MindPharm Blog

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MindPharm is partnering with a growing developer and manufacturer of rapid detection technologies. The company is developing a novel biosensor technology which allows for extremely rapid detection of bacteria, viruses, and protein targets at previously unseen levels of sensitivity and specificity.  With facilities in Baltimore, MD the following position will have the opportunity to lead the ongoing development of the existing technology as well as new applications.

 

Location:

Baltimore-Metro, MD

 

Reporting to:

CEO-President

 

Technology Description:

The patented biosensor system is capable of generating a result in less than five minutes, making it one of the most rapid methods available.  In addition, biosensors can be engineered to detect one target or several targets of interest simultaneously and used to perform a wide variety of bioassays.  Designed for portable, real-time detection, minimally skilled personnel can perform tests at the site of sampling using small, transportable instrumentation.

The company has obtained exclusive rights to the technology in several fields and focuses on applications requiring a high degree of speed, portability, and sensitivity in testing capabilities. The company's technology is expected to have broad applications in  Chemical-Biological Threat Detection and Food Safety Testing.

 

Position Description

The Scientific Director will be a have the skills and experience needed to understand and speak in depth to both the supporting biology and  potential  applications of the Company technology with PhD's at our customer locations. This individual will be responsible for the technology transfer and development of new assays and applications as well as the engineering and manufacturing of consumable and instrument components.

 

1. Work closely with the executive team to develop company strategy and milestones
2. Work closely with consultants/collaborators to continue the development of the existing patented technology and the application to new industry needs
3. Work with Manufacturing partners to integrate new methods into the manufacturing process

 

Key Results Areas:

1. The design and development of new products using the company's patented technology.  Work with the  Sales & Marketing and R&D teams to develop and launch new products
2. Providing technical presentations, for clients and at trade shows
3. Collaborate on the ongoing development of engineering process and validation of the consumable and robotic components
4. Identifying new opportunities for applying the technology to meet market opportunities
5. Writing grant applications
6. Keeping abreast of competing technologies in the public and private sectors
7. Identifying and sharing market-sensitive information and intelligence to the management team, and suggesting new strategies where appropriate

 

Functional Responsibilities:

Engineering

Applications;

1. Supporting customers and sales team
2. Optimize sample preparation protocols
3. Identify novel isolation and concentration methods for use in commercial products

Instrumentation;

4. FFT and algorithms
5. Photon counting
6. Firmware rev control

 

Cell Based Assay Development

Developing robust assays for targeted pathogens;

1. Design and create new B-cell lines in partnership with the Antibody production contractor
2. Development of MaB's & identifying target, elisa testing of AB's, western blots genetic engineering and transfections
3. Providing technical assistance to collaborators
4. Buffers development

 

Background

Education:

1. PhD in life sciences with industrial experience in cell biology and molecular biology ( >7 years of experience)
2. The successful candidate will have both bench skills in hybridoma development and clonal selection as well as IVD product development and engineering skills.
3. Aspects of this work will be accomplished through partners and contractors therefore skills in Project Planning and Management are highly desirable.
4. Working knowledge of microbiology and immunology mechanisms
5. Familiarity with Design Control, in vitro diagnostics or product development

1. Strong verbal and written skills
2. Effective presenting technical information to client groups

 

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

 

 

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MindPharm is partnering with an emerging tissue based cancer diagnostics company engaged in the development of a Personalized Medicine Theranostic Testing System. We wish to identify candidates for the Senior Scientist who will lead the laboratory research and development efforts.

 

Position Title: Senior Scientist

Reports to:  VP Product Development

Direct reports:  4 FTE's; 1 PhD, 3 BS levels

Location: Baltimore, MD

 

Summary:

We are seeking a highly motivated and entrepreneurial individual who will be responsible for leading the scientific development of a commercialization-focused cancer diagnostic platform.  The successful candidate will have industry based experience in cancer cell biology, signal transduction,  oncopharmacology and/or molecular biology and will be expected to manage laboratory personnel, projects and operations.

 

Essential Functions:

1. Plan and direct the Proof of Concept research for the SnapPath biomarker testing system

 

2. Develop and maintain positive relationships with valued academic, government, and industry collaborators to achieve company business goals and development milestones

 

3. Develop and lead an efficient research team through hiring, coaching, counseling and monitoring employee performance

 

Minimum Requirements:

4. PhD with 5 years, or MS with 10 years of biopharmaceutical or molecular diagnostic related industry experience in oncology or cancer-related drug or product development

 

5. Prior experience investigating solid tumor biology and/or cell signaling processes within cancer cells

 

6. Experience with drug response assay development and biomarker discovery

 

7. Experience with protein assay platforms such as ELISA as well as multiplex assay platforms, cell culture, xenograft, IHC and PCR

 

8. Results oriented, entrepreneurial and self-motivating with a desire to work in a challenging and fast paced environment

 

9. Strong leadership, motivational and interpersonal skills

 

10. Strong analytical skills with the ability to develop strategies, tactics, and metrics driven implementation plans

 

Work Environment:

11. Shared open office and laboratory environment
12. Early stage start?up tissue-based molecular diagnostics and personalized medicine company
13. No relocation funding is available

 

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

 

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MindPharm is partnering with an emerging tissue based cancer diagnostics company engaged in the development of a Personalized Medicine Theranostic Testing System. We wish to identify candidates for the Senior BioMedical Engineer who will lead the engineering team.

 

Position Title: Senior BioMedical Engineer

Reports to:  VP Product Development

Direct reports:  3 FTE's planned; 1 BS level current

Location: Baltimore, MD

 

Summary:

We are seeking a highly motivated and entrepreneurial biomedical engineer to lead the engineering, verification and validation activities supporting the commercial development of the SnapPath? platform.

 

Essential Functions:

1. Lead multiple, simultaneous medical device development projects and provide technical input at all stages of the product life cycle (prototype, intermediate and production level)

 

2. Engineering for Assay Platform Development and Validation (includes instrument and consumables):
3. Pre-analytical; Sample capture & preparation functions
4. Post-Analytical; Tissue sample stabilization, testing & preservation for storage

 

5. Establish and implement the appropriate regulatory standards (FDA, ISO) in developmental and/or sustaining engineering projects including written protocols, test methods, assembly processes, the Design History File (DHF) and related records

 

6. Develop procedures for testing products including  performance, acceptance and rejection criteria

 

7. Provide engineering support for product launch and production
8. Develop and maintain positive relationships with valued academic, government, and industry collaborators to achieve company business goals and development strategies

 

9. Develop and lead an efficient research team through hiring, coaching, counseling, monitoring employee performance

 

Minimum Requirements:

10. MS/ BS degree in biomedical engineering from an ABET accredited college

 

11. 7+ years biopharmaceutical or medical device-related industry experience, preferably in oncology or cancer-related product development devices and diagnostics

 

12. Hands-on verification and validation experience as well as a successful track record of product commercialization

 

13. Demonstrated experience with FDA Design Control and ISO 13485 requirements for medical devices.

 

14. Willingness to work with fresh human tissues and live animals is mandatory

 

15. Regulatory standards (FDA, ISO) in developmental and/or sustaining engineering projects including written protocols, test methods, assembly processes, the Design History File (DHF) and related records

 

16. Project management experience & documentation with design controls and risk analysis

 

Work Environment:

17. Shared open office and laboratory environment
18. Early stage start?up tissue-based molecular diagnostics and personalized medicine company
19. No relocation funding is available

 

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

Sea snail venom has been previously used to make an injection for pain, but this formulation has a much wider range of potential applications, including peripheral neuropathy.  

Sea snail saliva may become new treatment for most severe pain

Scientists have developed a new version of a medication, first isolated from the saliva of sea snails, that could be taken in pill form to relieve the most severe forms of pain as effectively as morphine but without risking addiction. An article on the topic appears in the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News

This article covers the advances being made in individualized (patient-specific) cancer vaccines as well as the science behind them.  Most of this generation of vaccines will be used following radiation and chemotherapy to clear residual cancer cells  from the body, but the potential exists for future vaccines that would replace chemo entirely.

New Cancer Vaccine Kills Lymphoma, Now in Phase III Clinical Trials | Singularity Hub

Accentia Biopharmaceuticals and Biovest International have developed a non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma (NHL) vaccine that teaches the body?s immune system to identify and destroy tumor cells while leaving healthy tissue intact. The vaccine, called BiovaxID, is already in Phase III clinical trials.

Autopsy results have confirmed that scans performed using the dye while the patient was still alive map the distribution of plaques in the brain.  The dye is currently in clinical trials by Pfizer, Eli Lilly, and Bristol-Myers


Squibb,

Brain dye can spot Alzheimer's - FierceBiomarkers

A study has found that researchers can detect Alzheimer's disease with a brain scan using radioactive dye called AV-45 or florbetapir, which was developed by Philadelphia-based Avid Radiopharmaceuticals.

No recommendations are being made until there is independent confirmation, but the results are encouraging.

Fish Oil May Reduce Risk of Breast Cancer

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, Wash., led by Emily White, Ph.D., a member of the public health sciences division, asked 35,016 postmenopausal women who did not have a history of breast cancer to complete a 24-page questionnaire about their use of non-vitamin, non-mineral ?specialty? supplements in the Vitamins and Lifestyle (VITAL) cohort study.

After six years of follow-up, 880 cases of breast cancer were identified using the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results registry.

Regular use of fish oil supplements, which contain high levels of the omega-3 fatty acids, EPA and DHA, was linked with a 32 percent reduced risk of breast cancer. The reduction in risk appeared to be restricted to invasive ductal breast cancer, the most common type of the disease.

A research team at Karolinska Institutet has been able to cluture human stem cells on a matrix of a single human protein: laminin-511.

Breakthrough in stem cell culturing

"Now, for the first time, we can produce large quantities of human embryonic stem cells in an environment that is completely chemically defined," says professor Karl Tryggvason, who led the study. "This opens up new opportunities for developing different types of cell which can then be tested for the treatment of disease."

Together with researchers at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, the researchers have also shown that in the same way they can culture what are known as reprogrammed stem cells, which have been converted "back" from tissue cells to stem cells.

Researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center have developed a new molecule based on migrastatin derived from Streptomyces bacteria.  The study reveals how the new agent works to prevent metastasis, by attacking an actin cytoskeletal protein critical for cell movement.

Anti-Cancer Agent Stops Metastasis In Its Tracks

Mice implanted with cancer cells and treated with the small molecule macroketone lived a full life without any cancer spread, compared with control animals, which all died of metastasis. When macroketone was given a week after cancer cells were introduced, it still blocked greater than 80 percent of cancer metastasis in mice.

MindPharm is partnering with a global leader in the development of and manufacturing services for primary cells for the research market and cell therapy. We have immediate openings in our Maryland facility for an R&D Scientist.

This individual will be responsible for managing a lab-based team and external collaborators developing new products for the ESC and iPS research market. This includes culture systems for both undifferentiated and differentiated cells, media development and cell-based assays. Candidates should have a Ph.D. in the Life Sciences or related discipline, with 3-5 years of relevant commercial experience, or MS/BS with 10+ years experience in the field.  Expertise in human pluripotent cell culture is required; experience with adult stem cells and other primary cells is desirable.  Additional requirements include strong supervisory and leadership skills, proven track record of developing and launching cell-based products, project management skills and communication skills.

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

MindPharm is partnering with a global leader in the development of and manufacturing services for primary cells for the research market and cell therapy. We have immediate openings in our Maryland facility for an R&D Scientist.

This individual will be responsible for managing a lab-based team developing and transferring processes for GMP manufacturing of cell-based therapeutics for external clients. This includes scale-up with closed systems, optimizing key culture parameters, identifying and testing appropriate raw materials, disposables and equipment, and developing and optimizing cell harvest and formulation.  Candidates should have a Ph.D. in the Life Sciences or related discipline, with 3-5 years of relevant commercial experience, or MS/BS with 10+ years experience in the field. Expertise in large-scale culture of stem cells is required; experience with GMP manufacturing, downstream processing and cell-based assays is desirable. Additional requirements include strong supervisory and leadership skills, project management skills and communication skills.

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

MindPharm is partnering with a global leader in the development of and manufacturing services for primary cells for the research market and cell therapy. We have immediate openings in our Maryland facility for an R&D Scientist.

This individual will be responsible for managing a lab-based team developing and transferring processes for GMP manufacturing of cell-based therapeutics for external clients. This includes scale-up with closed systems, optimizing key culture parameters, identifying and testing appropriate raw materials, disposables and equipment, and developing and optimizing cell harvest and formulation.  Candidates should have a Ph.D. in the Life Sciences or related discipline, with 3-5 years of relevant commercial experience, or MS/BS with 10+ years experience in the field. Expertise in large-scale culture of stem cells is required; experience with GMP manufacturing, downstream processing and cell-based assays is desirable. Additional requirements include strong supervisory and leadership skills, project management skills and communication skills.

For consideration please contact;

Stephanie Miller

MindPharm, LLC

www.mindpharm.net

410-448-4522

stephanie.miller@mindpharm.net

A California Institute of Technology (Caltech)-led team of researchers and clinicians has published the first proof that a targeted nanoparticle?used as an experimental therapeutic and injected directly into a patient?s bloodstream?can traffic into tumors, deliver double-stranded small interfering RNAs (siRNAs), and turn off an important cancer gene.


Caltech-led Team Provides Proof in Humans of RNA Interference Using Targeted Nanoparticles - Caltech

These results, published in the March 21 advance online edition of the journal Nature, demonstrate the feasibility of using both nanoparticles and RNAi-based therapeutics in patients, and open the door for future "game-changing" therapeutics that attack cancer and other diseases at the genetic level, says Mark Davis, the Warren and Katharine Schlinger Professor of Chemical Engineering at Caltech, and the research team?s leader.

Researchers at the Wistar Institute in Philadelphia found that mice lacking the p21 gene regain the ability to regenerate lost tissue, more or less like an amphibian.  

Humans could regrow body parts like some amphibians - Telegraph

According to the Wistar researchers, the loss of p21 causes the cells of these mice to behave more like regenerating embryonic stem cells rather than adult mammalian cells. This means they act as if they (are) creating rather than mending the body.

Their findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, provide solid evidence to link tissue regeneration to the control of cell division.

Vaccines that require refrigeration or freezing for storage add at least $200 million to the cost of distributing vaccines in developed countries this new preservation technique offers a solution.

New vaccine storage technology could revolutionize immunization in the developing world | Booster Shots | Los Angeles Times

British researchers have devised a way to capture vaccines in a glass-like membrane composed of sugar, a feat that could eliminate the need for refrigeration of vaccines and revolutionize their distribution in the developing world. Tests have shown that the technique can preserve vaccines for as long as a year at tropical temperatures, according to the report Wednesday in the journal Science Translational Medicine.