VELCURA IN THE NEWS
The Great Lakes IT Report for Jan. 5, 2004 |
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| Velcura Therapeutics beefs up scientific advisory board: Ann Arbor-based Velcura Therapeutics Inc. today was to announce the appointment of three new experts to the company's scientific advisory board. They are Julie Glowacki, Ph.D., professor in the department of orthopedic surgery and professor in the department of oral-maxillofacial surgery at the Harvard University school of medicine; John Lowe, M.D., professor in the department of pathology and Warner Lambert/Parke-Davis professor in the department of medicine at the University of Michigan; and W. Stratford May, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Shands Cancer Center and Harry F. Innes professor of cancer research at the University of Florida. The company is developing new and better ways to treat osteoporosis and other bone disorders. Glowacki's research examines the function of engineered joints, the molecular mechanism by which damaged bone initiates cartilage formation, and mechanisms by which steroid therapies increase bone mass. Lowe's work centers on the molecular control of protein modification events in inflammation and disease. May's research centers on protein signaling in cancer and other diseases. | |
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The Great Lakes IT Report for Nov. 19, 2003 |
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| VELCURA LURES PFIZER SCIENTIST --Ann Arbor-based Velcura Therapeutics Inc. Tuesday named Daniel Chagnovichas senior scientist in bioinformatics. Chagnovich most recently worked at Pfizer's global research and development center in Ann Arboras a scientist in the molecular technologies group, where he spent two years in bioinformatics support for cardiovascular and proteomic research. He has extensive experience evaluating the human genome using bioinformatic tools, and has identified novel genes - one of which is in the patent application portfolio at Pfizer. Additionally, he developed bioinformatics tools to accelerate drug discovery that were used globally at Pfizer. Chagnovich earned his bachelor's degree in Biochemistry at the University of California, Riverside. He completed his Ph.D. in 1996 at Northwestern University Medical School in Chicago. | |
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| Michigan Technology News Oct. 6, 2003 Velcura Therapeutics Wins $224,000 Health R&D Grant |
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| More at mitechnews... | |
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| March 2003 Forbes magazine special section R&D fuels Michigan ’s Emerging Economy |
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| Download Entire Story (PDF) | |
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Michigan Universities Commercialization Initiative - Business Incubation Winter 2003 Issue |
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| New Company News: Velcura Therapeutics Open for
Business Download Entire Story (PDF) Story on pg.9 |
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Michigan Technology News Dec.12, 2002 17 Michigan Companies Win Tech Commercialization Awards |
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| More at mitechnews... | |
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| MEDC CELEBRATES SUCCESSES -- Missed this one Monday night after attending it last year, but the Michigan Economic Development Corp. recognized the growth and development of 12 companies, three individuals and two entrepreneurial support groups at the third annual Michigan Investment and Commercialization Success Celebration, held at the Michigan Capitol Rotunda. Winners in advanced manufacturing were Ardesta L.L.C. of Ann Arbor; KTM Industries Inc. of Lansing; Mag Research and Development Co. of Pleasant Ridge; and Quantum Signal L.L.C. of Ann Arbor. Winning in the IT category were Arbortext Inc. of Ann Arbor and Clarity L.L.C. of Troy. The life sciences category was the biggest group with six winners: Ash Stevens Inc. of Detroit; AvTech Laboratories Inc. of Kalamazoo; Neogen Corp. of Lansing; Nephros Therapeutics Inc. of Ann Arbor; NephRx Corp. of Portage; and Velcura Therapeutics Inc. of Ann Arbor. Investors honored were Hal Davis of Blue Gull Network, Dexter; Frank Hennessey of Hennessey Capital, Taylor; and TGap Ventures of Kalamazoo. Two additional awards were given to honor the support of Michigan's entrepreneurial community. Those awards went to David Parsigian of Miller Canfield Paddock & Stone P.L.C.'s Ann Arbor office, and the Detroit office of business consultants McKinsey & Co. | |
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Michigan Investment and Commercialization Success Celebration recognizes Velcura Therapeutics, Inc. Dec. 11, 2002 |
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| Download Entire Story (PDF) | |
MEDC honors local firms, individuals |
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| More at MEDC... | |
The Great Lakes IT Report for Dec. 5, 2002 |
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| VELCURA HOLDS OPEN HOUSE -- Wednesday night, I
got a look at some fascinating medical technology from an Ann Arbor
biotech startup, Velcura Therapeutics Inc. (Have I mentioned lately
how much fun my job is?) Mike Long, who may be the world's most down-to-earth
genius-Ph.D.-medical-researcher kind of guy, is opening the doors
of his company, which has the modest goal of curing osteoporosis and
other dread bone diseases. Long's team at the University of Michigan
was the first on the planet to grow human bone cells outside the body.
But rather than trying to grow whole new bones (freaky, though theoretically possible), Velcura will study bone cells in the process of making bones, look at what genes they use to make bone -- then search for chemicals that stimulate those genes, leading to bone growth drugs. (Besides osteoporosis, imagine broken bones that heal in weeks, not months.) Velcura won the first Great Lakes Venture Quest competition in 2001 and received $3.3 million in funding from the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor for its funding. The company has two patents granted and four pending. Its seven employees work in pleasant but not ostentatious 5,000-square-foot offices in the tech biz parks south of A2. |
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Forbes "Michigan: State of Innovation, Part I in a Series: In Life Sciences Corridor, Both Cures and Companies Grow" Nov. 11 |
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Nature Nov. 21 issue 2002 |
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“Michigan: Corridor at the crossroads.”
Paul Smaglik, editor of Naturejobs, writes: “What happens when two roads that were running in parallel suddenly intersect? In Michigan, those employed in the life sciences may be about to find out” More at nature... |
I-Street Magazine - November 2002 |
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| I-Street's Top 50 emerging tech companies in the Midwest includes Velcura Therapeutics, Inc. Read Summary Article or Download Entire Story (PDF) |
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Michigan Technology News November 10, 2002 |
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| Three Michigan Companies Make Midwest Emerging Tech List More at mitechnews... |
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The Great Lakes IT Report |
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Illinois Biotech Meets Too. This is also the week for iBio, the Illinois Biotechnology Industry Organization's annual conference in Chicago. And this year the event has a Michigan touch, with Dr. Michael Long, founder and CEO of Ann Arbor-based Velcura Therapeutics Inc., among the presenters . "We are working very hard to increase Michigan 's involvement in this year's conference," said iBIO's Nancy Sullivan of Northwestern University . IBio's mission stretches beyond Illinois, aiming to build a biotech community in the Midwest as a whole. About 700 people are expected for the conference. Velcura, meanwhile, is working on treatments for bone injuries and disorders, using a technology that generates human bone outside the body. |
Corridor News |
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U-M Spinoff Studies Bone Growth More at U-M Life Sciences web site |
The Great Lakes IT Report - Sept. 19, 2002 |
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| Life Sciences Grant to Benefit Smokers -- Here's an announcement
no doubt intended to communicate that the tobacco settlement money
being spent by the Michigan Life Sciences Corridor benefits smokers
just as surely as smoking cessation programs: Ann Arbor-based Velcura
Therapeutics Inc. said it's using its $3.3 million MLSC grant to conduct
research that will benefit cigarette smokers, who have a reduced ability
to absorb the calcium needed for healthy bones. Velcura's research
aims to actually stimulate bone formation in older folks, not just
delay bone loss. Velcura recently moved from a University of Michigan
lab to 5,400 square feet on Varsity Drive in Ann Arbor. More at medc.michigan.org/lifescience |
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Medicine at Michigan |
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The Key to Everything. Scientists at the University of Michigan
Medical School are searching for answers to the many questions about
adult and embryonic stem cells. These researchers come from different
disciplines, have different goals and study different types of stem
cells, but all have devoted their careers to the detailed, painstaking
process of unlocking the stem cells' secrets one by one. More at medicineatmichigan.org |
Detroit News December 2001 |
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| Dr. Michael Long discusses winning first annual Michigan Business
Plan Competition. More at the Detroit News |
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