Johnson & Johnson Innovation Opens JLABS @South San Francisco and Announces First Five Resident Startups
-- Additional Five Companies Awarded Residency at JLABS @SSF Through Quick Fire Challenge --
SAN FRANCISCO, March 3, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC today announced the opening of JLABS @South San Francisco (JLABS @SSF), a 30,000-square foot incubator located at 329 Oyster Point Boulevard, South San Francisco, Calif. The Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS (JLABS) site can accommodate up to 50 startups from across the healthcare spectrum including biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer and digital health.
The first resident startups have been selected, including the winners of the Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS Quick Fire Challenge, which was designed to recognize the most promising new, early stage innovation companies and award them with the use of a bench and access to the JLABS @SSF community. The challenge winners were announced this week during CALBIO 2015.
"The Bay Area is a bustling life science hub and home to large and small life science companies as well as numerous renowned research institutions, creating a hotbed for idea formation as well as a need for support for early stage entrepreneurs seeking to advance their ideas," said Richard Garbarino, mayor of South San Francisco. "The addition of JLABS to the Bay Area is a welcome and needed resource that will help advance innovative products and further support the formation of additional life science companies."
Added Melinda Richter, head of JLABS, "Since the launch of JLABS, our goal has always been to provide entrepreneurs with the tools, support and environment in which their ideas can flourish and their companies can thrive. We look forward to enabling more innovators in the Bay Area through access to JLABS, and supporting the advancement of what could ultimately become life-saving products and solutions for patients."
Johnson & Johnson Innovation has entered into a collaboration with PerkinElmer to outfit the new JLABS @SSF facility with world-class lab instruments and software as well as provide training, OneSource® Laboratory Services and on-site technical support for the resident companies.
The following companies are the first to be selected to become residents of JLABS @SSF:
| JLABS @SSF Resident |
About the Company |
| Ab Initio Biotherapeutics* |
Biologics beyond antibodies: using directed evolution to engineer therapeutic proteins for immuno-oncology. |
| Afferent Pharmaceuticals |
Small molecule compounds that target P2X3 receptors for the treatment of chronic respiratory, urological and pain conditions. |
| Alkahest, Inc.* |
Developing products to extend quality of life in aging and neurodegenerative diseases, based on factors isolated from human plasma and blood. |
| Applied Molecular Transport |
Oral biopharmaceuticals to treat immune-mediated inflammation and metabolic diseases. Recently announced a collaboration with Janssen Biotech, Inc. involving product candidate for inflammatory bowel diseases. |
| Audentes Therapeutics |
Treatments for patients with serious, rare diseases through the application of gene therapy technology. |
| Cortexyme |
Therapeutics to alter the course of Alzheimer's and other disorders of aging, targeting a specific pathogen tied to neurodegeneration. |
| Driver BioEngineering* |
Remote control of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) therapeutics. |
| EpiBiome, Inc.* |
Precision microbiome engineering company targeting problematic bacteria in agriculture and beyond. |
| Goleini Inc.* |
Gene therapy for the treatment of primary open-angle glaucoma. |
| MiNDERA |
Non-invasive (no biopsy required), high-precision skin diagnosis tests that will enable better understanding and diagnosis of skin cancer and other skin diseases. |
| * Designates Quick Fire Challenge winners |
The JLABS network now currently hosts more than 80 companies across four active sites located in San Diego, San Francisco (JLABS @QB3 and JLABS @SSF) and Boston (JLABS @LabCentral). An additional site in Houston (JLABS @TMC) is anticipated to open in 2016. Applications are currently being accepted from biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, consumer and digital health companies across all JLABS sites. To apply visit www.jnjinnovation.com/jlabs.
About Johnson & Johnson Innovation, JLABS
JLABS, part of Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC, provides the tools and resources needed to help life science startups thrive. Residents have access to turnkey, state-of-the-art infrastructure as well as year-round commercialization curriculum and networking events, onsite team for operations and business services, all with no-strings attached. JLABS links regional entrepreneurs with the full breadth of Johnson & Johnson Innovation, including opportunities to discuss funding, access third-party services, attend educational events and meet with R&D experts from our medical device technology, consumer healthcare product and Janssen pharmaceutical teams. For more information or to apply to JLABS, please visit JLABS.jnjinnovation.com.
About Johnson & Johnson Innovation
Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC focuses on accelerating early-stage innovation worldwide and forming collaborations between entrepreneurs and Johnson & Johnson's global healthcare businesses. Johnson & Johnson Innovation provides scientists, entrepreneurs and emerging companies with one-stop access to science and technology experts who can facilitate collaborations across the pharmaceutical, medical device and consumer companies of Johnson & Johnson. Johnson & Johnson Innovation includes local deal-making capabilities with the flexibility to adapt deal structures to match early-stage opportunities and establish novel collaborations that speed development of innovations to solve unmet needs in patients. For more information please visit: www.jnjinnovation.com.
Note on Forward-Looking Statements
(This press release contains "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The reader is cautioned not to rely on these forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of future events. If underlying assumptions prove inaccurate or known or unknown risks or uncertainties materialize, actual results could vary materially from the expectations and projections of Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC and/or Johnson & Johnson. Risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: potential delays uncertainty of the success of strategic plans and competition, including technological advances, new products and patents attained by competitors. A further list and description of these risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Johnson & Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 28, 2014, including in Exhibit 99 thereto, and the company's subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Copies of these filings are available online at www.sec.gov, www.jnj.com or on request from Johnson & Johnson. Neither Johnson & Johnson Innovation LLC nor Johnson & Johnson undertakes to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information or future events or developments.)
Media Contact:
Meghan Marschall
Johnson & Johnson Innovation
201-323-0578 or [email protected]
Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150303/179082LOGO
SOURCE Johnson & Johnson Innovation, LLC
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