With the CDC’s prioritization recommendations as guidance, states will make the final decisions about vaccine allocation in their states. The Utah Department of Health, Department of Public Safety along with Governor Herbert and Governor-Elect Cox are actively working to refine the state’s initial COVID-19 Vaccination Plan. An anticipated vaccination timeline can be viewed here. BioUtah […]
With the first shipments of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine scheduled to arrive in a matter of weeks and Moderna doses soon after, a big question looms: who gets them first? Independent health policy experts on the vaccine advisory committee to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) met this week to make a recommendation. The CDC Advisory Committee on […]
These days we can all use uplifting news, so please check out this short story about how BraveHeart technology is harnessing AI to bridge India’s healthcare divide. iKures, an Indian healthcare company, is equipping community workers in remote areas of the country with BraveHeart portable devices to measure blood pressure, hemoglobin levels, or heart rates […]
Utah continues to support the business community during the COVID-19 pandemic with its COVID-19 Small Business Quarantined Employee Grant program. If an employee needs to quarantine or isolate due to a COVID-19 exposure or positive test, employers can continue paying them and be reimbursed with this grant program. Utah created this program to reimburse small […]
Co-Diagnostics announced November 25 that CoSara Diagnostics Pvt Ltd (“CoSara,” or the “JV”), its joint venture for manufacturing and sales in India, has received clearance by the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (“CDSCO”) in India to manufacture and sell its Saragene™ COVID-19 2-gene multiplex RT-PCR test. Dwight Egan, CEO of Co-Diagnostics, said “tests built on […]
I frequently remind my team and legislators that economic development is a journey, not a destination. And what a journey it has been for me the last six-and-a-half years! When Gov. Gary Herbert asked me to take this job in 2014, Utah was still feeling the residual effects of the Great Recession. However, our economy […]
The three companies have partnered together to bring wearable BraveHeart patches to at-risk patient’s in India’s remote “last mile.” Read the full article from CNN here.
Novel Interventional Oncology Embolization Device Successfully Used in Trans-Radial Access Procedures for Tumor Devascularization November 24, 2020 – Fluidx Medical Technology reported successful patient use of the GPX Embolic Device to therapeutically devascularize, or block blood supply to, a tumor. “We are impressed with the GPX embolic,” said Andrew Holden, M.D., MBChB, FRANZCR, EBIR, ONZM, […]
Governor Herbert’s previous State of Emergency ended at midnight Monday, November 23 and a new public health order has been issued. The new health order took effect November 24 and will remain in effect until December 8, unless otherwise modified or amended. The COVID-19 Transmission Index remains in place. All but three counties (Rich, Daggett, […]
As reported in last week’s BioUtah News and Events, HHS on Nov. 20 released an interim final rule (IFR) implementing the Most Favored Nation (MFN) Model, a new payment model through the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation (CMMI) that would, starting January 1, base the price Medicare pays for for 50 high-cost Medicare Part […]
The Milken Institute 2020 State Technology and Science Index ranks Utah #6 in the nation for its knowledge economy and capacity for innovation – same ranking as last year. The index, published annually, compares each state’s capacity for achieving prosperity through scientific discovery and technological innovation, by analyzing their performance on a number of key […]
The FDA on Nov. 24 posted two templates with recommendations on what to include in EUA requests for serology tests. These templates provide the FDA’s current recommendations on what data and information should be submitted to the FDA in support of an EUA request or Pre-EUA submission for a SARS-CoV-2 antibody test or home specimen […]
View the briefing below: COVID-19 Vaccination Update_11-17-2020
University of Utah Partners for Innovation, Ventures, Outreach & Technology (PIVOT) Center: Nov 18, 2020 10:00 AM The university’s Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI), College of Pharmacy, and the Partners for Innovation, Ventures, Outreach & Technology (PIVOT) Center have partnered to establish the University of Utah Therapeutics Accelerator Hub (U2TAH, or the Accelerator). Photo credit: University […]
Article Courtesy of @theU The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) awarded the University of Utah the Innovation and Economic Prosperity designation, which recognizes universities that promote growth, innovation and economic development in their regions. “This is tremendous recognition of the important role the University of Utah plays as an economic engine for our state,” […]
On the last day of the Summit, BioUtah announced its 2020 Utah Life Sciences award winners, which were presented during a special virtual awards session. Gary Crocker, president of Crocker Ventures, was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award Other distinguished award winners include Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall; Chris Gibson, CEO, Recursion Pharmaceuticals; Randy Rasmussen, co-founder, […]
Quansys Biosciences has received emergency use authorization (EUA) from the FDA for its COVID-19 antibody test. The test allows simultaneous detection of human antibodies to the SARS-CoV-2 S1 protein and the SARS-CoV-2 S2 protein, which has shown measurable improvement in clinical performance, compared to tests using a single protein. “This is very welcome news, said […]
Lehi-based Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Oncology (SDP Oncology) recently announced that the first patient has been dosed with the PKM2 activator, TP-1454, in a Phase 1/1b study in patients with advanced metastatic or progressive solid tumors. “Dosing the first patient in this study marks an important milestone, as TP-1454 is the first PKM2 activator to be […]
The 11th annual Utah Life Sciences Summit (ULSS) Nov. 9-11, went virtual this year. But despite the physical distance, the ULSS made news and ignited our life sciences industry with a special announcement — the launch of BioHive, a new bold campaign to brand and expand Utah’s life sciences ecosystem. ICYMI…view the video and see […]
Transit Scientific’s new FDA cleared XO Score system was successfully used to dilate multiple challenging fibrotic and calcific lesions in hemodialysis patients with stenotic and occluded fistulas. Dr. Richard Saxon, FSIR and member of the SDI Medical Group, while working at Tri City Medical Center Medical Center, Oceanside, California, USA performed the first procedures using […]
Article courtesy of BusinessWire Local leaders to create ecosystem for innovation, job creation, and growth SALT LAKE CITY–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Since 2012, Utah’s life sciences community has grown faster than any other in the country. Through collective efforts of the more than 1,100 life sciences-related companies (and growing), it intends to continue that trend and join the […]
Logan, UT, October 28, 2020 – Quansys Biosciences announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) for its laboratory-based IgG antibody test. A positive IgG antibody result identifies patients who have been exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus and, as part of their recovery, demonstrated an adaptive […]
Utah’s own life sciences entrepreneur, Dinesh C. Patel, PhD, has been honored with the Utah Governor’s Lifetime Achievement Medal for Science and Technology for his contribution in the field of biotechnology and pharmaceuticals. “This honor is well-deserved,” said Kelvyn Cullimore, president and CEO of BioUtah. “Dr. Patel has been instrumental in founding and bringing a […]
Sanofi and the Parkinson’s Foundation announced on Wednesday a new research collaboration to advance the availability of genetic testing and counseling for people with Parkinson’s disease in the U.S. Over the next two years, Sanofi will provide $1 million in research funding to support the PD GENEration Mapping the Future of Parkinson’s Disease initiative. The […]
On October 7, the SBA released updated FAQs (question #52) to clarify that lenders must recognize the extended deferral period for payments on the principal, interest, and fees on all PPP loans, even if the initial loan terms indicates a six-month deferral (the initial period when the program was first enacted). Under the Paycheck Protection […]
Utah-based IDbyDNA announced yesterday that, in an effort to help labs better identify respiratory pathogens and avoid overuse of antimicrobial drugs, IDbyDNA and Illumina, Inc. are co-launching the new Respiratory Pathogen ID/AMR Target Enrichment Assay. The test, currently for research use only, will improve testing for infectious diseases, including COVID-19, and will leverage IDbyDNA’s Explify® […]
Lehi-based Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Oncology (SDP Oncology) recently announced that the first patient has been dosed with the PKM2 activator, TP-1454, in a Phase 1/1b study in patients with advanced metastatic or progressive solid tumors. “Dosing the first patient in this study marks an important milestone, as TP-1454 is the first PKM2 activator to be […]
On Wednesday, Governor Herbert announced the state’s new response plan to COVID-19, effective October 15. This updated plan utilizes a COVID-19 Transmission Index and replaces the previous color-coded guidance system of red, orange, yellow and green. The new approach comes at a time when the state has seen a significant spike in infection rates. The […]
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., October 9, 2020 – Sumitomo Dainippon Pharma Oncology, Inc., a developer of novel cancer therapeutics, today announced that the first patient has been dosed with TP-1454, an investigational small-molecule pyruvate kinase M2 isoform (PKM2) activator, administered alone and in combination with ipilimumab and nivolumab, in a Phase 1/1b study in patients with advanced […]
Congress recently provided a short-term extension until December 11 of the Rare Pediatric Disease Priority Review Voucher program. The program was set to expire on September 30, but was given a reprieve in the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2021 and Other Extensions Act (H.R. 8337) that kept the government funded. Congress will have to act again […]
On Tuesday, SINTX Technologies (SINTX) announced progress toward the manufacture of a “catch-and-kill” mask that will inactivate respiratory viruses. SINTX has successfully embedded silicon nitride particles into nonwoven and woven fabric fibers. Silicon nitride has been shown to neutralize several bacterial species and viral strains, including SARS-CoV-2. “By investing in our human resources and equipment, […]
Utah-based Mountain Pacific Venture Fund (MPVF) announced on Monday an investment in Xenocor, a Salt Lake City-based medical device company that has developed the XenoscopeTM, a single-use, multi-purpose HD laparoscope with an integrated light source. Designed to be fog proof, the Xenoscope minimizes common visualization challenges and provides consistent image quality through electrocautery smoke. MPVF’s […]
