Diabetes and obesity are so closely related for so many millions of people, physicians and investors now sometimes talk about the “diabesity” epidemic. There are a lot of drugs out there for one condition or the other, and now San Diego-based Orexigen Therapeutics is attempting to make a case that its experimental drug could be … Continue reading “Orexigen Drug Shows Potential as “Two-Fer” Against Obesity and Diabetes”
Category: San Diego
Mushroom Networks Uses “Bonding” Technology to Pump More Data Through Bottlenecks
What San Diego’s Mushroom Networks does is something akin to IT alchemy. The company’s technology transforms data rates that trickle into its “black box” device from a variety of Internet connections into a broadband gusher on the other side, for the benefit of all the users on a business intranet or local network. The technology … Continue reading “Mushroom Networks Uses “Bonding” Technology to Pump More Data Through Bottlenecks”
26 Apps to Drive Your iPad Wild!
Being one of the earliest of early adopters—I got my first iPad about half an hour after they went on sale on April 3—I’m often asked by friends, family members, and readers about my favorite iPhone and iPad applications. I’ve written plenty of columns about iPhone apps, so now it’s the iPad’s turn. Given the … Continue reading “26 Apps to Drive Your iPad Wild!”
Multimeric Gets Innovation Grant
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has awarded an innovation grant worth $350,000 over two years to San Diego’s Multimeric Biotherapeutics to develop a vaccine against nicotine, and eventually other drugs of abuse. Multimeric says vaccines against nicotine are designed to generate antibodies that sequester nicotine in the blood and prevent the molecules from crossing … Continue reading “Multimeric Gets Innovation Grant”
Amylin Cuts 60 Jobs
San Diego-based Amylin Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMLN]]) has cut 60 jobs, or about 4 percent of its workforce, according to a recent story in the Union-Tribune. The cuts happened within a few specific areas of the company, including R&D, spokeswoman Anne Erickson said. “The R&D changes do not signal a move away from research at Amylin,” … Continue reading “Amylin Cuts 60 Jobs”
Intrigue, Fraud Surround Death of Biotech Angel Investor, Neurocrine Biosciences Signs Two Big Deals, Regulus Therapeutics Signs Sanofi-Aventis Deal, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
San Diego’s life sciences community and angel investors are watching transfixed as investigators unfold the suspicious death of La Jolla resident John G. Watson. We also saw some huge funding deals over the past week, and we’ve summarized it all for you here: —Carlsbad, CA-based Regulus Therapeutics announced a lucrative partnership with Sanofi-Aventis, the Paris-based … Continue reading “Intrigue, Fraud Surround Death of Biotech Angel Investor, Neurocrine Biosciences Signs Two Big Deals, Regulus Therapeutics Signs Sanofi-Aventis Deal, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Startup School, Round Two: The 2010 Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators
A common trait among entrepreneurs is their distaste for working alone. Fortunately, there are programs across the country that aim to surround startups with entrepreneur comrades, seasoned execs, and investors, to provide both community and guidance. We rounded up these programs last year in the inaugural Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators, and are back again … Continue reading “Startup School, Round Two: The 2010 Xconomy Guide to Venture Incubators”
Fixing the Broken Model: Look Inside Your Company
You know that ominous figure people always talk about, that one staggering number—$1.3 billion these days—that represents the cost to develop and market a drug? It is, to be sure, way too high and unsustainably so. The billions of dollars that have been invested to discover the next generation of blockbusters have, for the most … Continue reading “Fixing the Broken Model: Look Inside Your Company”
On-Ramp Wireless Raises $4.5M
San Diego’s On-Ramp Wireless, which launched its low-cost, long-range wireless networking technology last September, has raised $4.5 million out of a planned $18 million round of equity and debt, according to a recent regulatory filing. On-Ramp CEO Joaquin Silva did not respond right away to an e-mail seeking more information about the company’s fund-raising. On-Ramp, … Continue reading “On-Ramp Wireless Raises $4.5M”
SmartDrive Expands Venture Round
San Diego’s SmartDrive Systems, which uses video recording technology and web-based services to help reduce the operating costs of motor vehicle fleets, says in an amended regulatory filing that it has expanded its targeted funding to $28.5 million. The company, which has more than 350 worldwide employees, disclosed plans in December to raise as much … Continue reading “SmartDrive Expands Venture Round”
Investment Banking Advisor Points to the Exit for Venture-Backed Startups
Founders of venture-backed startups should be building their business to go public through an IPO, but it is far more likely they will get acquired instead, according to former investment banker Steve Fletcher, who is now a managing director in the San Francisco office of GCA Savvian Advisors. Fletcher, who was a keynote speaker this … Continue reading “Investment Banking Advisor Points to the Exit for Venture-Backed Startups”
Ceregene Gets $2.5M From Fox Foundation
San Diego-based Ceregene, which is developing gene therapy treatments for Parkinson’s and other ailments, says it is getting $2.5 million from The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. The company says it is conducting a mid-stage study that aims to deliver the neurotrophic factor neurturin to improve the status of degenerating neurons in the … Continue reading “Ceregene Gets $2.5M From Fox Foundation”
Nereus Raises $20M for Cancer Study
San Diego’s Nereus Pharmaceuticals says it has secured as much as $20 million in commitments for additional funding from its existing investors to fund a mid-stage trial of a drug candidate for treating non-small cell lung cancer. The company, which specializes in developing drugs from marine microbes, says it has enrolled 170 patients in its … Continue reading “Nereus Raises $20M for Cancer Study”
Consumer Genetics Needs More Transparency, Not Excessive Regulation
[Editor’s Note: Daniel MacArthur, a researcher at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Cambridge, UK, and the author of Genetic Future, co-wrote this post.] Are you ready for consumer genetics? Is your government? Recent announcements of federal investigations into the budding direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing industry suggest that authorities are preparing to increase regulation of … Continue reading “Consumer Genetics Needs More Transparency, Not Excessive Regulation”
Nereus Pharmaceuticals Receives $20,000,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1cb2eb05-5233-420d-9dff-69a124cf55ff&Preview=1 Date 6/23/2010 Company Name Nereus Pharmaceuticals Mailing Address 10480 Wateridge Circle San Diego, CA 92121 Company Description Nereus Pharmaceuticals is an innovative drug discovery and development company pursuing untapped sources of chemical diversity. Website http://www.nereuspharm.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $20,000,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Nereus has made significant … Continue reading “Nereus Pharmaceuticals Receives $20,000,000 New Financing”
TrustWave Acquires Breach Security for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f587bba6-d63a-4b77-9353-1596fc3e7f56&Preview=1 Date 6/23/2010 Company Name Breach Security Mailing Address 2141 Palomar Airport Road Carlsbad, CA 92011 Company Description Breach Security, Inc. provides next-generation web application security to protect privileged information. Breach, a leader in the emerging market for Intelligent Web Application Security, addresses todays security needs by delivering solutions for enterprises and … Continue reading “TrustWave Acquires Breach Security for Undisclosed Sum”
Man Charged With Fraud in Draining $7.5M From Angel Investor’s Account
San Diego authorities have charged a 59-year-old man with identity theft, saying he unlawfully transferred $7.5 million from a Deutsche Bank account by posing as the actual account holder—a retired San Diego biotech executive and angel investor who was found dead on June 8. San Diego police also are investigating the death of the executive, … Continue reading “Man Charged With Fraud in Draining $7.5M From Angel Investor’s Account”
From Pioneer in Internet Sales to a Giant Leap in Mass Adoption, SmartDraw Charts New Strategy in Graphics Software
Paul Stannard says communicating visually by using charts, graphs, and other information graphics is six times as effective as communicating by text alone. A picture is worth a thousand words, right? Yet even with the widespread availability of sophisticated software like Autodesk’s AutoCad, Adobe Illustrator, and CorelDraw to create diagrams and info-graphics, Stannard maintains that … Continue reading “From Pioneer in Internet Sales to a Giant Leap in Mass Adoption, SmartDraw Charts New Strategy in Graphics Software”
Regulus Therapeutics, Spinoff of Isis and Alnylam, Forms $750M MicroRNA Deal With Sanofi
Regulus Therapeutics has found its second big ally from Big Pharma. The Carlsbad, CA-based company has forged what it calls its most lucrative partnership yet to discover, develop, and someday co-market microRNA drugs with Paris-based pharma giant Sanofi-Aventis (NYSE: [[ticker:SNY]]). Regulus, formed in 2008 by Cambridge, MA-based Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALNY]]]) and Carlsbad’s Isis Pharmaceuticals … Continue reading “Regulus Therapeutics, Spinoff of Isis and Alnylam, Forms $750M MicroRNA Deal With Sanofi”
uSamp Garners $10,000,000 Series C Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=912ecaa5-39e6-4b7b-a145-a0b66bdfc2c1&Preview=1 Date 6/22/2010 Company Name uSamp Mailing Address 16501 Ventura Blvd. Encino, CA 91436 Company Description At uSamp, we believe that any research project, no matter how specific, can be solved by recruiting, surveying and rewarding online. And we built a business by circling the globe and recruiting 2 million informed and … Continue reading “uSamp Garners $10,000,000 Series C Financing”
Cadence Gets Option to Buy Incline
Cadence Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CADX]]), the San Diego-based developer of an intravenous form of acetaminophen for pain relief in hospitals, said today it has obtained an exclusive option to acquire Redwood City, CA-based Incline Therapeutics. Separately, Incline announced it has raised $43 million in Series A venture financing to develop its fentanyl iontophoretic transdermal system (Ionsys), … Continue reading “Cadence Gets Option to Buy Incline”
Fallbrook Moves Ahead With Chinese Bus Deal
In a move foreshadowed last month in its amended IPO filing, San Diego’s Fallbrook Technologies says today it has inked a deal with China’s Chengdu Bus Co. to put its accessory drive technology into buses made for use in the Chinese market by Chengdu. Bill Klehm, Fallbrook’s chairman and CEO, calls the memorandum of understanding … Continue reading “Fallbrook Moves Ahead With Chinese Bus Deal”
A Consensus of Three: Venture Capital Still Looking to Grab Rebound
Have we turned the corner on the recession? That was the big question for the out-of-town venture capital partners—including two from the San Francisco Bay Area—who came to San Diego last week to offer their perspective on the post-collapse generation of venture capital and technology innovation. “One thing that’s clear is that the other side … Continue reading “A Consensus of Three: Venture Capital Still Looking to Grab Rebound”
West Wireless Health Institute Gets $25M, Pervasive Raises $6M for Smart Grid Chips, Covario Rolls Out Buzz-Measuring Analytics, & More San Diego BizTech News
The West Wireless Health Institute, which wants to become a beacon for mobile health innovations that can help drive down the cost of healthcare, is off to a good start. Get the latest on their funding and partnerships, along with the rest of the news about San Diego’s technology innovations: —The Gary and Mary West … Continue reading “West Wireless Health Institute Gets $25M, Pervasive Raises $6M for Smart Grid Chips, Covario Rolls Out Buzz-Measuring Analytics, & More San Diego BizTech News”
MIT Enterprise Forum: Summer Wine Social
San Diego’s MIT Enterprise Forum hosts its signature wine social and networking event for San Diego’s technology and biotechnology community. Attended by more than 600 founders and executives of growth companies, business development personnel, investors, and service providers, this industry networking social offers an opportunity to connect in a relaxed and inspiring setting.
Creating and Communicating Value Messages
Having the capability to demonstrate your products’ value is only part of the solution to the challenge of getting customers to believe in your value story. A key to success in the implementation of a pricing and reimbursement strategy is to be able to present evidence of value in the context of a compelling story … Continue reading “Creating and Communicating Value Messages”
Bill Walton on the Winning Mindset
Bill Walton, who gained superstar status at UCLA under John Wooden and “the Pyramid of Success,” has acquired some notions of his own about a winning mindset. After undergoing surgery for excruciating back pain, Walton is now an active leader in the San Diego business community, serving as executive chairman of Connect’s San Diego Sport … Continue reading “Bill Walton on the Winning Mindset”
Biocom Legislative Roundtable and Lunch with U.S. Rep. Bob Filner
Congressman Bob Filner, D-Chula Vista, has been an active member of San Diego’s political scene for more than three decades and was first elected to Congress in 1992. He has been an outspoken advocate for health screening programs and research related to diseases, specifically directed to the African-American, Latino and Asian communities. Biocom has organized … Continue reading “Biocom Legislative Roundtable and Lunch with U.S. Rep. Bob Filner”
Wireless Health Expo and Presentation on Healthcare Reform
How does the recently passed Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act change the way San Diego’s mobile health and life sciences companies conduct business? CommNexus has organized a panel discussion that includes West Wireless Health Institute CEO Don Casey, Sharp Hospitals CEO Mike Murphy, and CareFusion CEO Dave Schlotterbeck. What are the opportunities, threats and … Continue reading “Wireless Health Expo and Presentation on Healthcare Reform”
Osmosis Membrane Summit
Norway’s Statkraft, Europe’s largest renewable energy company, has organized a two-day conference in San Diego that covers use of the osmotic effect in desalination and power production. The summit is part of the American Membrane Technology Association’s annual meeting. Recent university and industry research efforts aim to improve membrane properties and make it possible to … Continue reading “Osmosis Membrane Summit”
Connect’s 2010 Most Innovative Product Awards
Join Connect at a luncheon and award ceremony for the 23rd Annual Most Innovative Product Awards in eight categories: Action Sports Technologies; Aerospace and Security Technologies; Cleantech; Communications and IT; Life Sciences, diagnostic and research tools; Life Sciences, medical products; Software. More information and online registration is here.
Venture Summit: Life Technologies CEO Greg Lucier and Former Sen. Tom Daschle
The San Diego Venture Group’s eighth annual venture summit features former Sen. Tom Daschle, who will give a keynote address followed by a one-on-one chat with Carlsbad, CA-based Life Technologies CEO Greg Lucier. They are expected to discuss issues in healthcare, life sciences, cleantech, and international business growth. More information and online registration is here.
Maritime Robotics: Unmanned Underwater and Surface Craft
The Security Network and the San Diego chapter of the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) have organized two panel discussions on maritime robotics. Speakers from San Diego’s SeaBotix and invited speakers from UCSD’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography will address underwater uses for unmanned robotic vehicles. Speakers from Harbor Wing Technologies, Liquid Robotics, Lorimar, … Continue reading “Maritime Robotics: Unmanned Underwater and Surface Craft”
Energy Storage on the Grid: Industry Overview, Technologies, and Challenges
Developing technologies to store energy so the power grid can meet demand represents a major challenge in electricity distribution and a necessity for utilities facing a state mandate to get a third of their energy from renewable sources by 2020. CleanTALK San Diego, in partnership with PROVEN Inc., CleanVenture, and the Charged2020 conference, is hosting … Continue reading “Energy Storage on the Grid: Industry Overview, Technologies, and Challenges”
San Diego Police Investigating Angel Investor’s Death as Homicide
San Diego police have launched a homicide investigation into the death of John G. Watson, a retired biotech executive and board member of the San Diego Tech Coast Angels, according to members of the startup investment group who were close to Watson. Watson’s body was found in the bedroom of his La Jolla Apartment on … Continue reading “San Diego Police Investigating Angel Investor’s Death as Homicide”
West Wireless Health Institute Marks Its Debut With Swanky Soiree, Hints of Venture Fund
In early 2009, when the nation was in a full-blown recession, San Diego’s tech community was taken aback by the size of a $45 million grant that Midwestern telemarketing billionaires Gary and Mary West made through their family foundation to create the West Wireless Health Institute. Since then, Gary and Mary West have doubled their … Continue reading “West Wireless Health Institute Marks Its Debut With Swanky Soiree, Hints of Venture Fund”
Goodbye, Boston
Who was it who wrote, “If Silicon Valley didn’t exist, Boston would have to invent it in order to have someplace to feel inferior to”? Oh wait, that was me. It was a snarky thing to say—but it was back in February 2009, and I was feeling piqued at the time about calls for a … Continue reading “Goodbye, Boston”
San Diego’s Neurocrine Biosciences Scores Second Big Deal in Two Days
Neurocrine Biosciences, which looked like it was stuck perpetual retrenchment-mode, just pulled off its second big deal in two days. Yesterday, the San Diego biotech agreed to grant German drug maker Boehringer Ingelheim worldwide rights to experimental diabetes drugs. Neurocrine will get an upfront payment of $10 million and milestone payments of up to $225 … Continue reading “San Diego’s Neurocrine Biosciences Scores Second Big Deal in Two Days”
Ace Metrix Secures New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=88861224-16fb-464b-bea9-fb2f1b013ca6&Preview=1 Date 6/18/2010 Company Name Ace Metrix Mailing Address 1950 Sawtelle Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90025 Company Description At Ace Metrix, the ad guys joined with innovative researchers and technology experts to create a new way of providing traditional copy testing, tracking studies and trending analysis. Website http://www.acemetrix.com Transaction Type Venture Equity … Continue reading “Ace Metrix Secures New Round”
West Wireless Health Institute Gets Another $25M, Announces New Partnerships
If nothing else, the West Wireless Health Institute knows how to make a splash. The San Diego-based nonprofit research institute, which made its debut in March 2009 by announcing a $45 million grant, is hosting an open house this evening that represents the first chance most people have had to tour the recently remodeled, three-story, … Continue reading “West Wireless Health Institute Gets Another $25M, Announces New Partnerships”
Cyntellect Names Zarrabian as CEO
San Diego-based Cyntellect, a privately held biotech commercializing products for life sciences, stem cell research, drug discovery, and biopharmaceutical production, today named Saiid Zarrabian as president and CEO. He replaces co-founder Fred Koller, who is taking over as Cyntellect’s chief technology officer. Zarrabian, who has been consulting with Cyntellect since March, was previously COO at … Continue reading “Cyntellect Names Zarrabian as CEO”
Brain Cells’ Antidepressant Disappoints in Clinical Study, Otonomy Hears the Sound of Money, Cognionics Wins Startup Competition, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
A spate of financings dominated the headlines in the past week. We’ve got it summarized for you here. —Brain Cells’ experimental antidepressant was no better than placebo in a mid-stage clinical trial, but the results hinted the drug might help people with a combination of depression and anxiety. Thecompany hasn’t decided what to do next, … Continue reading “Brain Cells’ Antidepressant Disappoints in Clinical Study, Otonomy Hears the Sound of Money, Cognionics Wins Startup Competition, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Covario Adds Analytics to Help Customers Measure Social Media ‘Buzz’
San Diego’s Covario, the venture-backed analytics company that specializes in helping customers improve the results of their search-based marketing, has added to its Software-as-a-Service capabilities for tracking online search and display advertising. The company says its latest innovation, the Covario Social Media Insight (SMI) solution, is an extension of its Web-based platform for Cross Media … Continue reading “Covario Adds Analytics to Help Customers Measure Social Media ‘Buzz’”
GreenWave Reality Secures $11,000,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=253c2cf3-9591-4460-a56e-577393f08246&Preview=1 Date 6/17/2010 Company Name GreenWave Reality Mailing Address 39 Parker Irvine, CA 92618 Company Description GreenWave Reality is a global innovator in the emerging Home Energy Management market. GreenWave Reality provides an affordable, easy-to-use, standards-based platform that allows utilities enhance their relationship with consumers and better balance energy on the grid … Continue reading “GreenWave Reality Secures $11,000,000 New Funding Round”
Neurocrine Inks Deal with Abbott
Abbott Laboratories will pay Neurocrine Biosciences (NASDAQ:[[ticker:NBIX]]) of San Diego up to $575 million for exclusive worldwide rights to develop and commercialize Neurocrine’s experimental oral drug for endometriosis, a painful condition in which uterine tissue grows outside the womb. Neurocrine will receive $75 million upfront, up to $500 million in milestone payments, and royalty payments on … Continue reading “Neurocrine Inks Deal with Abbott”
Boatracs Completes Spinout From AirIQ
San Diego’s Boatracs, which develops data communications and vessel monitoring technologies for the maritime industry, says it is now an independent and privately held company, after completing a spinout from AirIQ, its former Toronto-based corporate parent. Financial terms were not disclosed. Boatracs was one of the first San Diego companies to adopt Qualcomm technology. It … Continue reading “Boatracs Completes Spinout From AirIQ”
Trius Gets FDA Clarity
Trius Therapeutics, the San Diego-based developer of antibiotics, said today it has agreed with the FDA on a special protocol assessment that establishes the design for a pivotal clinical trial. The clarity from the FDA is vital to Trius and its lead drug candidate, torezolid phosphate. The company postponed its IPO plans in March after … Continue reading “Trius Gets FDA Clarity”
We Got Deals: Financings Breathe New Life Into Local Life Sciences Companies
We turned up some recent funding deals for several San Diego life sciences, including venture funding for a medical device startup, and financing deals for one company developing anti-cancer drugs and another developing medical diagnostics. Here’s a rundown of what I found: —Access Scientific, a San Diego-based medical device startup, has collected more than $2.6 … Continue reading “We Got Deals: Financings Breathe New Life Into Local Life Sciences Companies”
Predictive Biosciences Pockets $25M Round, Launching First Bladder Cancer Tests
Predictive Biosciences has found a key piece of the puzzle to commercialize its lab tests for bladder cancer. The Lexington, MA-based company has raised $25 million in a Series C round of funding, giving the firm cash to start selling its bladder cancer test and continue research and development of its diagnostics technology, CEO Peter … Continue reading “Predictive Biosciences Pockets $25M Round, Launching First Bladder Cancer Tests”
How to Find Balance in Biotech, Between Owning It All or Finding a Partner
For startup biotech companies, there are many benefits to licensing drug candidates to major drug developers. Partners can be an excellent source of non-dilutive financing, provide the company with validation, and ensure that the drug candidate will have the support it needs to reach the marketplace. However, it is important for biotech entrepreneurs to avoid … Continue reading “How to Find Balance in Biotech, Between Owning It All or Finding a Partner”