Purdue’s $6.25 million plant-mapping project approved
The State Budget Committee has given its approval for Purdue University to build a high-tech, greenhouse-like facility where scientists will map plant genomes.
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IBJ Life Sciences Power Breakfast transcript – 2016
IBJ gathered leaders in the life sciences industry for a Power Breakfast panel discussion April 21. Panel members included Colleen Hittle, managing director of Navigant; Suresh Garimella, Purdue University’s executive vice president of research and partnerships; Brian Barker, general manager of U.S. Seeds for Dow AgroSciences; Kristin Sherman, former chief financial officer of Calibrium LLC; and David Johnson, CEO of BioCrossroads.
New life sciences research institute lands $100M donation
The Indiana Biosciences Research Institute, set up just three years ago, announced Wednesday morning that it has been awarded grants of $80 million from the Lilly Endowment and $20 million from the Eli Lilly and Co. Foundation.
Champions of 16 Tech see it as magnet for development, high-tech workers
City leaders want to make the 60-acre tract of land just north of the Indiana University School of Medicine campus a mix of all of the best the city has to offer and catch the eyes of more creative and highly sought-after workers.
City to consider selling $75M in bonds for 16 Tech project
The Central Indiana Corporate Partnership wants the city to improve streets, walkways and other infrastructure around the 170-acre project north of the IUPUI campus, designed to attract high-tech businesses and workers.
Brownsburg entrepreneur is a cryogenic-tooth-banking pioneer
Michael A. Byers’ Tooth Bank is one of a tiny group of U.S. companies catering to the latest iteration of stem cell therapy: harvesting stem cells from the pulp inside baby teeth and extracted wisdom teeth, then culturing, freezing and storing them at a cryostorage facility for later use.
Research institute hires CEO, picks HQ
With a CEO hired and a soon-to-be signed lease for office space, the $360 million Indiana Biosciences Research Institute is ready to lift off.
Growth-minded Vertellus buys Dow Chemical unit
Indianapolis-based chemical producer Vertellus Specialties Inc. has announced its second big acquisition in as many months, in a deal believed to be worth as much as $200 million.
Biotech comeback: Eli Lilly making renewed push in lucrative field it once pioneered
Lilly expects to soon announce late-stage clinical trial results for two biotech drugs designed to slow the inflammation caused by autoimmune diseases. By the end of the year, it will announce results for a third.
Report: Indiana boasts four nation-leading life sciences clusters
The areas around each of Indiana’s research university campuses—Bloomington, Indianapolis, Lafayette and South Bend—all boast outsize concentration of life sciences workers. Yet the state still lags on research, development and investment funding.
Medtronic to acquire device maker Covidien for $42.9B
Medtronic Inc., the second-largest maker of medical devices, will be based in Ireland after the acquisition for tax advantages.
Lab software firm raises $8.5M, names new CEO
A San Diego venture capital firm has made a big bet on Indigo BioSystems Inc., which just installed its founder as the new chief executive.
Algaeon to take big step after landing $2.75M
An Indianapolis-based biotech company plans to use $2.75 million in new funding to begin commercial production of its algae-based nutritional supplements, the firm announced Monday.
IU plots $200M life sciences hub in former Wishard Hospital
The envisioned 26-acre, $200-million-or-more complex would bridge IU’s School of Medicine with the city’s life sciences firms, including those at the nascent 16 Tech, a business park.
Beck’s Hybrids prospers against far bigger firms
When Lawrence and Francis Beck planted six acres of hybrid corn on their Hamilton County farm almost eight decades ago, the father and son sowed the seeds of a family business that’s still growing despite widespread industry consolidation.
Purdue-based cancer imaging firm lands $15M in funding
OnTarget Laboratories LLC’s technology was developed by Philip Low, a Purdue chemistry professor who also created the technology behind Endocyte Inc.
Dow AgroSciences nears jackpot from genetic engineering
Dow AgroSciences LLC is spending millions of dollars and racking up hundreds of patents as its expands ever deeper in the burgeoning global market for genetically modified crops and pesticides.
Funding drought pinches life sciences firms
Nationally, venture capital investments into life sciences firms totaled $4.9 billion during the first nine months of 2013, down 30 percent from the same period in 2008, according to data from Thomson Reuters and PricewaterhouseCoopers. In Indiana, life sciences firms raised $21 million during the first nine months of the year, far lower than any year since 2003.
Analysts: Investors wrong to dump Endocyte
Investors on Friday dumped shares of West Lafayette-based Endocyte Inc. after an independent analysis said an experimental lung cancer drug is unlikely to be declared superior to existing chemotherapy. But two analysts say, to the contrary, the analysis shows the prospects for Endocyte’s drug are as good as ever.
Auction lands $2.1 million for Elona Biotech assets
Elona went into receivership in June after Greenwood officials filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the firm. The company failed after receiving more than $8 million in economic development incentives from the city over the past three years.