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Weekly Newsletter

March 12th, 2025

Upcoming SoCalBio Events

SOCALBIO Networking Mixer in Irvine

Thursday, February 27 · 4 - 7 pm PST

@ UCI


Join us for an evening of networking! Connect with professionals from Orange County’s biotech, medtech, and digital health sectors while enjoying great food and drinks. Learn how SoCalBio can support your company and discover cost-saving opportunities through our Group Purchasing Program. Enjoy great food, drinks, and valuable conversations with industry peers!

Register now!
Register now!

SOCALBIO Networking Mixer in Pasadena

Thursday, April 17 · 4 - 7 pm PST

@ Pasadena Bio Collaborative


Join us for an evening of networking! Connect with professionals from Pasandena's biotech, medtech, and digital health sectors while enjoying great food and drinks.

The Pasadena Bio Collaborative Incubator is a non-profit organization created to support the growing number of life science start-ups in the Los Angeles area. 

News Updates

Checkpoint inhibitors in cancer: breakthroughs, setbacks, and what’s next | LABiotech

Checkpoint inhibitors are drugs that harness the immune system to destroy cancer cells. Ever since the first of its kind was approved in the U.S. in 2011, it has been regarded as a breakthrough in immunotherapy research and cancer care. 


Ono pays $280M upfront for Ionis' antisense oligonucleotide for rare blood cancer | Fierce Biotech

Japan's Ono Pharmaceutical is handing over $280 million upfront to acquire Ionis Pharmaceuticals’ phase 2-stage antisense oligonucleotide for a rare type of blood cancer.


RFK Jr. could further deter childhood vaccinations as rates fall in the U.S. | CNBC

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s new top health official, could further erode already falling U.S. vaccination rates against once-common childhood diseases


BVI raises $1B in capital funding for monofocal intraocular lens | MassDevice

BVI Medical today announced it completed a $1 billion strategic capital raise in partnership with asset management firm TPG.


Roche broadens obesity drug plans with $1.65B Zealand deal | BioPharmaDive

The Swiss drugmaker plans to test combinations of an experimental amylin-targeting drug with medicines it previously acquired from Carmot.


Merck prevails in US safety litigation over Gardasil HPV vaccine | Reuters

A German court on Wednesday ruled that Pfizer and its partner BioNTech violated a COVID-19 vaccine patent held by Moderna 


Labcorp to buy Opko unit’s cancer test assets for up to $225M | MedTechDive

Labcorp will acquire BioReference Health’s oncology diagnostics operations as the lab company works to expand in high-growth testing areas.

Applications Now Open for the 2025 SoCalBio Annual Investor Conference!


Showcase your company to a network of angel investors, venture capitalists, and industry leaders at the 2025 SoCalBio Annual Investor Conference. In 2024, we had over 20 investors and over 200 one-on-one meetings scheduled.


Applicants will undergo a screening process with our Innovation Catalysts Committee. Selected companies will receive complimentary admission to the conference to present, as well as early registration for 1:1 networking meetings with investors.



Apply to today!

Join us in supporting the next generation of innovators.


The SoCalBio STEM College Bound Support Initiative (CBSI) team is excited to announce that applications for our 2025 program are now open. For over 20 years, SoCalBio's CBSI initiative has supported high school STEM education statewide by providing financial awards based on scientific proposals submitted to the California Science Fair.

 

By donating to our program, you can help fund awards, plaques, and certificates for the student winners and runners-up and their high schools. Your generous support will enable us to assist even more students in pursuing STEM education.

Donate Online

Improving women’s health by addressing autoimmune disease


Women’s health is under-researched and under-funded—especially when it comes to autoimmune disease. For International Women’s Day, we looked at why.


Why it matters: Autoimmune disease impacts 24 million Americans, and 80% are women. For instance, women are 10x more likely than men to develop Hashimoto’s disease, the most common cause of hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) in the United States. Autoimmune diseases result in about $100 billion in treatment costs annually, focused on symptom management and slowing disease progression. 


Why woman are more frequently impacted: The reasons for these disparities are complex, and not completely understood. Better understanding why women are disproportionately affected may hold valuable clues for a cure.


The need for action: The Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR) policy agenda targets improved autoimmune disease research in women. It urges policy improvements, including more research on:

  • the role hormonal changes play in autoimmune risk and symptom severity;
  • the biological and environmental mechanisms that affect autoimmune incidence and outcomes across different racial and ethnic populations, and factors that predispose individuals to these diseases; and
  • research funding to improve the knowledge base, and drive progress forward.

Read more on Bio.News.


Special Saving on Lab Supplies

Become a member of SoCalBio and enjoy fantastic savings on lab supplies from Avantor's extensive catalog through SoCalBio's Group Purchasing.

Learn More!

SoCalBio's Partner Events

11th Annual

American Biomanufacturing Summit

April 15-16, 2025 - San Francisco, CA


The American Biomanufacturing Summit is taking place April 15-16, 2025, in San Francisco, CA. The summit brings together over 200 biopharma and biotech executive leaders for 2 days of sessions, workshops, and networking. 

With sessions led by top biotech executives, the agenda is designed to discuss current trends, strategic insights, and best practices in key topics like manufacturing, cell and gene therapy, capacity management, quality assurance, quality control, regulatory compliance, operational excellence, supply chain and logistics. Network with your fellow biopharma leaders as we explore strategies to maximize efficiency while remaining compliant within the biomanufacturing space.

Learn more
Learn more

Caltech Entrepreneurs Forum:

The AI Hardware Ecosystem: AI Factories of the Future

March 15, 2025 - Pasadena, CA


The industry forecasts over $1 Trillion of hardware investment will be made in AI Factories between now and 2030. NVIDIA’s chips are only a fraction of the investment needed and small firms working on cooling solutions are becoming overnight unicorns. Anyone doing a better job solving the increasing technical challenges of data transmittal, power management, cooling and memory in an AI can find quick growth from customers like Microsoft, Amazon or Meta for their data centers.

MDMA 2025 Annual Meeting

April 30-May 2nd, 2025 - Washington, DC


We are proud to partner with Medical Device Manufacturers Association (MDMA) to support their upcoming 2025 Annual Meeting being held  April 30-May 2nd  in Washington, DC. SoCalBio members receive a discount on registration. Attendees at this year's conference will hear from Congressional, Federal Agency and industry leaders on current and upcoming issues impacting our industry. Attendees also have an opportunity to visit Capitol Hill and meet with our Congressional delegation during MDMA's popular Congressional Fly-In.

Learn more

Local Highlights

Do you have a recent scientific breakthrough, investment milestone, or commitment you would like to share? We are always looking to share our member's stories Submit your stories to scbc@socalbio.org

ClearNote Health’s Avantect® Pancreatic Cancer Test Now Available to Health Plan Members Accessing Claritev’s National PPO Networks


Hospital for Special Surgery Preclinical Study Finds Earlier ACL Reconstruction is Associated with Lower Risk of Knee Osteoarthritis


City of Hope’s Phase 1 Clinical Trial Data Is Part of the Society of Surgical Oncology Annual Meeting’s Press Program


Sydnexis Announces FDA Acceptance of New Drug Application for SYD-101 for the Treatment of Progression of Pediatric Myopia


Ionis and Ono announce global license agreement for sapablursen in polycythemia vera


Synvect Secures $3M Seed Round to Combat Mosquito-Borne Diseases with CRISPR Technology


New Findings Show how LIXTE’s Lead Clinical Compound, LB-100, is Metabolized to its Active Form


ACTG Presents Four Studies at CROI Describing Findings from SLIM LIVER


Aethlon Medical Publishes Preclinical Data on the Hemopurifier® in Transplant Immunology Journal


Calidi Biotherapeutics Announces Demonstrated Ability To Deliver Transient Gene Therapy (Payload) To Tumors Using Systemic Platform


Alterome Doses First Patient in Phase 1 Study of ALTA3263, a Novel Pan-KRAS Dual ON/OFF Inhibitor, in Advanced Solid Tumors


Aurora Spine Corporation Announces Completion of Enrollment in Groundbreaking REFINE Study: First Prospective, Multi-Center, Multi-Specialty Study on Lumbar Interlaminar Fusion


WAINZUA (eplontersen) approved in the EU for the treatment of hereditary transthyretin-mediated amyloidosis in adults with stage 1 or stage 2 polyneuropathy


Thank you to our Sponsors!

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