October 29, 2026 - Hello BioLinks Readers

This week:

• LSBC builds in Japan and Korea 
• Last chance for Bio Essentials early-bird price 
• Life Sciences Investment Week starts Monday

Photos: Charles Lau, Invest Vancouver

LSBC Builds Relationships, Opportunities, and Business in Japan and Korea

LSBC spent the week in Japan and Korea, translating the opportunity of BC’s life sciences sector to our counterparts in the Asia Pacific Region. A busy, but productive week across time zones, languages, and business cultures. We look forward to bringing our learnings and connections back to BC to help any LSBC members looking to grow in the region. Thank you to all the partners who joined in to put forward BC’s best.

Last Chance to Sign-up for Bio Essentials Before the Early-bird Deadline

Register before October 31, 2026 for Bio Essentials to get the early-bird rate for this two-day introductory course for professionals in life sciences without a scientific background. This course provides an overview of the basic science that underpins the biotechnology industry. Upon successful completion of the course, students will receive a BCIT micro-credential. Register before the October 31 Early-bird deadline here.

Are you Ready? Life Sciences Investment Week Starts on Monday

Begin the week with a nature walk in UBC’s beautiful endowment lands, then join for two full days of Invest in BC which includes a networking reception on Tuesday, and a curated slate of side events designed to foster high-value connections. Blakes is hosting a Women in Life Sciences Breakfast on the Wednesday, which is currently waitlisted. Make sure you’ve logged into your app and sent out your meeting requests because everyone’s calendar is getting full. Networking reception-only tickets are also available for purchase if you can’t make the full event but would like to take advantage of the fact that over 100 investors are landing in Vancouver. Get your tickets here.

Member Highlights 

Xenon announced positive Phase 1 and new preclinical data supporting the advancement of treatments for acute pain. The therapies target selective ion channel modulators designed for Na_V1.7 and K_V7. Read more.

Rakovina Therapeutics and Boston-based Celvion Therapeutics completed AI analysis identifying priority cancer indications. Celvion’s  EMphora™ platform integrates clinical evidence and predictive modelling to help identify promising cancer patient populations and guide the next phase of research. Read more.

Ecosystem Highlights

The Government of Canada announced an invest of $880 million to advance research and support the next generation of researchers across Canada, the invest includes funding for the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) Project Grant program to support 439 health research projects. Read more.

Kudos

The Government of Canada named 25 new and renewed Canda Research Chairs. Among the individuals, ten researchers from the UBC Faculty of Medicine were named. This honour recognizes their global research excellence and contributions to advancing health and medicine. Read more.

People on the Move

Avantor welcomes Mikey Santiago as its new Chief Information Officer. Read more.

Applications Open

CASTL’s Online Academy is offering 10 self-paced modules and courses designed build practical AI skills for regulated biopharma manufacturing with no technical background required. Learn more.

Explore life sciences with an introduction to drug development, biotechnology and commercialization for non-science professionals with BIS Industry Essentials. Learn more.

SFU VentureLabs’ Discovery Health Sciences Business Development Bootcamp is back. This interactive full-day workshop and 1:1 mentoring session is for founders or executives looking to sharpen their deal-making skills, structure better partnerships, or scale R&D strategies. There are still a few spots left. Note the official application deadline is tomorrow, but interested LSBC members can still apply. Learn more.

See our expanded list of current life sciences opportunities on our website.

Membership Spotlight

Phyton Biotech stands at the forefront of sustainable specialty fermentation solutions. Operating an upstream GMP facility in Germany and a downstream GMP commercial facility in Canada, Phyton is perfectly positioned to conduct your R&D and Commercial functions for the production of high-value active compounds. Phyton Canada is a dedicated facility for the purification and synthesis of small molecules. Notably, it has obtained a Controlled Substances License, enabling it to manage unique active compounds within this sector. Learn more.

New Members Welcome

Blue-O Medicals aims to develop advanced personal care and protection technologies and products for better living quality and safety. Blue-O Medicals has developed AMOX Air Technologies and products with exceptional antimicrobial efficacy to provide safe and clean air for breathing and living. With extreme low operation cost, and annual subscription of service program, safe and clean air from AMOX SSAW products can be in living spaces as well as working spaces, while AMOX PAPE enables your safe air on-the-go. Learn more.

Lisa Rojkjaer is a board-certified hematologist with global expertise across all stages of drug development, regulatory, and medical affairs. Experienced in drug development/life cycle management strategy for biologics, SMIs and gene therapy. Therapeutic areas include benign/malignant hematology, oncology, and autoimmune disorders. Learn more.

Until next week!

LSBC Team

November 3-4 - Life Sciences BC is pleased to announce the 11th annual Invest in BC presented by Lumira Ventures. This highly anticipated event serves as a premier gathering for life sciences innovators in British Columbia, connecting them with investors and potential partners locally, nationally, and around the world.

November 26-27 - Life Sciences BC, in partnership with BCIT, is relaunching our science for non-scientists courses, Bio Essentials: Foundational Science, a micro-credential that will teach the fundamental science that underpins the biotech industry with Canadian context and relevant BC-specific ecosystem examples.

RYBREVANT FASPRO™ (amivantamab and hyaluronidase-lpuj) Combination Demonstrates 77% Overall Response Rate in First-line Treatment of Patients with Advanced Head and Neck Cancer

Johnson & Johnson announced new findings that support the clinical development program for patients with head and neck cancer... Read more.

Xenon Announces Positive Phase 1 and New Preclinical Data at IASP 2026 Supporting Advancement of XEN1701 and XEN1120 to Phase 2 Proof-of-Concept Studies in Acute Pain

Xenon reported positive Phase 1 results and promising preclinical data for its investigational non-opioid pain treatments... Read more.

Beyond Cell Killing: Rethinking Linkers and Payloads for Immune-Modulating ADCs

Creative Biolabs explored the design questions that arise as antibody–drug conjugate research expands into targeted immune regulation... Read more.

Idorsia seeks US label Update for QUVIVIQ Daytime Functioning Benefits – First Patients Enrolled in Dari-Dream

Idorsia announced that first patients are enrolled in Dari-Dream, a US label-enabling study evaluating QUVIVIQ® (daridorexant) in adults and elderly people with insomnia disorder... Read more.

FDU Vancouver Celebrates Successful Grand Door of New Campus with Alumni, Industry Partners, and Government and Community Leaders

Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) officially opened its new location at Oakridge Park, marking a significant milestone in the university’s continued growth... Read more.

Johnson & Johnson announces ERLEADA® (apalutamide) Treatment Before and After Surgery Reduces Risk of Recurrence or Death by 62% versus Surgery Alone in High-risk Prostate Cancer

Johnson & Johnson presented new results from the Phase 3 PROTEUS substudy with patients with prostate cancer... Read more.

Sanofi Expands Canadians' COVID-19 Vaccine Choice with Availability of Nuvaxovid for the 2026-2027 Respiratory Season

Sanofi Canada announced that Nuvaxovid will be available across all provinces and the Yukon for the 2026-2027 season... Read more.

BD Advances Portal Hypertension Care in the U.S. with Support for More Personalized Treatment Options

BD commercially launched the Liverty TIPS Stent in the U.S., marking an advancement in portal hypertension care by giving physicians flexibility to tailor treatment based on individual patient anatomy... Read more.

Idorsia Initiates Pivotal Phase 3 Study for Lucerastat in Fabry Disease and Enters Co-development and Commercialization Agreement with Nxera

Idorsia announced the initiation of a Phase 3 kidney biopsy study in adult patients with Fabry disease in co-development with Nxera Pharma... Read more.

Rakovina Therapeutics and Celvion Therapeutics Complete AI Analysis Identifying Priority Cancer Indications for Brain-Penetrant ATR Inhibitor Program

Rakovina Therapeutics and Celvion announced the completion of the first analysis in their collaboration to evaluate potential treatment strategies for Rakovina’s ATR inhibitor program... Read more.

Director, Intellectual Property

This role is responsible for managing intellectual property matters, counselling senior business leaders, and developing and implementing patent portfolio strategies... Learn more.

Technician, Protein Expression & Purification

This role supports biologics discovery and preclinical research programs by leading the expression, purification, and characterization of biologic reagents.... Learn more.

Engineering Lead

The role will set technical direction, lead a small multidisciplinary team, and be accountable for getting hardware developed, products manufactured, and instruments serviced in the field... Learn more.

Director/Senior Director, Contracts and Transactions

The role will provide legal and transactional support across the organization, with a particular focus on research and development-related contracts and technology licenses and collaborations... Learn more.

Regulatory Affairs Associate

This role supports EBC's clients with regulatory strategy, submissions, and lifecycle documentation for medical devices and related life sciences products.... Learn more.

Research Projects Coordinator

This role will assist in the coordination and administration of the Quality Management System for the Cancer Immunotherapy Program at the BC Cancer's Deeley Research Centre... Learn more.

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