WEEKLY E-NEWS FROM THE NORTH CAROLINA BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER

IN FOCUS FEATURE

Biotechnology: the View from Salisbury

From Our Web Site

Duke to Lead $35M Study at North Carolina Research Campus
Duke University scientists will lead a biomedical research project funded with a $35 million gift by David H. Murdock, chairman and owner of Castle & Cooke, aimed at attacking diseases and maladies.

Written Comments on Proposed Bio Defense Facility Due Friday
The public has until Sept. 28 to send written comments to the federal Department of Homeland Security on North Carolina's bid to land the $450 million National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility near Butner in Granville County.
 
PRA International Relocating to Raleigh
PRA International announced it will to relocate its corporate headquarters from Reston, Va., to Raleigh by the end of 2007. The company plans to hire 500 employees in the administrative and operational fields during the next five years.

Chelsea Therapeutics Set for Patient Dosing in Phase III Trials
The Charlotte-based company will begin trials for Droxidopa in neurogenic orthostatic hypotension (NOH).

The Wall Street Journal Honors Advanced Liquid Logic
The Morrisville-based microfluidics firm was named as the runner-up in the Wall Street Journal's 2007 Technology Innovation Awards semiconductors category.

The Chapel Hill Project to Tackle Orphan Diseases
Asklepios BioPharmaceutical has created a non-profit organization to develop cell and gene therapies for orphan diseases by increasing the number of scientific collaborations.

Research: Injections of Immune Cells Beneficial in Cancer Battle
Dr. Zheng Cui, an associate professor of cancer biology and pathology at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, has conducted experiments that show immune cells from some people can be almost 50 times more effective in fighting cancer than in others.

In Focus

Biotechnology: the View from Salisbury

The Salisbury Post has published a five-article package on biotechnology development in the greater Charlotte area.

• Biotechnology Education - Our Hope for the Future
  "It's important to understand that biotechnology isn't a career option only for people with bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees. Biotech jobs do, however, require skills that can be honed in the growing number of educational programs here — and statewide."
  
  
• Marjorie Benbow Heads Biotech Office in Charlotte
  Marjorie Benbow, an executive with extensive experience in biotechnology research, business and technology development, is the director of the Greater Charlotte Office of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.
  
  
• Diverse Industries Use Biotechnology
  An analysis of North Carolina's biotechnology cluster shows the economic contribution of the state community college system's BioNetwork Initiative. These sectors claim a combined 60,682 jobs in North Carolina and are projected to add 14,911 jobs between 2006 and 2016, roughly a 25 percent increase over 10 years.
  
  
• BioWork Course Provides Overview
  BioWork, an introductory course for people interested in biotechnology, is under way at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College. Thirteen students are enrolled in the BioWork class that finishes up next week, and 15 students in the class that began in late August.
  BioWork Course Site
  
  
• Rowan-Cabarrus Prepares for Biotechnology Presence
  A profile of Ed Otto, director of the biotechnology program.

News From Other Sites

North Carolina’s Northeast Ripe for Biotech Industries
"The Northeast Commission led a forum with biotechnology consultants and regional stakeholders to validate a new industry niche in the biotechnology arena for North Carolina’s Northeast Economic Development Region"
From PR.com

Green Business Fund
"North Carolina taxpayers will be spending $1 million over the next year to help foster businesses considered environmentally friendly."
From The Free Press (Kinston)

Officials Solicit NBAF Input
"The Department of Homeland Security sought input from local residents on the proposed National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility Thursday night."
From The Red and Black (Athens)
Editor's Note: North Carolina and Georgia are among the five finalists for the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility. Federal officials held a public hearing on the project in Athens, Ga. last week.

New Life for Paper Mills: Ethanol Plants
"In the category of unlikely marriages, old-school paper mills and 21st century ethanol plants might seem like an odd couple. But the two share a certain chemistry that makes it possible for paper manufacturing mills to be converted to produce ethanol."
From the (Raleigh) News and Observer

Community Watch

• Dr. Sheela Sharma, senior research investigator in the Preclinical Prevention Research Program at The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences, was awarded $450,000 from the National Cancer Institute and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
• Ronny A. Bell, Ph.D., M.S., has been named director of the Maya Angelou Research Center on Minority Health at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center.
• Western Carolina University has established the Institute for Watershed Research and Management, where various parties will work to preserve regional water resources while ensuring economic prosperity.
• Biogen Idec, with production facilities in Research Triangle Park, announced a research collaboration with Johns Hopkins University's newly formed Brain Science Institute. The partnership will tackle neurodegenerative diseases.

Please send items for Community Watch to jim_shamp@ncbiotech.org.

This newsletter was sent on Thursday, Sept. 27, 2007. For the latest North Carolina biotechnology industry headlines, please visit the news section of our Web site.

Online subscription management is now available. We're still working on its functionality, so respond to this e-mail if you cannot change your preferences online.