been able to address challenges mentioned in the article: ✔️cost effectiveness, ✔️shelf life, and ✔️farmer acceptance of our single target approach. So now what? The article starts with the story of one of our farmers and the impact of our technology on that farmer's food security and economic stability. This season 12,682 farmers across western Kenya are using our technology. We are growing this number quickly season over season and will break even in 2025. Next up: Uganda stakeholders assessments, regulatory protocol and approval, followed by harmonized approval in the other six East African Community Member States, and fundraising to keep up with our current pace. Also on our agenda is continued conversations with all the players mentioned in the article so we can continue to build awareness about the necessity of new weed management technologies that can improve production, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, reduce toxins, and prevent further herbicide resistance in weeds. I'm looking forward to dynamic conversations on this subject with Pam Marrone, Mark Trimmer, Rick Melnick, etc. at the Salinas Biological Summit Western Growers, Wharf42 in a week! #holygrail #biocontrol #bioherbicide #biotech #agriculture #whenwillPamretire https://lnkd.in/gBtgJChZ

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Excellent way to spend 1 minute, 30 seconds. DSO shares via an embedded video in the article below how Modality.AI is making an impact with patients. It is wonderful to have NIH SEED as a partner on this journey. Relentless Venture Fund David "DSO" Suendermann-Oeft #Neurotech #AI #BIO2024 #precisionmedicine #clinicaltrials #healthtech #healthcare #digitalhealth

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Axol Bioscience Secures SMART Grant to Accelerate the Development of a Commercial iPSC-Powered ALS Models - https://lnkd.in/ghTe_uFr Axol Bioscience has been awarded a SMART Grant by Scottish Enterprise to Accelerate ALS Research through the development of ALS-related phenotypes using human iPSCs. This represents another significant step towards better disease modelling and ALS drug discovery. The key objectives of this project are to: -Develop a quality manufacturing system for iPSC-derived ALS relevant cell types - Characterise and validate the cells using ALS relevant end points; TDP43 aggregation, Neurofilament Light elevation and Cryptic Exon Sequencing - Develop and characterise an ALS co-culture model which includes motor neurons, microglia and astrocytes - Commercialise an easy-to-use model system to drive forward ALS drug discovery Axol Bioscience Ltd., who is a world leaders in human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) manufacturing, consistently and at scale, has been awarded a SMART Grant by Scottish Enterprise. This significant milestone is a testament to its commitment to advancing cutting-edge research and innovation in the iPSC space. #ipscells #stemcells #ALS #drugdiscovery #reserach Duncan Borthwick PhD Teodora Popovici

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This article appeared today in Feedstuffs. It reviews the results of a collaborative study between MBFT and Dr. Maricarmen Garcia at the University of Georgia using our T-Max vaccine platform. Funding for the study of this prototype vaccine for prevention of ILTV infection in hatchling chickens was provided by a grant from the US Egg and Poultry Foundation. Based on positive initial results, we are continuing this work with Dr. Garcia to make further improvements prior to commercial development. As you are aware, our goal is to set a new standard for animal health vaccines that are both safe and broadly protective. This is a challenging goal but one we believe that we can achieve. 

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Coming out of the Biocom California CEO Summit, I share biotech investor predictions and CEO insights in the latest edition of Vital Signs: https://lnkd.in/ghXYRsaq

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TRIO Pharmaceuticals Completes $3.1 Million Financing Round to Advance Cancer Therapeutics Pipeline San Diego, CA — November 2024 — TRIO Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a biotechnology company pioneering bispecific antibodies for the treatment of cancer with unprecedented potency and selectivity, announced the successful completion of a $3.1 million financing round. Trio’s pre-Series A financing was led by San Diego based Friedman Bioventure Fund (FBVF). “The Trio team has demonstrated impressive bio-activity for both their Trailbody and TIE-ADC bi-specific antibody architectures, and we believe these potential medicines warrant accelerated development” said Dr. Jeff Friedman of FBVF.  Additional significant support came from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF), through its venture philanthropy arm, the Myeloma Investment Fund (MIF), underscoring the potential of TRIO’s work to impact cancers with high unmet needs. Further investors included NuFund Venture Group, Life Science Angels and others. Friedman Bioventure brings expertise in supporting innovative biotech startups, aiming to accelerate breakthrough therapies to market. The Myeloma Investment Fund focuses on advancing treatments for cancers affecting blood and bone marrow, notably multiple myeloma. The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) is the largest nonprofit in the world solely focused on accelerating a cure for each and every multiple myeloma patient. MMRF has committed raised over $600 million for research, opened nearly 100 clinical trials, and helped bring 15+ FDA-approved therapies to market. “TRIO’s innovative approach aligns with our mission to drive breakthrough treatments for the myeloma community,” said Dr. Stephanie Oestreich, Managing Director, Myeloma Investment Fund. “This investment underscores our commitment to accelerating therapeutic options for myeloma patients.” TRIO Pharmaceuticals’ proprietary platforms, TRAILBody™ and TIE-ADC™, are advancing next-generation immunotherapies for cancers with high mortality rates, such as Multiple Myeloma, Acute Myeloid Leukemia, ovarian, endometrial, and triple-negative breast cancers. These therapies combine targeted tumor growth inhibition with immune system modulation to offer potent, less toxic options compared to conventional treatments. “This financing round empowers us to expand our preclinical activities and advance our programs towards clinical development,” said Dr. Reiner Laus, CEO of TRIO Pharmaceuticals. “The support from organizations like Friedman Bioventure and the Myeloma Investment Fund is invaluable as we work to bring our transformative therapies closer to patients in need.” TRIO Pharmaceuticals is dedicated to reimagining cancer care through the application of novel antibody therapeutics. This funding will accelerate TRIO’s journey towards clinical trials, offering new hope for patients facing cancers that resist standard therapies. Full press release to come out next week!

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The #biosecure act is bad legislation and anti-competitive and will force US #biotech companies to abandon strong and honest #CDMO partners without making us more secure. Longstanding, productive drug-discovery collaborations will inevitably be compromised by an ill-conceived initiative — all for short-term political gain. Patients in need of innovative medicines are the ones that will lose out; I urge leaders in the #biotech industry to stand up and be counted in opposition to this proposed legislation.

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After soaking up insights at the Ginkgo Bioworks, Inc. Ferment event and gearing up for the SynBioBeta conference, conference strategy is top of mind. Conferences are prime for networking and learning, but it's post-event where true connections and impact happen. Here are 4 tips to maximize your post-conference impact and drive meaningful change for your business. #Ferment2024 #ConferenceStrategy

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Not embarrassed to share Auxilius had a bit of cosmetic work done over the holidays. 💅 As of today, you’ll notice that the Auxilius website has a very different look and feel heading into 2025. While this is part of our effort to make clinical finance sexy (again?), we believe this more clearly reflects and articulates the way Auxilius supports the most innovative Biopharma finance and accounting teams in our industry. 🦾 The things we have in store for 2025 are anything but cosmetic. Auxilius customers will see a similar degree of change in our product this year. As our product becomes more robust (i.e., powerful, but big), we are making bold enhancements to our core workflows We are publicly launching three new offerings in 2025 — each designed to help our customers better plan and manage the most complex and variable components of R&D spend. Each has been designed and built collaboratively with early adopters among our 60+ customers, and we’re excited to make these available to the market broadly this year. 🔥 So yeah, I’ll say it. I’m fired up for 2025... https://www.auxilius.co/

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Today we are excited to announce our $5 million seed round led by Twelve Below, with participation from Lerer Hippeau, Collaborative Fund, Wireframe Ventures, Factorial and Ritual Capital. We are thrilled to have such an experienced group of investors in our corner and look forward to executing our vision for Caladan Bio together. This round of capital will allow us to continue our rapid hardware and software development pace, grow our team and ship our first product line. Last summer, Rob Jauquet and I embarked on a mission to build better bioreactors for synthetic biology companies. The industry is massively slowed down by the cost and complexity of running benchtop bioreactor experiments - costing companies in the space tens of millions to get each product to market. Our goal is to reduce this by an order of magnitude by first reducing cost of hardware/consumables, and second greatly increasing the live data coming from our bioreactors - streamlining analysis and enhancing decision making. We are excited to announce that next week we will be debuting our first product - The Caladan 250 - at SynBioBeta in San Jose. The Caladan 250 is a benchtop bioreactor system that fully automates fermentation and cell culture experiments. We have focused on building a vertically integrated system that brings customers everything from consumables to sensors to data analysis software. The result is enabling scientists and engineers to spend more time on analysis and experiment design and less time setting up, cleaning, sterilizing, calibrating, organizing, sampling, merging data, etc. The next few years will be extremely transformative for Caladan and we are looking for engineers to join our experienced team to bring an amazing product to a rapidly growing market. If you are interested in automation x synthetic biology x ML/AI we want to hear from you! See you at SynBioBeta! - Mike https://lnkd.in/e-9ken5b

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At Windhaul, we are committed to propelling growth and success for small to mid-sized clinical stage biotech companies. Our mission is straightforward: to elevate the value of biotech firms and their programs with patients, healthcare providers, and investors. Windhaul distinguishes itself as a premium boutique consulting firm and provider of innovative flexible staffing solutions leveraging highly experienced professionals. We specialize in navigating dynamic global regulatory landscapes and integrating forward thinking commercial and market access insights into the strategic decision-making process. Our team consists of seasoned industry leaders, including former c-suite executives and functional heads, who bring invaluable hands-on leadership and management expertise throughout the journey of developing and approving new therapies. Clients choose Windhaul for our immediate effectiveness and capability to seamlessly integrate expert consultants into their teams on an interim or fractional basis. Whether guiding the clinical, regulatory, or commercial development of complex biologics or cutting-edge therapies such as cell and gene editing products, Windhaul excels across the entire product lifecycle. Let's collaborate to drive innovation and create enduring value together. #Biotech hashtag #RegulatoryAffairs hashtag #CommercialStrategy hashtag #MarketAccess hashtag #DrugDevelopment hashtag #BiotechConsulting hashtag #BiotechStaffing hashtag #BiotechInvesting https://www.windhaul.com/

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🌟 Exciting News for Biota, Inc.! 🌟 At Biota, Inc., we believe in the power of innovation to protect our most vital resources. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce that we’ve been awarded a $𝟮𝟱𝟬,𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗘𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆-𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘁 through the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade's (OEDIT) Advanced Industries Accelerator Program. This grant will accelerate the development of 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱, 𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱-𝗱𝗲𝗽𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗙𝗔𝗦 𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿, empowering treatment plants to pinpoint and address PFAS contamination at its source. With this support from Colorado, we can amplify the impact of our investors and make meaningful strides toward a 𝗣𝗙𝗔𝗦-𝗳𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲. A heartfelt thank-you to 𝗢𝗘𝗗𝗜𝗧’𝘀 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗗𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻, our investors, and everyone who shares our vision for cleaner water, healthier communities, and a more sustainable environment. #WaterTech #Biotech #PFASFree #AdvancedIndustries #ColoradoProud Antler, Zymo Research Corp, Mazarine Ventures, Unpopular Ventures, Aerion Capital Colorado BioScience Association CO Hub for Health Impact https://lnkd.in/gHGQ-8zt

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Interested in seeing what Rocky Balboa, Jeff Spicoli, AI and machine learning have in common, check out this Timmerman Report article on east Coast vs West Coast AI culture clash. We are fortunate to have a network of experienced AI & machine learning professionals available for consulting assignment. Let us know if we can be of help.

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Just a few days after Element Biosciences celebrated its 7th anniversary of incorporation, we announced an oversubscribed series D of $277M. What a remarkable journey. In seven years, we have raised $680M, and words alone cannot express my gratitude for these groups of very special people, our team, our customers and partners, and our investors. First and foremost, our loyal, resilient and mission-driven Element team. You have persevered uncertainties, naysaying, and ambitious timelines to change how science is done and make a real impact in the world. Disrupting the norm is never easy. As RFK said: “if you are not the recipient of some derision on your path to impact change, you are probably not changing enough." Together, we have built disruptive technologies and formed an incredible company. I am so tremendously proud of you, and the best is yet to come. I am grateful for all our customers and partners, current and future. We will work with you as our long-term partners, hear your feedback, and make our products better each day. Together, we can change how science is done around the world, so that everyone has access to the best scientific tools regardless of how well they are funded. Finally, I want to thank our new and existing investors for your trust and confidence in Element. We raised these funds in the backdrop of a challenging macro-economic environment and fierce competitions in the genomics field. Element is proud to be chosen as your partner. Today marks a significant milestone in Element’s journey. With the support and dedication of our teams, customers and partners, and investors, we will continue to innovate, deliver the best solutions for our customers, and solidify our future as the next name-brand biological tools company. We are just getting started. #genomics #multiomics #innovation #grit

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Torigen’s name carries deep meaning for me, and our journey reflects the power of innovation and resilience. I’m proud to share the journey behind the name and how it reflects the mission that guides us every day. 🔗 Building Torigen: What’s in a Name #VeterinaryMedicine #CancerResearch #Torigen #Entrepreneurship #Biotech #Innovation #VeterinaryOncology

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If you're at #SEED2024 then go find Matthew Scheier, PhD to discuss how the ŌGI BioReactor can simplify your culturing needs. #SyntheticBiology #OGIBio #microbial #culturing

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NexusBio Partners (NexusBio Partners) is excited to announce its launch, bringing together a team of highly trusted biotech industry experts to support startup, small, and medium-sized biotech drug development companies. Recognizing the challenges these companies face in securing and funding full-time resources, NexusBio Partners offers flexible, fractional, and part-time consulting services to bridge critical expertise gaps. "We understand the unique needs of emerging biotech companies," says Dan Furlong, Managing Director of NexusBio Partners. "Our goal is to provide access to top-tier talent and strategic guidance, enabling these innovators to efficiently navigate the complex drug development landscape and accelerate their path from innovation to clinical trials." NexusBio Partners provides comprehensive support across a wide range of critical business and scientific functions, including: Research & Development: Pharmacology, Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC), Regulatory Affairs, Toxicology, Pathology, and Clinical Trial Design & Management Finance & Operations: Accounting, Finance, Business Operations, CRO & CDMO Vendor Management, Program Management, and Investor Relations Our experts possess decades of experience working with both small and large molecules and have a proven track record of success in organizations of all sizes. We work closely with our clients to develop tailored products and clinical strategies that drive efficient and effective development programs. Ready to take your biotech innovation to the next level? Visit our website at https://lnkd.in/ejGX6per, contact us at [email protected], or visit our website to schedule an introductory call to learn more about how NexusBio Partners can help you achieve your goals! #nexusbiopartners

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