May 1 marks the annual World Asthma Day. In keeping with this year’s theme, “You Can Control Your Asthma,” ISRAEL21c presents the top 10 Israeli innovations making that goal more attainable for the approximately 250 million to 300 million people suffering from the inflammatory lung condition.

Asthma is the world’s most common chronic disease among children. In the United States alone, 13 million school days are missed each year due to asthma, and asthma accounts for about 10.1 million missed work days for adults every year.

Here are just some of the ways Israeli ingenuity is helping to prevent asthma and simplify diagnosis, monitoring and treatment.

1. Deep Breeze

Or-Akiva-based Deep Breeze has revolutionized how asthmaand other chronic lung conditions are monitored in the hospital and at home. It records acoustic lung vibrations through external radiation-free sensors, then converts the vibrations into images and quantitative data.

Deep Breeze is used at hospitals in the United States and more than a dozen other countries for non-invasively triaging, diagnosing and managing patients rapidly and accurately.

The new Breeze@home works on the same principle, only it’s smaller and cheaper. Sensors inside a custom-tailored vest collect lung-function data and transmit it via an incorporated smart phone or tablet computer to the patient’s healthcare provider. Once on the market, this advancedwireless telemedicine monitoring system will allow many people to be monitored continuously without the need for hospitalization.

2. Personal Wheezometer

If a child wakes up wheezing from an asthma attack, how can parents and physicians judge if it’s mild enough to be handled at home or serious enough to warrant an emergency room visit?

Quantifying the severity of asthma is easier thanks to KarmelSonix, an international medical device company with R&D, engineering, quality assurance and clinical support staff in Haifa.

The company makes a portable Personal Wheezometer for spot checks at home and the physician’s office; the WHolter wheezing and cough recorder, which monitors and stores breathing data for eight to 24 hours to detect exercise-induced or nocturnal asthma; and PulmoTrack, in use at US hospitals to monitor small children, the elderly and acute asthmatics.

3. A greener inhaler

In 2006, Israel’s Teva Pharmaceuticals introduced the ProAir HFA Inhalation Aerosol — an environmentally friendly device for delivering inhaled asthma medication. The previous year, the FDA had announced a ban on inhalers containing ozone-depleting chlorofluorocarbon (CFC).

Teva then partnered with the American Lung Association to help some 20 million asthma patients transition to the new inhaler. It offered a patient assistance program, complete with a toll-free helpline, to teach consumers how to obtain, use and clean the new inhalers, as well as teaching them the differences between the old and new products.

4. Salt therapy

Asthma can be relieved by salt therapy, a natural remedy for respiratory and sinus problems dating back to salt caves in Middle Ages Greece. Inhaling microscopic particles of sodium chloride-rich rock salt dries up and disinfects mucous membranes in the sinuses and lungs.

Israeli expert Baruch Bekker opened the first Israeli salt room in Haifa in 2000, followed in 2009 by Breathewell clinics in Modi’in and at the Jerusalem BioPark at Hadassah University Medical Center. The Jerusalem sitewas the first such facility in the world with both speleotherapy and halotherapy rooms. The former is constructed with large blocks of salt that naturally emit salt particles into the air; the latter features salt-coated walls and a salt generator that crushes the salt and blows the particles into the air.

Additional Breathewell clinics have since opened in Israel, and the entrepreneurs behind the initiative have been introducing the concept to theNew York area, where it’s not nearly as well known as in European and Asian countries. Israel remains one of the only countries in the world where salt therapy is covered by national health insurance plans.

5. AirBase

There is a clear connection between air quality and asthma, but monitoring air pollution has been an expensive proposition — until an Israeli company’s novel, low-cost device came along to provide real-time information on air quality anywhere.

AirBase Systems co-founder Irad Kuhnreich had asthma as a child and also has two kids with the condition. A graduate of the Technion, he decided in 2009 to tackle the problem using the latest nanotechnology to fashion tiny, highly sensitive sensors.

The small plug-and-play CanarIT models (one for indoors, one for outdoors) use patented algorithms to identify pollution patterns and rate the threat, wirelessly transmitting graphic reports delivered to computer or handheld device. It also suggests simple, smart ways to reduce exposure to air pollution, such as closing windows on particularly smoggy days.

6. Contact-free respiration monitor

Three of the four founders of Ramat Gan-based EarlySense have children who suffer from asthma. They saw the need for a smart contact-free respiratory monitoring system to help parents and doctors identify deterioration in their children’s condition and prevent or minimize an attack before it happens.

The first EarlySense system went on sale in the United States in 2008, and it appeals not only to parents but also healthcare professionals in clinics, nursing homes and hospitals. The monitor slips under the mattress and automatically measures the patient’s breathing and heart rate.

7. Antibody against asthma

In 2007, Hebrew University pharmacology PhD candidate Ido Bachelet – now a senior lecturer at Bar-Ilan University – worked with research colleague Ariel Munitz to designed a small antibody fragment that can target the cause of asthma and allergies rather than merely the symptoms as current medications do.

Still under development with the expectation of proceeding to clinical trials, the antibody works on the receptor protein on the surface of mast cells, the cells responsible for asthmatic and allergic reactions such as stuffy nose and airway constriction.

In animal studies, this antibody eliminated four different types of allergic diseases. In addition, when severely asthmatic mice received the antibody in nose drops, their health was restored in less than two months.

8. Citrus oils

According to a 2004 Technion study, a key to preventing asthma might be found in a lemon. Inhaling limonene, the main component found in the essential oil of citrus, prevented asthma symptoms in animals that inhaled it. The findings were published in the journal Bioorganic and Medicinal Chemistry.

Lead researcher Prof. Ehud Keinan studied the connection between ozone and asthma and other lung disorders, concluding that the higher incidence of asthma in urban areas has to do with the absence of natural “ozone scavengers” produced by plants. Ozone can cause inflammation of the lung’s membranes, and limonene is a particularly effective ozone scavenger. In rats with induced asthma-like symptoms, limonene inhalation prevented asthmatic symptoms and worked as an anti-inflammatory.

9. Germ-slaying ozone

Ozone on lung membranes is a bad thing. But ozone in water is a good thing because no pathogen can survive it. That’s the concept behind Greeneng Solutions, an Israeli company that manufactures ozone-based cleaning systems to purify water in restaurants, hotels and hospitals without chlorine or ammonia.

What does that have to do with asthma? Studies have shown that swimming in chlorinated pools may trigger asthma and other respiratory problems from chlorimines, harmful chemicals formed by chlorine coming in contact with organic substances. Greeneng’s upcoming Ozopool product would largely replace chlorine as a swimming pool disinfectant. It’s expected to be approved shortly by the Israeli Ministry of Health.

10. Third-hand smoke

Everyone knows that “second-hand” smoke breathed by people in the same area as smokers is a serious health hazard. Scientists from Haifa’s Technion-Israel Institute of Technology discovered that even “third-hand” smoke – the invisible remnants of cigarette smoke on household surfaces — increases the risk of asthma and other respiratory problems in non-smokers.

Dr. Yael Dubowski and her colleagues reported in the journal Environmental Science & Technology that nicotine interacts with the ozone in indoor air to form potentially toxic pollutants on furniture, carpeting and food. The scientists said that the risk for babies crawling on carpets, and for people napping on tainted sofas, is especially concerning.

No matter how many times their parents may tell them to “stand up straight,” thousands of teens with a severe form of the spinal curvature called scoliosis can’t do so without costly six-hour surgery – and even then, the deformity may not be perfectly corrected.

Straightening the spine is going to get much simpler when Israel’s new ApiFix implant passes successfully through the trials and approvals stages.

ApiFix involves minimally invasive surgery, which minimizes risks, scar size, complications, recovery time and cost. ApiFix system incorporates a miniature ratchet mechanism that enables incremental changes over several months, resulting in a better outcome than the standard procedure that costs upward of $100,000.

“One of the limits of the technology to correct scoliosis today is the need to make a correction in one surgery,” says ApiFix founder Uri Arnin, a medical devices designer.

“When you do it this way, you can properly address the bony element of the spine but you ignore the soft tissue — the ligaments and muscles that work against the correction you want to perform. Soft tissues take time to become flexible. If you do it over a period of days or weeks, they relax enough to realign themselves in the correct position.”

This was the concept he presented a year and a half ago to Dr. Yizhar Floman, a leading Israeli back surgeon. “We’d know each other more than 10 years, and have cooperated in other spinal projects,” Arnin tells ISRAEL21c.

The two men pooled their engineering and medical expertise to create a device geared toward adolescent patients. “Younger ligaments are easier to manipulate and the quality of the bone is much better,” Arnin explains.

Backed by Israeli expertise

Rather than the current method of fusing several vertebrae using an average of 20 bone screws, the ApiFix method uses just two screws to secure a small expandable titanium rod to the backbone, inserted through a small incision. A patented control mechanism enables the surgeon to lock or unlock the rod via a needle procedure to allow for incremental corrections.

The company is starting clinical trials in Hungary and Romania, where the approval process is comparatively fast. “In Israel it would take about a year, and in Hungary and Romania the surgeons are very experienced,” says Arnin.

“We have enough funding to complete trials on four patients, because each surgery costs $20,000 to $25,000. Based on the initial outcome, we hope to raise additional money and do trials on 30 patients with two years of follow-up. If we can get $100,000 or $200,000, we could complete CE certification within half a year and start selling ApiFix in private centers.”

The company was accepted a year ago into the Trendlines Group’s government-funded Misgav Venture Accelerator in northern Israel. Working on a lean budget of half a million dollars, ApiFix relies on subcontractors who’d previously worked with Arnin.

The eventual payoff could be significant, given a $600 million market in the United States and an additional estimated $300 million market elsewhere. About 40,000 people undergo surgery for scoliosis correction in the US every year. Arnin hopes to start the lengthy process of gaining US Food and Drug Administration approval once ApiFix has data from 30 patients.

He emphasizes that the device will be manufactured in Israel. “The level of technicians and machinery and knowledge we have here is top notch on a world level. We have no reason to outsource it abroad because we have great capabilities right here.”

Arnin has learned that the area of spinal technology is years behind other medical advances. “There is almost no sophisticated technology available, and I think such a project as ApiFix could contribute a lot to the standard of care in this field.”

Hydroelectricity is among the cleanest of today’s clean energies. As water flows through a hydraulic turbine connected to a generator — often at a dam — its kinetic energy creates electricity, and it emerges at the other side no worse for the wear. This is a wonderful way to produce power in places blessed with raging rivers.

Israel isn’t, which would make it an unlikely place for a breakthrough in hydroelectric technology. But HydroSpin, based at Kibbutz Lavi in northern Israel, has come up with a new way to power a “smart water network” (SWAN) by marshaling the flow of water in pipes.

“Our system generates one to five watts of electricity,” says HydroSpin CEO Gabby Czertok. “That’s enough to power a network and send the data forward every five minutes or so, instead of once a day in other smart water network systems.”

Water shortages require managers to keep an eye on leaks and water quality, while too much rain can overwhelm water distribution and sewer services. SWANs ensure that every drop is accounted for, with sensors providing real-time data on leaks, water pressure, usage and water quality.

Most SWANs run on batteries, but sooner or later, batteries die and have to be replaced or recharged. That’s a major hassle and expense, and since SWANs do not constantly update servers, a problem in a water or sewage system could remain undetected for days because of a dead battery — sort of defeating the point of the SWAN.

One solution is batteries that can be recharged via attached solar panels. But Czertok says that solar energy doesn’t play well with SWANs. “There is a major problem with theft of the solar panels and batteries, and the sensors on the network are disabled when their power source is removed.”
HydroSpin team
The HydroSpin team. Gabby Czertok is second from left; Dani Peleg is at extreme left.

Czertok says that theft is the top impetus for water managers to seek alternative power sources like HydroSpin, a solution that is unique in the world of alternative energy.

Continuous data

“We concentrate on small-scale power production using water as it flows through pipes,” says Czertok. “Managers can add our device to their existing SWANs, anywhere on the network, and our device will generate enough power to support low-energy devices throughout the water network; such as sensors, probes and transmission devices.

“With HydroSpin, sensors and measuring devices are no longer limited to locations that have accessibility to electricity, while the data received from monitoring is no longer limited by the amount of energy available through batteries. Data can now be transmitted continuously, giving customers visibility of their network and sensors 24/7,” Czertok adds.

The process and device are patented, and the device does not stop the flow of water through the pipes.

Czertok, who has years of experience in high-tech, is a big believer in the product invented by his colleague, HydroSpin CTO and founder Dani Peleg.

“Dani has been in the water business for 15 years, and was always frustrated by the issue of batteries dying in the field, so he decided to do something about it, coming up with one of the most innovative energy technologies available today,” Czertok says.

It’s so innovative, in fact, that HydroSpin’s relatively new device — the company has been around only since 2010 — was chosen as one of the 45 greatest Israeli inventions for display at Jerusalem’s Bloomfield Science Museum, along with venerable “veteran” inventions like the disk-on-key, drip irrigation and Better Place electric car network.

HydroSpin is a member of the Kinrot Technology Ventures incubator, which is largely dedicated to funding companies with innovative water technologies.

The device is showing up in more and more SWANs – in England, Spain, and other places. “Smart water networks are a major trend,” Czertok says. “The market for this is going to quadruple by 2020, and will be worth $20 billion. We are riding the cusp of something big that is happening throughout the world.”

Just in the last week, Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomlin made reference to the biotech industry as an important part of their economic development strategy. As the economy continues to slowly chug upward, job creation will undoubtedly continue to be a watchword for lawmakers.

Governor Nixon presented his State of the State address last night, in which he outlined his Missouri Works strategy, a comprehensive study to create career opportunities. An important component of his strategy is to train more workers for high-tech careers and jump start job-creation in science and technology.

Governor Nixon stated, “One pillar of Missouri Works is to accelerate investment in high-growth industries like science and technology. With more than 1,000 agribusiness, life science and biotech companies, Missouri is already home to some of the brightest minds and innovators in the world. With the passage last year of the Missouri Science and Innovation Reinvestment Act, we are poised for rapid progress. As part of Missouri Works, my budget includes $4 million in seed capital to invest in attracting the very best science talent to Missouri. By speeding the flow of innovations out of the lab and into the marketplace, we’re growing these industries today and creating the high-tech jobs of tomorrow.”

Special thanks to MO BIO for the heads-up on Governor’s Nixon’s above statement.
2012 State of the State Address at the Missouri State Capitol

Gov. Jay Nixon delivers the State of the State address at the State Capitol in Jefferson City, Missouri on January 17, 2012.

Just last week, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomlin’s State of the State address noted the importance of home-grown bioscience and innovation industries:

“We must also continue to bridge the gap between our education system, its research components and the potential for new business development with, job creation. One of the best examples of the fusion of these three areas can be found in Morgantown at Protea Biosciences. Protea was launched as a spin-off from West Virginia University in 2001. It was largely financed by a loan from West Virginia Jobs Investment Trust. Protea was recently recognized as one of the Top Ten Innovative Technology Companies in the world for the life sciences.

Governor Earl Ray Tomblin delivers his 2012 State of the State Address at the State Capital in Charleston, West Virginia on January 11, 2012.

This recognition was for the development of a first of its kind imaging technology that allows for real-time imaging of live cells. The result is that Protea, a start-up company nurtured here in West Virginia, will revolutionize the precision and speed by which cancer is diagnosed and monitored.

Protea represents in every way what I know West Virginia can produce with smart partnerships between our colleges, universities and the private sector.”

The conference brings together a diverse international audience, with 50 percent of all participating companies from Asia, and more than 75 percent of attendees representing pharmaceutical and biotech companies. The past two BIO Asia conferences hosted more than 1,000 partnering meetings each year, which represented a 30 percent increase from 2009.

The past several years have brought about big changes in the biotech industry in Japan. In 2005, the biotechnology market in Japan was estimated at 1.76 trillion yen (approximately 22.6 billion U.S. dollars). Since 2005, the market has grown substantially and many new emerging companies have opened their doors. The earthquake in 2011 presented the financial markets with a roadblock, and venture capital also slowed to a crawl. Now experts are trying to predict what the future holds for Japan and Asia overall.

The BIO Asia program will feature discussions on the latest deal-making trends and outlook for the next 5-10 years, highlights include the following:

Opening Plenary Session: Cross-Border M&A – Takeda/Nycomed

Nominated to be the IN VIVO Blog’s M&A Deal of the Year for 2011, Takeda’s $13.7B acquisition of Nycomed is the largest cross-border transaction by a Japanese company and provided Takeda with greater infrastructure in Europe, an immediate entry into emerging markets, and an immediate increase in cash flow. The deal provided a hefty return to Nycomed investors, and even yielded a coveted “Private Equity Deal of the Year” award at the European M&A awards for primary investor Nordic Capital. This deal both expands Takeda’s global footprint and reinforces Japan’s global leadership in the biopharma industry. Senior executives crucial to the execution of this stellar deal will conduct a deep-dive on the deal terms and integration process.

Panelists:

Ken Araki, Senior Director, Head of Corporate Project Management, Corporate Strategic Planning, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited
Gunnar Gårdemyr, VP, Head of Global Licensing Business Development Operations, Takeda Pharmaceuticals International

The New World of Pharma Collaborations

This panel will illustrate a set of new types of collaborations that bring together funding and know-how to address pharma’s needs in the world of patent expirations, lower R&D productivity, and other pipeline challenges. This unique panel will feature 3 parties and 3 separate deals that have been completed among them. Two of these deals are very recent, and Bio Asia will be the first public platform in which this new development model and two of these deals will be discussed. More details will be announced in coming weeks prior to BIO Asia.

Panelists:

Robert DeBenedetto, CPA, President & CEO, SFJ Pharmaceuticals
Rami Suzuki Ph.D., Senior Director of Business Development Department, Eisai Co, Ltd.
Johan Westblad, M.Sc., MBA, is Associate Director, Business Development at Quintiles Japan

The Next Frontier—Asia in 5-10 Years

Asia has long been thought of as the next frontier for the biotech industry with large pharma and investors staking their claim over the last decade in Japan and more recently, in China. Korean biotech is rapidly becoming a real player as well, so what can we expect to see from this growing market in the next 5-10 years? Will the landscape evolve similar to that of Europe and the US, with biotech epicenters, such as Boston and San Francisco? When will home-grown novel products reach market and which parts of Asia will they come from? Will sufficient capital markets exist to grow and sustain life sciences companies? Pharma executives, investors and other industry leaders will convene to discuss how the biotech landscape will evolve in Asia in the next 5-10 years.

Moderator:

David Flores, Co-Founder, President & CEO, BioCentury Publications, Inc.

Panelists:

Paul B. Bolno, MD, MBA , Vice President, Worldwide Business Development, Head of Asia, GlaxoSmithKline PLC
Paul Hudson, President, AstraZeneca KK
Kewen Jin, Managing Director, Nimbus Innoworks
Joong Myung Cho, PhD, President & CEO, CrystalGenomics, Inc

To learn more about the BIO Asia International Conference, registration and up-to-date program information, please visit the web site here. Advance media registration is available here. Registration is complimentary for credentialed members of the media.

The Scientist Mentoring and Diversity Program (SMDP) encourages graduate and post-doctoral science students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups to consider careers in biotechnology. Thirty students will be awarded scholarships for the year-long program. A vital component of the program is student attendance at the BIO International Convention, which will be held in Boston, June 18-21, 2012.

“Minorities are underrepresented in the biotechnology industry as in many other science, technology, engineering and math professions, and the biotechnology industry is doing something about it,” says Scott May, executive director at the International Center for Professional Development. “This effort is important for many reasons, but in particular, a diverse workforce is more productive as it brings a larger pool of ideas, skills, and experiences that collectively increase the knowledge base required for scientific innovation.”

Minority populations in the United States experience higher rates of mortality due to diseases such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and HIV/AIDS. These disparities may be partially attributed to a low number of minorities in the biomedical workforce. Increasing the diversity of perspectives in science research will lead to better opportunities for scientific advancements and eventually reduced health disparities among ethnic and racial groups.

In addition to three days of career training, the Scientist Mentoring & Diversity Program will provide participants with personalized mentoring and direct access to industry contacts. Participants receive scholarships to attend the SMDP training and the 2012 BIO International Convention. They also receive one year of mentoring and access to an exclusive online mentoring portal that provides ongoing support and connectivity.

The Lead sponsors of the 2011-2012 Scientist Mentoring and Diversity Program are BIO and Amgen. Additional SMDP sponsors include Johnson & Johnson, Baxter, Onyx Pharmaceuticals, Deloitte, and Howard University. Sponsors of the program receive extensive ongoing professional development for their mentor employees and easy access and recruitment of pre-qualified and top-quality ethnically-diverse researchers.

“This initiative has enjoyed the support of the industry for more than a decade,” says May. “We are currently seeking the support of other companies who want to join us in this important effort.”

ICPD also supports the annual Diversity Summit held at the BIO Convention. The summit brings science and healthcare thought leaders together to address health issues affecting underserved populations.

This year ICPD will launch a Scientist and Mentoring and Diversity Program training session focused on careers in the medical device industry. It will be held in conjunction with AdvaMed: The Med-Tech Conference in Boston, MA.

For more information, visit the International Center for Professional Programs at www.icpdprograms.org.

In the U.S., this point was underscored throughout 2011 as continuing global economic uncertainty, critical public policy debates and the ongoing need for regulatory reform discouraged investment in our industry, making an already challenging capital formation environment even more trying.  A recent National Venture Capital Association study shows that investors are increasingly pulling out of biotech. VC financing is still down 25% from its 2007 peak. Year over year, we continue to see fewer deals being done. The IPO window remains tough and selective, with companies taking a 30% haircut on their asking (filing) price to lure cautious investors.

Throughout the past year, BIO worked tirelessly to advocate for public policies designed to improve the odds for biotech companies by encouraging investment in innovation, and reforming the regulatory review process to ensure timely, science-based and patient-focused decision-making.

In 2011, BIO released our five-year plan and worked with our member companies, our allies and Congress to turn our proposals into legislation. Our recommendations are specifically designed to create new models to encourage investment in innovation and to accelerate the discovery of scientific breakthroughs.  As I write this post, we expect legislation to be introduced early next year.

We also negotiated a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) agreement and continued to work on healthcare reform implementation, with a specific eye on the impending release of biosimilars guidance from the FDA. Additionally, we worked successfully this year to support passage of Patent Reform legislation, while fighting against reimbursement cuts by Congress, and addressing myriad appropriations issues.

Most recently, we worked with Congress to pass legislation that reauthorizes the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant program, ending the year on a high note that will provide critical funding for small companies that may not otherwise survive.

As we look ahead to 2012, BIO will work for Congressional passage of the PDUFA package, and support legislative proposals that reflect the underlying principles of our five year plan.  We also will continue to push for extending and expanding the Therapeutic Discovery Project (TDP) tax credit to provide critical R&D funding to emerging biotech companies. The TDP program, enacted in 2010, is an example of the type of policies necessary to spur continued medical innovation, while at the same time protecting and growing high-paying U.S. jobs. The TDP program provided $1 billion in research grants and credits for small biotech companies pursuing new therapies for diseases such as Alzheimer’s, HIV/AIDs, Parkinson’s and MS.

Other BIO policy priorities include ensuring the National Institutes of Health have sufficient funding to sustain the public-private collaboration that is transforming biomedical discoveries into innovative treatments for patients. We also will work to ensure that Congress provides the FDA with the resources it needs to keep pace with rapidly evolving biomedical science and fulfill its vital health and safety mission. Working closely with our members, we will remain engaged as the Department of Health and Human Services moves to implement the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.In collaboration with our state affiliates, we will continue to work with state governments seeking to grow their biotech sectors as part of their economic development and job creation strategies.

Despite the challenging environment for capital formation, public policy and regulatory issues, our industry continues to make breathtaking scientific breakthroughs.  Several key approvals in 2011 highlighted the scientific progress our sector is making, particularly in the areas of personalized medicine and companion diagnostics. BIO believes drugs approved with companion diagnostic tests are the next wave of medicine and will significantly improve patientoutcomes. This year alone, the FDA approved two new drugs that completely eliminate the hepatitis C virus from patients; one of the new drugs is from Merck and the other from Vertex.

The promise of biotechnology remains as strong as ever but there is much work to be done.  At BIO, we will continue to engage with public policy leaders in Washington and throughout the world to fight for public policies that encourage innovation and enable our members to develop breakthrough technologies that save lives and transform our world.

March 5-6, 2012

Local & Global Pharma , Medtech and Finance Companies meet in Israel to talk business AND walk the path of history

Press release

In today’s challenging market the Israeli Biomedical industry is becoming ever more attractive to global companies and investors looking for concrete business dealings such as: Mergers, Acquisitions, Creative partnering models, Alternative finance and Investments, In- out licensing, IPO, Exit and other deals that will increase the value of their companies.  

BioInvest Israel^TM 2012 that will take place on March 5 – 6, 2012, at the Dan Carmel hotel in Haifa,  is another  initiation from  The T.B.N. Group (www.thetbngroup.com)  considered the leading business development company in Israel within the biomedtech arena, and is also the firm behind Circle of Life – the first members club of Israel’s life science industry (www.circleoflife.co.il)

BioInvest Israel^TM 2012 – partnering conference is an international gathering of the Investment & Corporate Communities with the Israeli Life Sciences industry organized in response to the growing demand for an efficient healthcare partnering forum where Investors, Medtech  and Biopharma  companies  can meet for focused and defined  business talks pre- qualified and arranged  to explore partnership and business dealings.

“The reasons our partnering conference is getting much attention and interest ” said Sigal Weisswasser President of The T.B.N Group  ” is due to our profound understanding of the industry’s needs along with our active involvement and connections that put together a special blend of local and global Medtech , Pharma  and Finance companies ( Vc’s, Insurance groups, banks ..) that look for one another especially these days.

“In addition” said  Weisswasser  “our very successful cooperation with EBD Group (the global partnering event organizer) whom we represent  in Israel for many years now, allow us to offer a different kind of top of the line international partnering event using the exceptional partneringOne software to maximize the pre- qualified meeting opportunities to all participants”.

Sigal also added ” BioInvest Israel is another exciting opportunity for us to place Israel as a center for business dealings within the innovative life science industry, and being a strong believer in my industry, It is important for me that companies from around the world will come over here to meet us in person and learn that we are so different than the way  we appear on the news.  They will find an interesting and colorful country comprises of nice and warm, open and creative people that  look forward exploring business ventures with” .

To support its statement, BioInvest Israel will offer the event attendees a unique tour in Northern Israel on March 7^th “Walking the path of History”  that is sponsored by the City of Haifa and getting much interest.

For further information:

Sigal Weisswasser – sigal@thetbngroup.com  Tel: + 972 3 9032204   www.bioinvestisrael.com