Arizona Bioscience News: NIH funding increases in Arizona; Omicron’s impact; Venture Madness presenters

January 13, 2022

By Matt Ellsworth

From aging to gathering health care data, Arizona sees surge in federal research funding / Phoenix Business Journal

The National Institutes of Health awarded more than $302 million over 544 awards for research projects in Arizona during the 2021 fiscal year, enabling researchers in the state to better cure disease, improve medicines, and understand the microscopic building blocks of the human condition.


What you need to know about boosters and vaccines now that the omicron variant is dominant in Arizona / Arizona Republic

Arizona researchers and experts weigh in on omicron’s rapid emergence and unprecedented spread, and the role of existing vaccines and any future shots. Read more: Even lowball estimates show omicron COVID-19 cases setting records 


People who have caught omicron could be better protected against other COVID-19 variants / KJZZ

Dave Engelthaler, director of the Infectious Disease Division at the Translational Genomics Research Institute, talks about the omicron variant as area hospitals continue to operate on the margins. Read more: Omicron COVID-19 variant now overwhelmingly dominant in Arizona, sequencing labs say


ASU researcher helps pinpoint why some COVID-19 vaccines may cause blood clots / KJZZ

Arizona scientists have been involved in a project to learn why a tiny percentage of people who have received the Oxford-AstraZeneca or Johnson & Johnson vaccines had negative reactions that resulted in life-threatening blood clots.


Venture Madness announces 16 presenters for annual Valley pitch contest / Phoenix Business Journal

Invest Southwest, the nonprofit organization that hosts Venture Madness, has announced the names of 16 companies, including eight medical and tech firms, that will present at the event in Phoenix in March.


UArizona center, law firm collaborate on startup assistance program / Phoenix Business Journal (AZ Inno)

The University of Arizona Center of Innovation and law firm Perkins Coie LLP are looking for a startup team to receive a prize package worth $25,000, including $15,000 in cash, admission to the center for a year, business guidance, and a legal project budget.


Scottsdale medical device manufacturing company gets new majority investor / Phoenix Business Journal (AZ Inno)

TPG Capital has agreed to take a majority stake in Scottsdale-based Confluent Medical Technologies, which works with many of the world’s leading device makers as well as smaller companies doing work in neuromuscular, structural heart, electrophysiology, aortic invention, peripheral vascular and ENT fields.


Northern Arizona Healthcare outlines additional plans for new FMC campus / Arizona Daily Sun

Northern Arizona Healthcare is meeting with the community about its planned development of a new Flagstaff Medical Center campus, which will include a new hospital, health and wellness village, and ambulatory care center.


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