New Study Reports Colorado Now Ranks 11th in U.S. for Bioscience Venture Capital Investments

Gov. Bill Ritter, the Colorado BioScience Association and Colorado Office of Economic Development publicly released the Colorado Bioscience Roadmap 2008 at “Bioscience Day at the Capitol,” on Friday. The announcement is made by John Collar, Executive Director of CBSA, who says the Colorado Bioscience Roadmap 2008 is an updated version of the 2003 report, Colorado’s Place in the Sun: An Action Plan to Grow Colorado’s Bioscience Cluster, prepared for the CBSA by the national Battelle Technology Partnership Practice organization.

“Among the most impressive findings, the new study reports $1.3 billion was invested in Colorado bioscience companies 2002 through Q2 2008, ranking Colorado 11th in the U.S. for bioscience venture capital investments,” Collar explains. “The new report shows us that Colorado is indeed on the right path to becoming a top-ten bioscience hub and pinpoints strategic areas where we need to focus our immediate attention during the next five years to position the bioscience sector as a key driver of Colorado’s economy.”

"More than 18,000 Coloradans are now involved in this field,” Gov. Ritter said. “We want to continue this industry growth trend and build upon our successes. Using the updated action plan will allow us to be more targeted and strategic in our planning, as well as to better compete at a national and international level.”

Link to the release

Bell Aquaculture Completes Corporate Headquarters and Processing Facilities in Redkey, IN

Bell Aquaculture, owner and operator of the nation’s largest yellow perch (Perca flavescens) farm, has completed build out of its corporate headquarters and processing facilities in Redkey, Indiana. Darien (Illinois)-based Wight & Company, began work on the 28,000-square-foot Redkey construction project in July, four months after Bell Aquaculture announced its launch in March.

The announcement is made by Michael Miller, Bell Aquaculture President & COO, who says construction was completed on schedule in Redkey; the complex is about five miles from the fish farm production facilities in Albany.

PR Newswire

Inside INdiana Business

Denver-Based SDR Ventures Retained to Initiate $15 Million Equity Raise for Bell Aquaculture

Bell Aquaculture, owner and operator of the nation’s largest yellow perch (Perca flavescens) farm, has retained SDR Ventures, Inc., a Denver-based investment bank, to raise $15 million of equity capital. The announcement is made by Michael Miller, Bell Aquaculture President & COO, who says this equity raise is the first step in scaling the yellow perch farm from a current annual production level of 208,000 pounds of fillets per year to 8.5 million pounds of fillets per year by 2015.

“Rarely do you see a young company with the focus, commitment and vision exhibited by Bell Aquaculture,” Chris Bouck, SDR Ventures founder, says. “Through significant capital investment and partnerships with the leading minds in the industry, Bell Aquaculture has perfected the model for a profitable, large-scale indoor water-recirculating aquaculture farm. We look forward to securing the capital, and more importantly, linking Bell Aquaculture with a financial partner, or partners, that share the Company’s vision and commitment.”

Read the BusinessWire Release

Absolutely PR Places Denver Acupuncturist in National Women's Magazine

Absolutely PR, with the help of a Profnet lead, successfully placed Dr. Martha Lucas, a Denver acupuncturist, in an article in the January 26th First magazine for women, on sale nationally on newsstands through Jan 25th. The article, by Brenda Kearns, explains how acupuncture cuts allergic reactions by 76%.

"We've been assisting Martha with PR -- plus enjoying helpful weekly acupuncture treatments -- since 2001," says Maggie Holben, Absolutely PR owner/founder. "First has a 1.3 million circulation and gives Martha excellent exposure both locally and nationally. On the national front, Martha conducts seminars for cosmetic acupuncture and pulse analysis."

Link to the Dr. Martha Lucas website

Absolutely PR Owner/Founder Maggie Chamberlin Holben, APR, Appointed to Second Three-Year Term on The Colorado BioScience Association Board

Maggie Chamberlin Holben, owner/founder of Denver public relations consulting firm Absolutely Public Relations, has been appointed to a second three-year term on the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA) Board of Directors. As a board member of the CBSA since 2005, Holben serves as chair of the association’s Communications Committee and assists with media relations efforts for the organization.

In 2008, Absolutely PR's CBSA Colorado Rankings campaign was featured in Medical Device Daily; Externship campaign in BioOptics World, Nature Biotechnology and BioWorld Perspectives; and a CBSA bylined article for Drug Discovery & Development. Further, in the Denver market, CBSA enjoy numerous placements this year, including most recently the Denver Post feature on the CBSA/BioWest Venture Showcase competition and new executive director Q&A, and the Denver Business Journal exclusive of the John Collar Executive Director announcement in late November. Colorado Public Radio in Denver and Boulder both ran features about CBSA and its BioWest Venture Showcase competition, plus 9News/My20's Kyle Dyer aired an interview about the new CBSA Career Fair debuting at the 2008 BioWest Conference & Expo.

Since 2005 when the CBSA’s formal media relations program launched by Absolutely PR for CBSA, there have been 523 recorded print editorial media placements, which is the equivalent of at least $433,076.59 if the same amount of space was purchased as advertising. These print placements total 34,715,218 in circulation exposure (metrics updated as of December 12, 2008).

In addition to traditional mainstream media targets Absolutely PR has also made extensive use of the new media information pipelines for CBSA, including the Colorado BioScience Association LinkedIn group, managed by Holben -- http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=98468&trk=anet_ug_grppro; a blogspot newsfeed -- http://coloradobio.blogspot.com/; and ongoing Twitter posts for CBSA pitches and placements, plus announcement tweets throughout the 2008 BioWest conference, Nov. 13 and 14.

Absolutely PR offers DenverPRNewsroom.com - PublicRelationsNewsroom.com and Expert411.com to help clients achieve media awareness success. The company blogs placements and postings here at http://denverpr.blogspot.com/ and on Twitter at http://www.Twitter.com/DenverPR

Read the PRWeb Release

2008 -- fun stuff for @DenverPR aka Maggie Holben, APR

Absolutely PR Owner/Founder Maggie Holben (@DenverPR on Twitter) got the special opportunity to meet megaTwitter person @GuyKawasaki -- even sit by him at the Innovation Luncheon he keynoted at the Colorado BioScience Association's BioWest 2008, November 13 in Denver. Guy Kawasaki (seen with Maggie in the photo) is the accomplished author, Apple Fellow and Business Innovator who is the creator of the amazing new Blog Magazine site called AllTop.com. Maggie has served on the CBSA's board of directors since 2005 (she was appointed to a second three-year term in 2008) and has provided media relations consulting to the association the entire time. She was introduced to CBSA by medical device manufacturer Baxa Corporation, an Absolutely PR client since 2003. "I'm so very glad I said yes to both Denise Brown, founding CBSA executive director, and Marian Robinson, Baxa Corp Marketing VP, when they asked me to participate in CBSA," Maggie says.

Other good news in 2008 -- Absolutely PR welcomed Bell Aquaculture, Albany, IN, to its client list.

Denver's Baxa Corp Announces 2009 Course Dates for its STAR Center® Training Facility

Englewood, Colo., December 17, 2008 – Baxa Corporation has published the 2009 course dates for training at its STAR (Skills Training, Academics and Resources) Center. The STAR Center, a premier facility designed for cleanroom and pharmacy practice demonstration, is located at the company’s headquarters south of Denver, Colorado. For 2009, Baxa and USP (United States Pharmacopeia) together bring you sixteen opportunities to attend their flagship course, Aseptic Processing and Compliance Tools for USP 797. This two-and-one-half-day seminar will be taught by industry experts and members of the USP 797 Sterile Compounding Committee. In addition a companion course, Safe Handling and Preparation of Hazardous Drugs, will be offered six times during the 2009 calendar year with professional faculty.

PR Newswire

Global Trend of Farmed Fish Consumption Overtaking Wild-Raised Plays Out Domestically With Launch of Bell Aquaculture

This year for the first time, according to a recent Wall Street Journal/Europe article, humans will eat more farmed fish than wild fish. The announcement is made by Michael Miller, Bell Aquaculture President & COO, who says the WSJ referenced a report now being prepared by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and featured a cod farm in Norway. The same trend is playing out in the U.S./Great Lakes Region for yellow perch, as detailed in Food Engineering magazine, with Bell Aquaculture's launch this year of the nation's largest yellow perch farm. Plus, the same holds true for farmed salmon in the UK, according to The Times Online. Details of each article follows.

Link to the PR Web Release

Thank you Steve Raabe and the Sunday Denver Post

Yesterday's Sunday Denver Post featured a Q&A with the Colorado BioScience Assn's new Executive Director John Collar and DP Business Reporter Steve Raabe. The photo here was taken last week by Karl Gehring, The Denver Post.


Read the article: Biomedical work may eventually cut health costs - The Denver Post

Baxa Corp Leads With New Rapid-Fill Colored Labels Product At ASHP In Orlando

Baxa Corporation announces its focus on new Rapid-Fill ASF colored label and Productivity and Compliance Tools (PACT) products at the 2008 American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Mid-year Clinical Meeting and Exhibition beginning today at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL. Also featured in Baxa booth #2249 are the Exacta-Mix™ 2400 Automated Compounder and Abacus™ TPN Calculation Software.

Read about in on PR Web

Baxa Corporation Announces Co-Marketing Agreement With Industry Leaders Pharmacy OneSource, Inc, and ClinicalIQ, LLC

Englewood, Colo., December 3, 2008 -- Baxa Corporation has teamed up with industry leaders ClinicalIQ, LLC and Pharmacy OneSource, Inc., to convey a complete compliance solution for the latest updates in United States Pharmacopeia (USP) 797 regulations. The alliance among these industry-leading companies provides health-system pharmacies with the tools to stay compliant with the standards set forth by USP. Each company focuses on one of the three regulatory requirements of USP 797: personnel training, facility design and quality documentation. These companies' products and services are designed to work in tandem, simplifying the requirements and helping users meet pharmacy-specific USP 797 compliance needs.

Link to the full release

Biotech Executive John Collar Named Executive Director of the Colorado BioScience Association, Effective December 8 [November 21, 2008]

Following an extensive national search, John Collar, Chief Operating Officer of Westminster-based Matrilinex, has been named Executive Director of the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA), effective December 8, 2008. A seasoned senior executive, Collar has a background of solid corporate experience with a proven track record for strategic planning, managing to metrics, and c-level operational responsibilities. He succeeds Denise Brown, Founding Executive Director of CBSA, who retired from the association in September after six years of dedicated service.

Denver dBusinessNews

Fish-food startup hooks top prize

Oberon FMR, Inc., has won the fourth annual Dorsey & Whitney Venture Showcase Award at the 2008 BioWest Cconference & Expo in Denver. The announcement is made by Christine Shapard, Interim Executive Director of the Colorado BioScience Association (CBSA), who says the $10,000 Venture Showcase award was provided by the Dorsey & Whitney law firm and announced at the Colorado Bioscience Association (CBSA) 2008 Awards Dinner.

Denver Post

Denver Business Journal

Oberon's Win at #BIOWEST was picked up by the Denver Business Journal http://ping.fm/G4KhT

Baxa Adds colored syringe labels to its Rapid-Fill™ Automated Syringe Filler Line

Baxa Corporation is the first to provide colored labels for automated filling of sterile anesthesia syringes, with the addition of colored syringe labels to its Rapid-Fill™ Automated Syringe Filler offering. The system reduces pharmacy overhead for batching activities, while providing the opportunity for more adequate staff allocation and greater inventory control.

PR Newswire

Pharmaceutical Online

PadLock™ Set Saver for IV Safety

Baxa Corporation announces its launch of the PadLock Set Saver, the first and only aseptic IV administration set storage solution that can be swabbed and re-used. PadLock provides a secure seal for the end of the administration set, preventing contamination when the set is not being used for infusion. Effective for multiple uses, the Set Saver attaches to an IV administration set and replaces the need for sterile, single-use caps.

The innovative PadLock device is designed to promote best practice for aseptic IV administration set disconnections, preventing touch contamination and securing the IV line in between drug administrations. The Set Saver also eliminates the use of IV administration set caps, which are a known choking hazard. The PadLock Set Saver provides temporary aseptic storage of the IV administration line when disconnected from the patient, replacing the need for disposable caps to maintain aseptic procedure.

“Through independent testing, the PadLock Set Saver proved effective in preventing microbial contamination of the IV administration set fluid path,” states Megan Kleckner, Product Manager. “It also keeps supplies at the bedside, which is very convenient for nurses.” PadLock minimizes the need to replace administration sets due to improper capping and potential contamination, potentially saving hospitals thousands of dollars per year in reduced IV complications and product replacements.

Baxa Corporation is a world leader in developing innovative technology for the safe handling, packaging and administration of fluid medications in hospital and alternate-care settings. Renowned for enhancing patient safety and improving processes within pharmacy settings, with the PadLock Set Saver, Baxa brings expertise and experience to the patient bedside.

About Baxa Corporation

Baxa, a customer-focused medical device company, provides innovative, solution-based technologies for fluid handling and delivery. Its systems and devices promote the safe and efficient preparation, handling, packaging, and administration of fluid medications. Key products include the PadLock Set Saver, Rapid-Fill™ Automated Syringe Fillers, Exacta-Med® Oral Dispensers, MicroFuse® Syringe Infusers, Repeater™ Pharmacy Pumps, and Exacta-Mix™ and MicroMacro™ Multi-Source Automated Compounders; used worldwide in hospitals and healthcare facilities. Privately held, Baxa Corporation has subsidiaries and sales offices in Canada and the United Kingdom; direct representation in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and Switzerland; and distribution partners worldwide. Further information is available at http://www.baxa.com/.

Baxa Corporation Introduces New Enteral Dispensers to Prevent Tubing Misconnections

Englewood, CO, December 5, 2006 -- Baxa Corporation announces the launch of the first medication dispensers designed only for enteral feeding at the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) Midyear Clinical Meeting held this week in Anaheim, California. The new Baxa Exacta-Med® Enteral Dispensers feature a unique dispenser tip that cannot connect to a luer needle or needleless IV system. Their distinctive enteral marking, orange lettering and stripe coordinate with enteral tube sets; making them the safe choice for enteral fluid drug delivery, particularly in pediatric and neonatal applications where the majority of the oral and enteral doses are provided through a gastric tube.

On April 3, 2006, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) issued a Sentinel Event Alert warning of the significant risk posed by 'tubing and catheter misconnection errors.' In the Alert, JCAHO states that a standard luer syringe should "never" be used for oral medications or enteral feedings.

According to Katie Calabrese, neonatal nurse practitioner and Baxa product manager, "In addition to JCAHO, the UK National Health Service and the US Institute for Safe Medication Practice, among other recognized authorities, recommend the use of specialty dispensers for all oral liquid doses. Adding the distinctive coloring to the product further differentiates it for enteral applications only." The new Exacta-Med Dispensers, available in 20, 35 and 60 mL sizes, are individually packaged to reduce the opportunity for contamination prior to filling and administration.

Baxa enteral dispensers are syringe-like devices with a non-luer tip that will not accept a hypodermic needle or actuate a needless IV access port. They are designed specifically to provide safe and accurate delivery of enteral liquids, reducing the possibility of wrong-route administration through a patient's IV or epidural line.

Baxa Corporation introduced the Exacta-Med Oral Dispenser in 1975. Latex-free Baxa enteral dispensers fit the needs of pharmacy, nursing and outpatient caregivers for safe medication administration. The wider tip design of the Exacta-Med Dispensers was developed in cooperation with representatives and customers from large children's hospitals.
Baxa focuses on providing technology to health-system pharmacies that improves patient safety, reduces the risk of medication errors and facilitates compliance to USP, JCAHO and other regulatory requirements.

About Baxa Corporation

Baxa, a customer-focused medical device company, provides innovative, solution-based technologies for fluid handling and delivery. Its systems and devices promote the safe and efficient preparation, handling, packaging, and administration of fluid medications. Key products include Rapid-Fill™ Automated Syringe Fillers, Exacta-Med® Oral Dispensers, MicroFuse® Syringe Infusers, Repeater™ Pharmacy Pumps, and Exacta-Mix™ and MicroMacro™ Multi-Source Automated Compounders; used worldwide in hospitals and healthcare facilities. Privately held, Baxa Corporation has subsidiaries and sales offices in Canada and the United Kingdom; direct representation in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg and The Netherlands; and distribution partners worldwide. Further information is available at http://www.baxa.com/.

Countrywide Launches Auto Insurance in Colorado

Denver, CO, Nov 27, 2006 - Countrywide Financial Corporation (NYSE:CFC) - America's #1 home loan lender*-today announced that Countrywide Insurance Group's widely-anticipated auto insurance product is now available to consumers in the state of Colorado.

Colorado residents can now obtain an auto insurance quote from Countrywide Insurance Services, Inc. by calling a licensed auto insurance agent at (800) 669-6656. Residents can learn more about home warranty, homeowners, renters, and term life insurance products through these same licensed insurance agents or by visiting any Colorado financial center.

In addition to sophisticated rating technology that could potentially bring Colorado consumers better coverage and pricing than they can secure with their existing carriers, Countrywide is also offering discounts to current Countrywide customers that could potentially save them as much as 23% off of regular rates.

"In addition to helping Americans realize the dream of home ownership, Countrywide helps protect that dream through a wide variety of insurance offerings," said Bob James, president and chief executive officer of Countrywide Insurance Group. "Introducing our own auto insurance product allows us to tailor our offering to meet insurance needs that customers have shared with us. We believe that this knowledge, along with our A.M. Best "A" rating** and Countrywide's strong brand and established physical presence in Colorado, will help us attract new customers as well."

Countrywide Insurance Group will introduce the new auto insurance product in up to 25 additional states by the end of 2007.

Countrywide Insurance Services has helped a half million customers secure the right insurance products to protect their homes, apartments, cars, and other valuables for more than 35 years.

About Countrywide Insurance GroupCountrywide Insurance Group (CIG) makes available a wide variety of institutional, commercial, and personal lines insurance products to financial institutions, businesses, and consumers. CIG companies have demonstrated a commitment to policyholders and business partners for decades and provide a strong foundation for the delivery of new products through financial institutions, independent producers, and a full-service agency and commercial brokerage.

* America's #1 home loan lender as ranked for 2005 by Inside Mortgage Finance (Jan. 27, 2006), Copyright 2006.

**Property and casualty insurance companies of the Countrywide Insurance Group (also known as Balboa Insurance Group) are rated "A" (Excellent) by A.M. Best Company, an insurance rating and information service. An "A" rating represents A.M. Best's opinion that the underwriter has an excellent ability to meet ongoing obligations to policyholders.
For more information, visit http://insurance.countrywide.com.

ApopLogic Pharmaceuticals Wins the Second Annual Faegre & Benson Venture Showcase Award, Presented at BioWest 2006

Denver, CO, August 25, 2006 -- ApopLogic Pharmaceuticals (Aurora) won the second annual Faegre & Benson Venture Showcase Award at BioWest 2006. The announcement is made by Chris Shapard, bioscience director at the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), who says the $10,000 Venture Showcase Award was again provided by the Faegre & Benson law firm and announced at the Colorado Bioscience Association (CBSA) Awards banquet held Thursday evening at the Colorado Convention Center.

ApopLogic Pharmaceuticals is a startup phase biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapeutic products that target apoptotic cell death pathways found in tumor cells and proliferating immune cells (lymphocytes). The Company was formed in 2006 to capitalize on the intellectual property of its Founding Scientists and University of Colorado Cancer Center members, Richard C. Duke, Ph.D., Donald Bellgrau, Ph.D., Paul A. Bunn, M.D., Daniel Chan, Ph.D., Lajos Gera, Ph.D., Jaime Modiano, D.V.M., Ph.D. and John Stewart, Ph.D. Putting it most simply, ApopLogic induces cancer cells and autoimmune lymphocytes to commit suicide. Therapeutic products include:

• Breceptin: A novel neuropeptide growth factor receptor antagonist that targets a broad range of cancers.


• Cytonil: A proprietary combination of a cell-type specific growth factor and a cell signaling agonist to treat Sezary leukemia, cutaneous T cell lymphoma and psoriasis.


• Fasaret: A proprietary therapy based on Fas ligand, an apoptotic cell death-inducing molecule with unique pro-inflammatory properties, for the treatment of cancers.

Building on strong pre-clinical data, ApopLogic Pharmaceuticals is outlining detailed clinical development plans to rapidly move Breceptin and Fasaret into phase 1 human clinical trials that could begin within 12 months of series A financing.

ApopLogic Pharmaceuticals, LLC is a startup phase biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery, development and commercialization of therapeutic products that target apoptotic cell death pathways found in cancers, leukemias and lymphomas. The Company was formed in 2006 to capitalize on the intellectual property of its Founding Scientists and University of Colorado Cancer Center members, Richard C. Duke, Ph.D., Donald Bellgrau, Ph.D., Paul A. Bunn, M.D., Daniel Chan, Ph.D., Lajos Gera, Ph.D., Jaime Modiano, D.V.M., Ph.D. and John Stewart, Ph.D. Put most simply, ApopLogic is inducing rapidly dividing cells to commit suicide. Visit: http://www.apoplogic.com/.

Disc Protectors for DVDs and CDs

The Denver-based video production firm Co-founder and Co-Owner Matt King of Remember When now has the patent application published for a new line of products sold under the trade names “DiscProtectors, DiscShields and DiscPreservers.” The announcement is made jointly by King and his business partner, Fern Bray, who have run Colorado’s premiere film company for memorial tributes and life stories from their Aurora production facilities since 2000. Details regarding the recently published patent may be found by searching under the “Published Applications” section at http://www.uspto.gov/patft/index.html for United States Patent Application 20040262176. These new products are special cloths that fit between the readable side of the disc and the case. When in place, the special material helps keep the disc from being fogged by “off gas clouding” of the case over a period of time. The “DiscPreservers” will also help to prevent “disc rot” by keeping high humidity off the edge of the disc when properly placed in the case. Remember When DiscPreservers can be used to stack one disc on top of another to help prevent them from scratching each other. When sending discs through the mail, a “DiscProtector” would be inserted between each disc preventing them from becoming scratched. Or, a DiscProtector can be used when Storing on a spindle for discs without stacking rings, or on a desk. And finally, the disc is secured by the “DiscProtector” helping to keep the disc in place and taking the strain off the center hub, especially if dropped.
Remember When’s “Patent Pending” DiscProtector products come in both black and white material. Pricing is as follows: package of 10 DiscProtectors, $2.00; package of 25, $5.00; and package of 100, $18.00. Shipping and handling charges apply, plus sales tax for orders within Colorado. Contact information for purchasing the new products is found at http://www.rememberwhenvideo.com/ – click the “contact us” tab at the top of the page once getting to the Remember When website.