Life Sciences BC News, November 28, 2024

Congratulations to partners at UBC for hosting the inaugural Transforming Health Symposium on November 4, 2024. LSBC President & CEO Wendy Hurlburt was honoured to participate in the conversation, which brought together a community of global thought leaders, clinicians, investigators, trainees, and industry experts to examine the translational pathway highlighting areas of excellence locally and beyond.

As we head towards the end of the year, LSBC would like to thank all our members, supporters, sponsors, and partners, along with everyone in the broader life sciences ecosystem. Together, we are building something great and lasting here in BC, and we are thrilled to be a part of it!

Let’s celebrate yet another amazing year of growth and community. LSBC’s holiday parties hosted in Victoria on December 12 (register here), and in Vancouver on December 18 (register here) are nearly sold out. Both events are already over 80% subscribed. Get your tickets today.

We are calling all job seekers, students, and anyone interested in employment in the life sciences sector to our Career Connect Day on January 24, 2025. Hear from companies including AbCellera, STEMCELL Technologies, Xenon, and Zymeworks who recently announced an FDA approval with partner Jazz Pharmaceuticals. We have a full morning of programming and a career expo in the afternoon. Learn more and register here.

This is the last chance to register for BioBasics 101, a two-day master course covering the foundations of the science that drives our sector. Join us on Dec 4-5 to learn or refresh scientific concepts, gain insights, and become more confident as a non-scientific professional. Learn more and register here.

Member Highlights 

UBC, BC Cancer, Harvard Medical School, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre researchers have pinpointed what could be the genetic origins of breast cancer. A new study published in Nature Genetics highlights the findings. Read more.

Melius MicroBiomics is paving the path for a new class of therapeutics to harness beneficial bacteria to treat inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes, and mood disorders. Its collaboration with UBC Okanagan is helping to drive the innovation of new medicine to improve gut health. Read more.

UBC School of Pharmaceutical Sciences announces a study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal that finds more than 223,000 Canadians, or 5% of respondents skipped prescribed medications due to costs. Read more.

Roche acquires Poseida Therapeutics Inc., supporting Roche’s Pharma Strategy and allowing for a range of potentially first and best-in-class therapies across oncology, immunology, and neurology, uniquely positioning Roche in the new field of donor-derived off-the-shelf cell therapies. Read more.

Tochtech Technologies joins the Can Health Network to introduce innovative solutions for senior care. Read more.

Industry Highlights

Government of BC provides an update on human avian influenza case in BC. An extensive, multi-agency public-health investigation involving a BC teenager has identified no additional cases nor evidence of human-to-human transmission. Read more.

Public Health Agency of Canada confirms the first case of clade I mpox in Canada in an individual in Manitoba. This travel-related case is associated with an ongoing outbreak of clade I mpox in central and eastern Africa. Read more.

Theodorus, a Belgian VC relocates to Montreal, Canada to target early-stage life sciences startups. Rebranded to Seido Capital, the firm has secured $45 million towards its fifth fund. Seido has targeted Canada for the strength of the country’s academic institutions, its proximity to the large US market, and a lack of capital allocated to Canadian life sciences startups relative to the returns they have generated. Read more.

New LSBC Members

iMaster Health is a leading provider of virtual healthcare solutions, specializing in pulmonary rehabilitation for individuals with chronic lung conditions such as COPD, asthma, interstitial lung disease, cystic fibrosis, and bronchiectasis.  Learn more.

Kudos

Dr. Poul Sorensen is the recipient of the 2024 Doctors of BC Terry Fox Medal, a prestigious award recognizing outstanding individuals who have achieved success in clinical practice, research, and/or teaching to advance cancer care. Read more.

Acuitas Therapeutics, Inc. has received the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Greater Vancouver Chapter’s Giving Hearts Award: Outstanding Corporation. Read more. Acuitas has also been named one of Canada’s Most Admired™ Corporate Cultures by Waterstone Human Capital. Congratulations! Read more.

Kudos to Axolotl Biosciences, who won the Start-Up Award at the Formnext Additive Manufacturing expo in Frankfurt, Germany! Read more.

Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. is celebrating 10 years listed on NASDAQ under the ticker symbol XENE. Its milestone anniversary was commemorated with a photo in Times Square. Read more.

Congratulations to Dominik Witzigmann, PhD, CEO of NanoVation Therapeutics, who was listed among the Highly Cited Researchers in 2024! Read more.

Dr. Patricia Janssen, Founder and CEO of SmartParent Mobile Health Inc. has been named a Leader in Digital Health by Digital Health Canada. She is being recognized for her contribution to the advancement of digital health in Canada through leadership, influence, involvement, and impact. Read more.

People on the Move

Professor Janet Hemingway, a world-renowned leader in tropical medicine and vector-borne diseases, has joined Eyam Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics’s Board of Advisors. Read more.

Applications Open

Applications are open for New Ventures BC’s IP Pathways Certificate Program—a brand-new education series designed to equip startups and scaleups with the fundamentals of intellectual property, IP strategy, and business growth. Learn more.

The College and Community Innovation (CCI) program’s College and Community Social Innovation Fund (CCSIF) grants 2025 competition is now open. CCSIF proposals should facilitate collaborative and innovative research to address challenges in community innovation. Apply by February 26, 2025 before 8 PM ET. Learn more.

Apply now for the J. Andrew McKee Fellowship Program in Type 1 Diabetes. The objective of the fellowship is to attract new qualified, promising post-doctoral scientists entering their professional career in the T1D research field to join the Breakthrough T1D Centre of Excellence at UBC. Applications close February 27, 2025 at 5 PM ET. Learn more.

Attention healthcare community! Communitech’s Call for Solutions is live! It is seeking tech companies that can help improve various aspects of patient experience, including patient scheduling, education, feedback, and flow and bed management, along with wait times. Apply by December 3. Learn more.

ISCT is excited to unveil 41 abstract awards, totaling $38,000 USD in funding, to highlight exceptional research. These awards provide funding to enable researchers to present their work to a global audience at ISCT 2025 New Orleans, the premier cell and gene therapy translation event. Submit your abstract by January 10, 2025. Learn more.

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

Member Spotlight

Lumira Ventures is Canada’s largest and most active healthcare venture capital firm that invests in North American companies developing innovative therapeutics and medical technologies whose products offer transformative improvements to patient health outcomes and meaningful reductions to the overall cost of healthcare delivery.

Lumira executes a proven, differentiated investment strategy as a lead investor and active partner to its portfolio companies who are driving forward the next generation of patient care. Since inception, Lumira’s portfolio companies have brought 40+ new therapies to market, impacting the lives of 1 billion patients globally, generating $65+ billion in cumulative revenue. Learn more.

Until next week!

LSBC Team

December 4 & 5 - Life Sciences BC, in partnership with Biotech Primer, is pleased to present BioBasics 101: The Biology of Biotech for the Non-Scientist.

This intensive two-day ‘master course’ is designed to help non-scientists gain a foundational understanding of the science that forms the backbone of biopharma so that you can converse more effectively with colleagues, clients, regulators, and scientists.

December 18 - We invite you to join us alongside your industry colleagues for an evening of relaxed camaraderie as we toast the holiday season at the annual Life Sciences BC Holiday Party.

Catch up with the community while indulging in light refreshments at the Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Downtown Hotel on Wednesday, December 18th, from 5:00 to 7:00 PM PT.

Tochtech Technologies Joins the CAN Health Network to Introduce Innovative Solutions for Senior Care

The Coordinated Accessible National (CAN) Health Network is excited to announce its partnership with Tochtech Technologies...Read more.

One in 20 People in Canada Skip Doses or Prescriptions Due to Cost

High costs keep one in 20 Canadians from being able to take their medications as prescribed, highlighting critical gaps in Canada’s healthcare system, according to new research from UBC published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal...Read more.

Lexaria’s GLP-1 Human Pilot Study #3 Completes Dosing as Scheduled

Lexaria Bioscience Corp., a global innovator in drug delivery platforms is pleased to announce that dosing has been completed for human pilot study #3 (the “Study”)...Read more.

Acuitas Therapeutics Named One of Canada’s Most Admired™ Corporate Cultures by Waterstone

On November 21, 2024, Acuitas Therapeutics, Inc. was named one of Canada’s Most Admired™ Corporate Cultures by Waterstone Human Capital...Read more.

UBCO Gut Health Research Moves from Lab to Real World

Dr. Deanna Gibson’s research in gut microbiome research is paving the path for a new class of therapeutics that can harness beneficial bacteria to treat inflammatory bowel disease, diabetes and mood disorders...Read more.

GlycoNet Investigator Named Tier 2 Canadian Research Chair

GlycoNet Investigator Dr. Chantelle Capicciotti, from Queen’s University, has been recognized as a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Chemical Biology, a prestigious honor awarded to emerging leaders in research...Read more.

FDA Grants U.S. Approval of Ziihera® (zanidatamab-hrii) for the Treatment of Adults with Previously Treated, Unresectable or Metastatic HER2-positive (IHC 3+) Biliary Tract Cancer (BTC)

Zymeworks Inc. announced, with Jazz Pharmaceuticals, that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted accelerated approval of Ziihera® (zanidatamab-hrii) 50mg/mL for injection for intravenous use...Read more.

Acuitas Therapeutics Honoured With Philanthropic Award

On November 15, 2024, Acuitas Therapeutics, Inc. received the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Greater Vancouver Chapter’s Giving Hearts Award: Outstanding Corporation...Read more.

Cancer-like Mutations in Healthy Cells Point to Origins of Breast Cancer

Researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC), BC Cancer, Harvard Medical School and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) have pinpointed what could be the early genetic origins of breast cancer...Read more.

Eupraxia’s DiffuSphere™ Technology Demonstrates Targeted Drug Release while Minimizing Systemic Exposure for a Period of More Than Six Months

Eupraxia Pharmaceuticals Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company, unveiled new pharmacokinetic (“PK”) data from its Phase 2a Eosinophilic Esophagitis (“EoE”) program...Read more.

Dr. Poul Sorensen Receives Esteemed Doctors of BC Terry Fox Medal

Dr. Poul Sorensen is the recipient of the 2024 Doctors of BC Terry Fox Medal, a prestigious award recognizing outstanding individuals who have achieved success in clinical practice, research and/or teaching...Read more.

Fund II: The Next Phase of Pender Ventures

Last week we announced that we have closed Pender Technology Inflection Fund II (PTIF II), our second venture fund, with over $100 million in commitments…Read more.

Labcorp Acquires Select Assets of Lab Works

Labcorp has finalized its acquisition of select assets and molecular testing location of Lab Works, an accredited independent clinical laboratory located in Birmingham, Alabama...Read more.

ALL Study Groups using DehydraTECH Processing Outperform Rybelsus® in Body Weight Control in Lexaria’s 12-Week GLP-1, Diabetes Animal Study

Lexaria Bioscience Corp. announces that it has received final 12-week body weight and blood sugar results from all 12 study groups of the recently completed diabetes animal study WEIGHT-A24-1 (the “Study”)...Read more.

Principal Scientist – Discovery Protein Sciences

The Therapeutic Discovery organization is seeking to fill a position at the Principal Scientist level in our Discovery Protein Sciences group at our Amgen British Columbia site in Vancouver, Canada...Learn more

Center of Excellence Postdoctoral Fellow – Immunogenecity Mitigation and Immunopeptidomics

We are seeking a postdoctoral fellow with previous training in immunology and biochemistry to help develop the next generation of screening tools to identify and quantify the presence of immunogenic sequences, motifs, and structures in candidate therapeutic molecules...Learn more

Product Project Manager

We are looking to add an experienced Full-Time Product Project Manager to join our amazing team and further our efforts in partnering with organizations in the pharmaceutical manufacturing and life sciences segment...Learn more

Senior / Research Technician, Preclinical

Reporting to the Scientist II, Preclinical, our Senior/Research Technician, Preclinical will be responsible for designing, executing, analyzing, and making recommendations on research protocols for our internal projects...Learn more

Sr. Research Associate, Oligonucleotide Chemistry

Borealis Biosciences is seeking a skilled and team-oriented senior research associate with expertise in oligonucleotide chemistry to join the chemistry group in Vancouver, BC...Learn more

Scientist, Bioconjugation Chemistry

Borealis Biosciences is seeking a skilled and team-oriented scientist with expertise in bioconjugation chemistry to join the chemistry group in Vancouver, BC...Learn more

Senior Human Resources Coordinator

The Senior Human Resources Coordinator is responsible for ensuring the entering and coordination of data, documents and processes into the various HR systems in an accurate and timely manner to ensure flawless execution...Learn more

Senior Director/Executive Director, Analytical Development

We are seeking a Senior Director/Executive Director, Analytical Development to join our CMC team. The incumbent will be responsible for leading a team of analytical development scientists and external FTEs and for ensuring that robust analytical methodology is developed and validated...Learn more

iMaster Health is a leading provider of virtual healthcare solutions, specializing in pulmonary rehabilitation for individuals with chronic lung conditions such as COPD, asthma, interstitial lung disease, cystic fibrosis, and bronchiectasis.

Our innovative platform combines evidence-based exercise programs, educational resources, breathing techniques, and lifestyle tools, all designed to be accessible from the comfort of home. With a focus on improving health outcomes, reducing hospital readmissions, and enhancing quality of life, iMaster Health empowers individuals to take control of their lung health and achieve lasting progress. Learn more.

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