Friday | February 12, 2021
CEO MESSAGE
Yesterday marked the United Nations 6th Annual International Day of Women and Girls in Science, a time to reflect on the achievements and opportunities as we continue to encourage and support women and girls to pursue careers in science related fields.  You can read more about the initiative here.

Life Sciences in the News

Once again, our B.C. Life Sciences sector has been highlighted in numerous news reports identifying the extraordinary innovative work underway. We are truly at a remarkable turning point for life sciences; as the world turns to take notice, governments, large institutional investors, and stock markets are now fully aware and engaged in the importance of scientific discovery and innovation.
This past week the Globe and Mail featured,

We are clearly living in interesting times and we will continue to share all the sector news and industry stories as they relate to our ecosystem.

LifeSciences BC Events
On February 24 – 25, 2021, LifeSciences BC will be hosting our 6th Annual Access to Innovation Conference and this year the program content is very exciting. We have added many more guest speakers to our agenda and they include; Professor Sir Mark Caulfield, Professor, Clinical Pharmacology & Chief Scientist, Genomics England, Dr. Réka Gustafson, VP, Public Health and Wellness, PHSA & Deputy Provincial Health Officer, BC Centre for Disease Control, Dr. James Taylor, Co-founder & CEO, Precision NanoSystems, Dr. David Parkinson, President & Chief Executive Officer, ESSA Pharma, Nicholas Lee, Sr. Director, AI and Quantum, Fujitsu Intelligence Technology, Fujitsu and Dr. Jennifer Hamilton, Senior Director, New Ventures & Advisor, Impact Investing, Johnson & Johnson, along with a greetings from both The Honourable John Horgan, Premier of BC and Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, The Honourable Ravi Kahlon. You can purchase your tickets here.

People and Companies on the Move
This week STEMCELL Technologies promoted Helen Sheridan to Chief Human Resources Officer and Dr. David Llewellyn to Chief Commercial Officer.  In addition, AbCellera announced Dr. Ester Falconer’s promotion to Chief Technology Officer (CTO) from her previous role as Head of Research and Development. Congrats! Dr. Llewellyn and Dr. Falconer both serve as members on the LifeSciences BC Board of Directors and we extend our congratulations everyone on their recent career appointments. We are indeed fortunate to have this expertise and guidance serve our entire life science ecosystem. I would like to also congratulate Essa Pharma on hitting a milestone with their first clinical trial on novel therapies for the treatment of prostate cancer. As always, please keep us informed of your news.

Hope you all have a lovely family day long weekend!
Platinum Sponsors
InMed Pharmaceuticals to Report Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Financial Results
Vancouver, BC – February 5, 2021 – InMed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“InMed” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ:INM; TSX:IN), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing medications targeting diseases with high unmet medical need and leading the way in the clinical development of cannabinol (“CBN”), will report financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2021 ending December 31, 2020, on Thursday, February 11, 2021. READ MORE
ImmunoFlex™ Receives Research and Development Funding
Industry innovator developing products based on established, pharmaceutical-grade health supplement ingredients and genomics, announces funding supporting R&D project for immune system analysis. READ MORE
MSFHR and BC AHSN intend to join forces to drive discovery and innovation in BC’s health research enterprise
February 8, 2021 – The Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research (MSFHR) and the BC Academic Health Science Network (BC AHSN) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to join forces to create a dynamic and integrated health research organization that will support the growth and evolution of BC’s research and life sciences sectors. The proposed new organization will be committed to improving the health of British Columbians, the health-care system, and the knowledge economy. READ MORE
Zymeworks Expands Commercial Team and Creates New R&D Role
VANCOUVER, British Columbia–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE: ZYME), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing multifunctional biotherapeutics, today announced that James Priour, former Senior Vice President, Commercial, has been promoted to Chief Commercial Officer and named to the Company’s Executive Committee. READ MORE
Chris Procyshyn kept hearing a common refrain when he began talking to potential customers about the robotic machines his B.C. company was developing. “‘It sounds too good to be true,’” recalled the CEO of Vanrx Pharmasystems Inc., who co-founded the Burnaby-based company in 2007. READ MORE
Notch Therapeutics Closes $85 Million Series A Financing to Develop Pipeline of Renewable Stem Cell-Derived Cancer Immunotherapies
VANCOUVER, British Columbia, February 10, 2021— Notch Therapeutics, Inc., a biotechnology company developing renewable, induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cell therapies for cancer, announced today the closing of an oversubscribed U.S. $85 million Series A financing. READ MORE
Zymeworks to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conferences and Events
VANCOUVER, British Columbia–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Zymeworks Inc. (NYSE: ZYME), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing multifunctional biotherapeutics, announced today that management will participate in five upcoming virtual investor conferences. READ MORE
InMed Pharmaceuticals Reports Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 Financial Results
Vancouver, BC – February 11, 2021 – InMed Pharmaceuticals Inc. (“InMed” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ:INM; TSX:IN), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company developing medications targeting diseases with high unmet medical need and leading the way in the clinical development of cannabinol (“CBN”), today reported financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2021 (“2Q21”) which ended December 31, 2020. READ MORE
AbCellera Appoints Ester Falconer, Ph.D. as Chief Technology Officer
VANCOUVER, British Columbia – February 11, 2021 – AbCellera (Nasdaq: ABCL) announced today that Ester Falconer, Ph.D., has been appointed as Chief Technology Officer (CTO), effective January 28, 2021. READ MORE
Kintara Therapeutics Announces Fiscal Second Quarter 2021 Financial Results and Provides Corporate Update
SAN DIEGO, Feb. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Kintara Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: KTRA) (“Kintara” or the “Company”), a biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of new solid tumor cancer therapies, today announces its financial results for its fiscal second quarter ended December 31, 2020 and provides a corporate update. READ MORE
ESSA Pharma Presents Favorable Initial Phase 1 Clinical Pharmacology Data of EPI-7386 for Advanced Forms of Prostate Cancer at the 2021 ASCO Genitourinary Cancers Symposium
Vancouver, Canada and Houston, Texas, February 11, 2021 – ESSA Pharma Inc. (“ESSA”, or the “Company”) (NASDAQ: EPIX), a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapies for the treatment of prostate cancer, today will present preclinical and clinical pharmacology data from ESSA’s Phase 1 clinical trial of EPI-7386 for the treatment of patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer (“mCRPC”) at the 2021 American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary (“ASCO GU”) Cancers Symposium. READ MORE
LSBC SECTOR NEWS
Wanted: investors to fund B.C.’s second life sciences renaissance
British Columbia is experiencing a second major renaissance in life sciences. Twenty years ago, our province had several multibillion-dollar biotechnology companies that had developed some of the most innovative life-saving products globally, including the Taxus stent by Angiotech, Visudyne by QLT and Mozobil by Anormed. READ MORE
COVID-19: B.C. approves trial of treatment drug developed in Vancouver
The B.C. Ministry of Health will accept $1 million from a Vancouver biotech company to try a Canada approved COVID-19 treatment drug developed by the company. On Monday, Minister of Health Adrian Dix said the AbCellera Biologics money would be used to fund a clinical trial of bamlanivimab at Surrey Memorial Hospital. READ MORE
'Living hard drives' could be future solution for storing data, scientists say
TORONTO -- – Scientists working with CRISPR technology have made advancements in encoding data inside the DNA of bacteria, essentially creating “living hard drives” which could be the future for information storage. READ MORE
Antiviral treatment may prevent severe COVID-19 cases, help curb community spread, study says
TORONTO -- A new antiviral drug, delivered in a single shot, could be a key tool to slow community spread, according to a Canadian study that shows the treatment may be able to help those with milder cases of COVID-19 recover from the infection much faster. READ MORE
Gold Sponsors
Founded in September 2019, Variational AI are a team of experienced AI/machine learning and business specialists applying state of the art generative AI to small molecule drug discovery in close collaboration with biopharmaceutical partners to bring new therapeutics to market across disease areas and positively impact lives. Variational AI currently has 3 active programs focused on undrugged targets.





Symvivo is a clinical-stage biotechnology company advancing a proprietary platform for the site- specific delivery of genes for the treatment and prevention of life-threatening diseases. Symvivo’s bacTRL™ platform technology delivers plasmid DNA, both orally and through IV application, that enables a patient’s own cells to produce therapeutic proteins. Symvivo is advancing therapeutics in the area of oral DNA vaccines, oncology, immunology and protein therapy. Symvivo is headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia.




Silver Sponsors
PERSPECTIVES ON GLOBAL HEALTHCARE INNOVATION
What’s driving innovation in life science and healthcare? SVB is committed to serving the ecosystem by providing industry-leading reports featuring proprietary analysis and targeted outlooks to help companies and investors achieve their goals. Twice a year we publish deep-dive analyses describing fundraising, investment, M&A and IPO activity of private, venture-backed biopharma, medical device and diagnostic/tools companies. Our deep relationships with top life science and healthcare entrepreneurs and investors inform our insights and give us a vantage point unlike any other bank. To find out more about Silicon Valley Bank click here
LSBC JOB BOARD
Update: Student Work Placement Program now open to healthcare placements
The Student Work Placement Program is now accepting applications for healthcare placements. Canada’s healthcare industry has a growing need to produce job-ready healthcare workers. There are 1,500 open spots available in 2020-21. WEBSITE
Bronze Sponsors
Posting A JOB on the LSBC Website
LSBC Membership Discounts on Job Postings
 
As an LSBC member, your first five job postings EARNS a free repost on BioTalent Canada's The Petri Dish After your first five reposts, you will also receive 25% off all job postings on The Petri Dish. Want more info? CONTACT: Sue Callaghan - talent@lifesciencesbc.ca