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FYR Diagnostics, Texas A&M University, and University of New Mexico awarded NIH grant for early detection of Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS)

By Riley Kemp

August 2022

Newborns develop Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome (NOWS) when the mother is exposed to opioids and passes exposure to their unborn child. NOWS cases surged from 1.5 per 1,000 hospital births in 2004 to 8 per 1,000 in 2014. Symptoms of NOWS in newborns range from mild and temporary to prolonged hospitalization with complications. Variability in the presentation of signs has led to delayed treatment decisions until the onset of withdrawal symptoms. Yet, delays in pharmacologic interventions lead to the risk of increased infant morbidity. 

FYR Diagnostics has partnered with the laboratories of Dr. Rajesh C. Miranda, Ph.D. from Texas A&M College of Medicine, and Dr. Ludmila Bakhireva, MD, Ph.D., MPH from the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center to develop a diagnostic test for NOWS. This collaboration will demonstrate the feasibility of a rapid and quantitative tool based on non-invasive microRNA (miRNA) biomarkers in umbilical cord blood that proactively predicts the presence and severity of NOWS before the onset of physical withdrawal symptoms. This test will also differentiate NOWS patients that need immediate pharmacological intervention from those requiring extended hospitalization and monitoring of symptoms, leading to more effective treatments for NOWS patients and increased positive patient outcomes compared to the current standard of care

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Solo-Dex(R) Fascile(R) Nerve Block Catheter Has Been Designated Safe for the Magnetic Resonance (MR) Environment

Press Release

August 25, 2022

Solo-Dex Fascile Nerve Block Catheter has been designated save for use in a magnetic resonance environment. The "MR" designation means that patients no longer need to interrupt their pain management to obtain MR imaging. In addition, patients no longer need to undergo repeat placement of a nerve block catheter following an MRI imaging. Solo-Dex green "MR" designation will improve patient satisfaction, reduce costs and drive efficiency in a hospital and in the ambulatory surgical center.

Solo-Dex proprietary catheters lead the industry and are designed for single operator control of placement visualization, catheter and medication. Solo-Dex catheter technology enhances control, reduces complexity and unlocks the potential for increased patient satisfaction. Solo-Dex's goal is to become the new standard of care for acute pain management before, during and for days after surgery.

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Industry Leading Acute Pain Management Products To Be Made Available in New Markets in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) and Beyond, As Solo-Dex Announces Exclusive Distribution Agreement With CH Trading Group

Press Release

August 24, 2022

Today Solo-Dex announces an exclusive Product Distribution Agreement ("Agreement") for Solo-Dex Fascile® suite of products with CH Trading Group LLC ("CH Trading"), an international import, export and trading company. The Agreement focuses on the MENA regional markets, and extends the availability of Solo-Dex Fascile products beyond the U.S., Europe and Brazil to dozens of countries, including those part of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), the African Union and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

"The Solo-Dex products are particularly well suited to improve patient satisfaction and reduce opioid abuse, because they are fast, simple and reliable - and stay in place for days during at-home recovery. We are confident that the use of Solo-Dex technology will grow rapidly because it is cost-effective and provides a wide margin of safety through full control of the amount, timing and type of medication selected," said Steven Eror, CEO of Solo-Dex. He added, "The CH Group respects MedTech innovation and is aligned with our mission to improve the patient's recovery experience without the use of oral opioid therapy."

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Great Falls scientist awarded major grant to probe mysteries of Alzheimer's disease

By David Murray, Great Falls Tribune

September 28,2022

Alzheimer’s disease is one of the most devastating afflictions to plague humankind. It is an irreversible, progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and, eventually, the ability to carry out even the simplest tasks. In the process it traumatizes millions; not only the patients who gradually lose the memories and skills that once defined their lives, but also for the millions of friends and family members who love and care for them.

According to the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia in older adults and currently afflicts more than six million Americans, most of them age 65 and older. Alzheimer’s disease is currently ranked as the seventh leading cause of death in the United States.

“The number of people with Alzheimer’s disease doubles about every five years beyond age 65,” the NIA states. “About one-third of all people age 85 and older may have Alzheimer's disease. However, many people live into their 90s and beyond without ever developing dementia.”

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Tonix and City of Hamilton sign developmental agreement at RCEDA

By Michelle McConnaha, Ravalli Republic

October 19,2022

Tonix Pharmaceuticals' plan to build a new biomanufacturing center just north of the Ravalli County Fairgrounds in Hamilton is hoped to bring more high-tech bioscience jobs to the Bitterroot Valley. Tonix CEO Dr. Seth Lederman and Hamilton Mayor Dominic Farrenkopf signed the agreement on Wednesday at the Ravalli County Economic Development Authority. The preliminary septic work has been done and construction will begin in the spring for the building to be complete in about three years.

“This will be the third of our buildings — we have a facility near Frederick, Maryland, a process development facility south of Boston," he said. "This will be the later stage one where products are vetted. Here we can supply the world.”

The planned biomanufacturing center is intended to manufacture vaccines for commercial use. The development agreement is part of a longstanding effort to turn southwest Montana into a renowned biotech corridor.

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Here's Story of an Entrepreneur's Resilience And Grit

Frederic Scheer has been an entrepreneur on several continents for the past 40 years

By Anirban Roy, Entrepreneur Asia Pacific

October 14, 2022

Challenges are part of every entrepreneur's life; it is the mantra of Frederic Scheer who has been entrepreneur on several continents for the past 40 years. "You need to be ready to face new challenges all the time, you need to learn from these challenges and grow from your failures."

Being an entrepreneur for Scheer started in France where he was born and educated. Scheer got two doctorates from the University of Paris (Assas and Pantheon) and an MBA from Institut d 'Etudes Politiques de Paris, he started in real estate and very quickly became an investment banker. His road went across Europe, Italy, Spain, Germany and the Netherlands but his goal was to settle in the US, for him "the land of opportunity". He moved to the East Coast in 1985 where he became the CEO of Imperial Hotel, then moved into the movie industry in Los Angeles but he found his vocation a few years later in acquiring from an Italian company the rights for biodegradable plastic resins at a time nobody knew what that means.

In a few years he realized that the planet was suffering and that there was an overproduction of plastic resin made of petroleum origin. Scheer embraced his desire to change our way of living. He participated in defining the terms "biodegradable and compostable" as we know them today in creating the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI), he created his first company Biocorp in the field. He highlighted the issues in serving the Sydney 2000 Olympics with all the compostable bags and the food utensils. His second company, Cereplast he brought it to Nasdaq in 2011 but still fighting the lack of interest and the price of oil. We were not ready yet, he saw the scorching earth prior to others but we had to wait another 10 years for finally seeing the world moving toward a greener approach.

In the meantime, Scheer continued his struggles as an entrepreneur, but Scheer was faced with a different type of challenges: Health. Scheer had to fight cancer, he reacted as an entrepreneur. Scheer went on to fight the difficult issues of health but saw an opportunity and decided to create a company Alercell that would specialize in cancer early detection. "This is my new life challenge, making sure that Alercell will change the way we approach cancer and make sure that we detect it as early as possible, prior to going through the grueling treatments."

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Golden Helix Announced BioTech Company of the Year by BioTech Breakthrough

November 4, 2022

We are honored to be awarded and recognized in this year’s BioTech Breakthrough Awards.

“Advances in biological sciences, combined with accelerating development of computing, data processing, and AI are fueling a new wave of innovation in the healthcare sector. These advances are providing new understanding, new materials, new tools, as well as lower costs. We’re seeing trends in use of next-generation computing technology, growth in personalized treatment of rare diseases, vaccine development and the advancement of cell and gene therapies, to name a few,” said Bryan Vaughn, Managing Director of BioTech Breakthrough Awards. “It’s an exciting time in the industry and we are thrilled to highlight the ‘breakthrough’ biotechnology solutions, services and companies around the world for our 2022 program. We extend our sincerest congratulations to our 2022 BioTech Breakthrough Award winners.”

Thank you for this prestigious recognition – please find the full list of winners here.

Galleri Named to TIME’s List of the Best Inventions of 2022

November 10, 2022

Today, TIME revealed its annual list of the Best Inventions, which features 200 extraordinary innovations changing our lives.

We are honored to have GRAIL’s Galleri® test named among the top inventions of 2022. The Galleri test is a multi-cancer early detection (MCED) test that can detect a shared cancer signal across more than 50 types of cancer¹ through a simple blood draw.

Using next-generation genomic sequencing and machine-learning technologies, the Galleri test detects a signal associated with cancer and includes one or two predictions of where in the body the cancer signal originated.



“I am thrilled to see the Galleri test included in TIME’s list of best inventions of 2022,” said Bob Ragusa, chief executive officer at GRAIL. “We believe strongly in the importance of early cancer detection and the impact it can make on patients’ lives. This test is a promising new tool in our fight against cancer.”

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Montana State research expenditures top $200 million for first time

By Marshall Swearingen, MSU News Service

September 22, 2022

For a fourth straight year, Montana State University recorded an all-time high for research expenditures, which support scientific discovery, rural outreach and a variety of scholastic pursuits, as well as providing hands-on opportunities for students to engage in science and creative activities that build skills for careers after they earn their degrees.

MSU graduate student Sheikh Parvez tests a device designed to stimulate and control two-dimensional quantum materials with radio frequency excitations on March 29, 2022. MSU Photo by Adrian Sanchez-Gonzalez

MSU reported to the National Science Foundation that research activities accounted for roughly $201 million during the fiscal year that ended in June. That figure marks a 4% increase over last year’s total and the first time in Montana history that such expenditures at an institution of higher education have topped $200 million.

“The vast majority of these dollars come from the federal government and are won through incredibly competitive granting processes,” said Alison Harmon, MSU’s vice president for research and economic development. “This record is a credit to the work ethic, competitiveness and high caliber of our faculty.”

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Montana State nursing faculty to collaborate on $1.9 million rural cancer care project

By Reagan Colyer, MSU News Service

October 11, 2022

Faculty and students from Montana State University’s Mark and Robyn Jones College of Nursing will collaborate on a newly-funded cancer care project aimed at providing easier access to cancer care for rural Montanans.

The $1.9 million project is one of seven nationwide funded by the Merck Foundation through a $20 million initiative. All seven of the projects focus on underserved communities, and the Montana project will include collaboration with the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Bozeman Health and Barrett Hospital in Dillon. 

“Unless you live in one of Montana’s cities, you are often more than 60 minutes away from cancer services such as infusion therapy,” said Marg Hammersla, an assistant professor in the college of nursing and the primary MSU faculty member on the project. “So, cancer patients must regularly travel to receive beneficial, life-saving therapy. There is a good possibility that for some patients in Montana, particularly on the eastern side of the state, they will forgo cancer treatment because accessing it is simply too burdensome.”

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$5M Funding, New UM Research Office to Boost Montana Rural Health

UM News

October 14, 2022

The University of Montana recently secured $5.1 million in federal grants from the Health Resource and Service Administration, leading to the formation of a new UM Office of Health Research & Partnership.

The office will use the HRSA funding for programs to bolster the health care workforce and increase access to quality health care in rural and underserved parts of Montana.

“Communities across Montana are facing difficulty in providing quality health care,” said Scott Whittenburg, UM vice president for research and creative scholarship. “Issues such as substance use disorders, adverse childhood events and chronic disease are particularly challenging. In a diverse and largely rural state like Montana, resources vary widely from community to community. This new office will work with local communities to begin tackling pressing health care challenges.”

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UM Earns $2.5M Grant as National Leader for Promoting STEM Diversity

UM News

November 3, 2022

University of Montana chemistry Professor Aaron Thomas continues to burnish his credentials as a national leader for helping diversify STEM fields.

In his latest effort, Thomas helped UM earn a prestigious $2.5 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to help increase the percentage of Indigenous, Black and other underrepresented students of color entering STEM fields.

UM was one of six universities nationally selected to receive the grant, and the only one in Montana. According to HHMI, these first Driving Change grants were “awarded to finalists who made strong arguments for their readiness to embark on a change journey with experiments that held the best promise for helping the whole community.”

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Chemistry Professor Aaron Thomas helped UM earn a $2.5 million grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute to boost student diversity in STEM fields.

Ion the prize

Winifred alum wins international award in chemistry

By Will Briggs, Reporter, Lewistown News-Argus



Central Montana has produced a star in the field of chemistry. Erin Baker, the daughter of Alan and Stephanie Shammel of Hilger and now a Professor of Chemistry at the University of North Carolina, has won several awards for her contributions to the field this year.

Her first award, the Biemann Medal from the American Society for Mass Spectrometry, came in June, along with a $5,000 cash prize. Several months later, she took home the the Curt Brunee Award and another $5,000 prize, from the International Mass Spectrometry Foundation for “outstanding contributions” to the field while attending the group’s conference in the Netherlands.



“It was in Maastricht, which is really beautiful,” Baker said.

Mass spectrometry, a form of chemical analysis used to measure the mass-to-charge ratio of atoms and molecules in a sample, has a wide variety of uses. Many medical tests, for instance, use the technique to identify chemical compounds in bodily fluids or to sequence proteins.

In her laboratory, fittingly called the Baker Lab after its supervisor at UNC, Baker uses the technique to study environmental pollution. In particular, she is interested in the effects of high metal levels, which can be detected in the land and animals, have on human health.

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Winifred grad Erin Baker gives a lecture after receiving the Curt Brunee Award from at the International Mass Spectrometry Foundation’s 2022 conference in Maastricht.

Photo courtesy of Erin Baker

New Report Demonstrates How Hospitals, Pharmacies & PBMs Exploit the Federal 340B Drug Program to the Harm of Patients

Nation’s largest hospitals, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and pharmacies abuse drug discount program to pocket savings intended for uninsured patients

News Provided By Gray Media Inc.

September 12, 2022

The Center for Medicine in the Public Interest (CMPI) today released a new report that exposes how some of the nation’s largest and most prestigious hospitals, pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), and pharmacies abuse the Federal 340B Drug Pricing Program to enhance their own profits at the expense of uninsured and low-income patients. The 340B program—created in 1992 to enhance prescription-drug access for low-income, and uninsured patients—allows hospitals and clinics to purchase medicines at highly discounted rates. The report, entitled 340B and the Warped Rhetoric of Healthcare Compassion, finds that hospitals are not only pocketing 340B revenue without providing commensurate charity care, but are also obtaining 340B medications at dramatically discounted rates for insured patients, for whom they can charge the full price and pocket the difference.

“340B is now the second largest government drug program after Medicare and Medicaid, yet it is not helping the patients it was intending to serve,” said CMPI President and former FDA Associate Commissioner Peter Pitts, who authored the report. “Some hospitals and hospital systems have come to treat 340B less as an assistance program and more as a profit-center. Their behavior is made possible by the fact that under current law, providers are under no obligation to reserve the discounts for needy patients or even report what they do with the savings. Just the opposite is happening. Eligible hospitals will obtain all their 340B medications from a drugmaker at the discounted 340B price and then bill privately insured patients, and even uninsured patients, for the drug's full list price, helping themselves to the difference as pure profit.”

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America’s Mental Healthcare System in Dire Need of Transformation

By now it’s common knowledge that the often siloed, under-resourced American mental health system is bowing under the strain of the Covid-19 pandemic.¹ Worse, the cracks that already existed in treating chronic mental illness before the global health crisis are threatening to become even more fractured at a time when the need for reliable, timely, and affordable mental healthcare has never been more urgent.

According to Mental Health America, the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness, over 5.4 million people took their online mental health screen in 2021. This figure represents a nearly 500 percent increase over the number of people who completed a screening in 2019 and a 103 percent increase over 2020.

Recently, RAND Health Care, a division of the prestigious RAND Corporation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization, published its findings on How to Transform the U.S. Mental Health System report. The study, sponsored by Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc., a leader in mental healthcare, identified several, evidence-driven recommendations that need to be implemented across federal, state, and local levels of government.

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GSK hits go on pivotal TIM-3 lung cancer trial after phase 2 clears bar for advancement

By Nick Paul Taylor

Oct 5, 2022

GSK’s anti-TIM-3 antibody is moving into a pivotal trial after hitting the mark in the midphase portion of the study, cementing the Big Pharma’s status as a front-runner in a thinning field featuring Novartis.

TIM-3 is a checkpoint receptor and the latest in a series of targets that have caught the imagination of the immuno-oncology sector. With interest in TIGIT, another checkpoint receptor, on the rocks after the failure of Roche’s candidate, TIM-3 could now step into the limelight. But companies still need to deliver data to show it can avoid the doomed fates of previous red-hot immuno-oncology targets.

GSK took a step toward potentially validatory data Wednesday, revealing that both arms of its phase 2/3 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) clinical trial have met the criteria for advancing into the next stage of the study.

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BIO TEConomy Report

BIO and our state affiliate partners are pleased to share with you the BIO/CSBA 2022 TEConomy Report. This report, titled: "The U.S. Bioscience Industry: Fostering Innovation and Driving America’s Economy Forward” is a biennial report that gives extensive data on the U.S. bioscience industry, the country’s bioscience ecosystem and the sector’s growth on state and local levels. You can download the report and state-specific fact sheets Here!

BIO One-on-One Partnering™ makes it easy to find potential partners and schedule meetings during JPM week. Identify ideal prospects quickly with advanced search features. Evaluate new & established biotechs, pharmaceutical companies, investors, in-licensors, and medical device & medtech companies - and flexible scheduling helps ensure you’re able to connect:

• New! Set optional meeting attendees to find more mutually available meeting times

• Five full days of meeting timeslots, and see your schedule in your own time zone

• Virtual and in-person meeting locations, including access to BIO-provided space at the Marriott Marquis*

Haven't registered yet? Don't wait, over 600 participants from 400 companies have already registered and are available to request meetings.

*Available on a first-come-first-serve basis for meetings scheduled through the BIO One-on-One Partnering system.

Join Us in Boston for BIO 2023

Expertise in question, regulatory belt tightening. Stifled innovation. The stakes have never been higher. The threat never more real. It’s time we said no more. Stand up for innovation. Stand up for truth. And stand up for science. It’s time to inspire, honor, and recognize the true value of the breakthrough work biotech performs for society. Today. And every day. Well into the future.

Learn More!

2022 FAST Micro-Grants are here!

The Montana Innovation Partnership (MTIP) powered by MSU TechLink Center will utilize some of our 2022 FAST funds to provide financial assistance to Montana small businesses that are actively preparing SBIR/STTR proposals in the federal fiscal year 2022.

The costs to apply for an SBIR/STTR grant or contract can be considerable. Financial assistance for early-stage companies increases their participation in the SBIR program and the quality of their proposals.

MTIP will award six FAST Microgrants to eligible SBIR/STTR applicants of up to $2,000 per year. Prospective SBIR/STTR applicants may apply to MTIP to receive Microgrants to attend conferences, travel to speak with agencies or commercialization partners, to acquire consulting services from an approved service provider for assistance with preparation of Phase I or Phase II proposals, to develop supporting project data, and to undertake other activities directly related to their SBIR/STTR proposal.

For more information and to access the application

Click Here!

Open Positions:

-Lead - Mail-In Spore Testing (MIST)

-Lead Machine Operator

-Machine Operator - Biological Indicators Lab

-Machine Operator - Assembly and Packaging

-Part-Time Technician - Manufacturing (Process Challenge Device)

-Part-Time Shipping Assistant I

-Customer Support Representative

To find out more about the current open positions and about Mesa Labs, Click Here!

Careers at FYR Diagnostics

FYR Diagnostics is a fast growing Missoula, MT-based biotechnology company developing a powerful portfolio of PCR-focused solutions. FYR Diagnostics’ mission is to commercialize novel detection technologies to help eliminate human suffering by better diagnosing human disease states and to eliminate vast inefficiencies in the agricultural industry.

Those who work with FYR Diagnostics are members of a community that seeks to respect and celebrate all the qualities that make each of us unique. Each of us is empowered to be ourselves within this community, which cultivates and promotes equity, diversity, and inclusion at all levels. FYR Diagnostics is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Workplace and Affirmative Action Employer.

Open Positions:

-Interested in FYR- Job Not Listed

To find out more about the current open positions, Click Here!

Work for a great company in beautiful Bozeman, MT

At Golden Helix, we are committed to accelerating ground-breaking research in genetics, drug discovery and predictive analytics, to our purpose of dramatically improving human health, our great culture, personal development, and strong values.

We are always seeking self-motivated individuals who strive for excellence and have the drive to help us on our journey. We offer competitive wages, benefits and the opportunity to live in one of the most beautiful areas in the world.

Open Positions:

-Area Sales Director

-Director of Renewal Sales

-Finance Manager

-Operations Coordinator

General Employment Inquiries

Interested in a position that we're not actively hiring? Submit your resume for our files! We will archive your information and if a position becomes available that matches your qualifications, we'll contact you.

Click here to apply!

Montana SBIR/STTR Matching Funds Program

What do you do after you have received Stage 1 SBIR/STTR matching funds from the

Montana Department of Commerce, have satisfactorily completed your Phase I work, the

Phase I final report has been accepted by the Federal SBIR/STTR agency, and you have

submitted your SBIR or STTR Phase II proposal?

You submit your Stage 2 application to the Montana SBIR/STTR Matching Funds

Program. You do not have to receive notification of a Phase II award before submitting this

application. For more information, Click Here!

Questions? Feel free to contact Ann at ann.peterson@montana.edu or

Annmarie Robinson with the Department of Commerce at arobinson3@mt.gov.

UPS Healthcare brings reliability, scalability and security to life science companies every day. Its portfolio of end-to-end services is well-suited to meet today's complex logistics demands for the pharmaceutical, medical device, and laboratory diagnostic industries. Learn exactly how from UPS Healthcare.

Through Montana BioScience Alliance’s partnership with UPS Healthcare, you get access to exclusive rates on a full suite of UPS® services. And, after recent renegotiations, the savings have gotten even better. While the same popular shipping services, like UPS Next Day Air®, and UPS Worldwide Express SM, remain at reduced rates, the price band range to qualify for discounts is narrower. For example, a company that spends $1,500 to $4,999.99 weekly for UPS Next Day Air® shipping now receives a 60% discount rather than a 50-55% discount under the previous arrangement.

As a Montana BioScience Alliance member, be confident that your critical healthcare shipments will be delivered timely and with care by a quality-focused and patient-driven organization.

Montana BioScience Alliance Members Save Up To:

· 74% on UPS Next Day Air®

· 59% on UPS 2nd Day Air® & UPS 3 Day Select Services®

· 51% on UPS Ground® Commercial Services

· 68% on UPS Worldwide International Services