Industry News

The Roanoke-Blacksburg region is establishing itself as a biomedical research hub and medical device innovation center. About $5 million from the state could help move that work from labs to markets. Those millions will fund Project Vital: Virginia Innovations and Technology Advancements in Life Sciences. It’s a collaboration among the Roanoke-Blacksburg Innovation Alliance (formerly Verge), …

Under the leadership of Alliance-member organization J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College (Reynolds), the Alliance for Building Better Medicine has secured a landmark $3.94 million federal grant through the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s (EDA) Good Jobs Challenge Award. The funding will support the Richmond-Petersburg Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing (APM) Workforce Initiative. This transformative project, led by Reynolds …

The biotechnology and innovation landscape in Virginia is set for significant growth, thanks to a recent award from the state’s GO Virginia economic development program and a strategic partnership between CvilleBioHub and the University of Virginia (UVA).This award will inject a crucial business component into Virginia’s existing biotech ecosystem, bolstering the success of high-potential, early-stage life …

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) and the Council of State Bioscience Associations (CSBA) released new national and state-level data on the U.S. bioscience industry’s economic performance, its impacts, and its geographic footprint. The report, “The U.S. Bioscience Economy: Driving Economic Growth and Opportunity in States and Regions,” analyzes the sector’s economic impact via employment, overall …

Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced more than $2.5 million in Growth and Opportunity for Virginia (GO Virginia) grant awards for 21 projects focused on creating workforce pipelines for targeted industries and supporting the cultivation of critical industry resources to attract and grow Virginia-based businesses. “GO Virginia enables us to make strategic investments in pivotal projects …

Today, the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) awarded Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin with its 2024 Governor of the Year Award. BIO’s annual award honors governors for their leadership and commitment to strengthening biotechnology in their state. For over a decade, the award has recognized governors from across the country and both sides of the aisle. “Investing …

The Alliance for Pediatric Device Innovation (APDI), a nonprofit consortium led by Children’s National Hospital and funded by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), announces today it is partnering with Additional Ventures, a nonprofit foundation focused on accelerating research progress and improving clinical care for individuals born with single ventricle heart defects, to solicit proposals …

Researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University could soon launch a clinical trial to test an intravenous solution that its inventor, a School of Medicine physiologist and surgery professor, says might treat massive blood loss in trauma patients. Perfusion Medical Inc., a VCU startup working to commercialize the drug called PM-208, has received $1.8 million from the …

Celebration of the three-year anniversary of JLABS @ Washington, DC (JLABS DC), it’s great timing to highlight recent accomplishments and milestones reached by incubating and regional companies. Additionally, JLABS DC is excited to share new access to specialized lab equipment to support more innovators within the region. Since the start of 2024, there has been …

A tighter venture capital market has affected more than the funding biotechs receive. It’s also changed how early-stage companies structure CEO pay packages, according to Leslie Loveless, CEO and managing partner of Slone Partners, a life sciences and healthcare executive search firm. Because of how funding dipped, she told BioSpace, early-stage biotechs started tying CEO …

Governor Glenn Youngkin announced a new initiative led by Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC) that expands investment and growth opportunities for Virginia-based, innovation-driven startups and entrepreneurial ecosystems throughout the Commonwealth. Leveraging previous Virginia-awarded federal funding from the U.S. Department of Treasury, under its SSBCI Equity/Venture Capital Program, VIPC’s Virginia Invests launches new investment partnerships with an …

The Board of Directors of the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation (VIPC) has announced that it has unanimously selected Joe Benevento as President and CEO of VIPC. Benevento has led VIPC as Interim President and CEO since September 2023 and previously served as Deputy Secretary of Commerce and Trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia since 2022. …

Rural Southwest and Southside Virginia are in line for a new six-figure grant for entrepreneurship, the Virginia Innovation Partnership Corporation has announced. The innovation partnership, which held its board meeting Wednesday at the New College Institute in Martinsville, gave word at a Tuesday night dinner that it will commit $100,000. That’s the latest grant in …

We’ve compiled a calendar of events happening this spring aimed at connecting talented people in the biosciences. Feb. 27: Internship Support for Employers: V-TOP Staffing Agency + Matching Funds | Virtual Employers can tune in to learn more internship support through V-TOP’s partnership with iQuasar, the statewide staffing agency and how to utilize their matching funds …

The end of 2023 marked the completion of Virginia’s first statewide life sciences initiative, Virginia Bio-Connect, which started in April 2021. This comprehensive industry cluster strengthening project, supported by Virginia Growth and Opportunity Foundation funding and led by the Virginia Biotechnology Association, engaged thousands of life sciences professionals and hundreds of organizations and companies within …

Governor Glenn Youngkin today announced that 16 companies across the Commonwealth have graduated from the Virginia Economic Development Partnership’s (VEDP) Virginia Leaders in Export Trade (VALET) program and 13 companies have joined the two-year program. VALET, which now has 391 graduated companies, assists Virginia exporters that have firmly established domestic operations and are committed to …

Governor Youngkin has announced that Virginia will make a significant investment to launch a biotechnology, life sciences, and pharmaceutical manufacturing network to foster collaboration among three of the Commonwealth’s major existing university research institutions. In his upcoming biennial budget, scheduled to be released on December 20th, the Governor will include a total of $90 million …

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) is proud to announce that industry leader and military veteran John F. Crowley will be its new President and CEO, effective March 4. He will replace Rachel King, a longtime BIO board member and industry trailblazer who has served as BIO’s CEO on an interim basis for the past year. …

About two years ago, the STEM2VA Program kicked off to provide internship opportunities for Virginia students within the life sciences sector on one side and to facilitate the recruitment process and offset some costs for the employers on another. The program was part of the Virginia Bio-Connect project funded by the GO Virginia grant initiative. …

The Virginia Catalyst, also known as the Virginia Biosciences Health Research Corporation (VBHRC), announced that it is accepting letters of intent (LOI) for Grant Round 16 to fund the development and commercialization of life science projects that address major unmet needs for improving human health and advance Virginia’s economy. “We are proud to continue supporting …

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) selected two projects in Virginia as part of the first phase of EDA’s Regional Tech Hubs Program. The Tech Hubs Program, made possible by the CHIPS and Science Act, bipartisan legislation strongly supported by both senators, aims to strengthen U.S. economic and national security by investing in regions across the country that …

Rare diseases, as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), refer to some 10,867 medically significant conditions, each with a prevalence of one or less per 1,000 individuals. With only about 8% of them being treatable,1 rare diseases include congenital malformations, autoimmune disorders, lysosomal storage disorders, thalassemia, muscular dystrophies, and infrequent forms of cancer and …

Governor Glenn Youngkin announced today more than $3.7 million in Growth and Opportunity for Virginia (GO Virginia) grant awards for 11 projects designed to empower workforce development, bolster startup ecosystems and promote economic growth in the Commonwealth. These initiatives will play a pivotal role in nurturing skilled talent, fostering entrepreneurial ventures and bridging the gap …

BioHealth Innovation, Inc. (BHI), a leading regional innovation intermediary, is thrilled to announce the five outstanding finalists for the 8th Annual BioHealth Capital Region Crab Trap competition. The Crab Trap is a competition designed to identify and showcase promising life sciences and biotechnology startups from around the world. These finalists have demonstrated exceptional innovation, vision, …