ScholarShare 529 Helping California Families Save for College This Holiday Season

Holiday
o
ffer provides $50 gift card for anyone opening a new ScholarShare 529 account
December
9 through 13

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ScholarShare 529, California’s official college savings plan, has a holiday gift to help families start saving for college this holiday season: a $50 Target Gift Card. It’s available to families who open a new ScholarShare 529 account between December 9-13. To qualify, families must open a new account with $50, and set up recurring contributions of $25 or more for six consecutive months.1

“We encourage families to take advantage of this offer to give the gift of college savings this holiday season,” said California State Treasurer Fiona Ma. “In a year filled with many obstacles, college savings may be one of the most meaningful gifts parents can give their children.”

ScholarShare 529 provides a powerful combination of benefits for college savers. The plan provides 100 percent tax-free growth, which can mean more money for college. In addition, ScholarShare 529’s low-cost investments help savings grow faster, and the smart investment lineup provides options that mature as kids get closer to college. The popular Enrollment Year Investment Portfolios adjust asset allocation as a child’s enrollment year approaches.

In addition to the holiday offer, ScholarShare 529 provides a free, easy and secure way for friends and family to make gift contributions to a ScholarShare 529 college savings account. With ScholarShare 529 Ugift, anyone can contribute electronically or by mail and give a gift that grows with kids and lasts a lifetime.

The 2020 holiday offer wraps up a positive year for ScholarShare 529 and its account owners. Contributions this year to ScholarShare 529 are setting new records, and the plan is having one of its best years when it comes to opening new accounts as California families continue to prioritize college savings.

For more information about the holiday offer and to sign up, visit www.ScholarShare529.com/holidayoffer.

About ScholarShare 529

ScholarShare 529 serves as California’s official college savings plan. Administered by the ScholarShare Investment Board, ScholarShare 529 provides families with a valuable tool that offers a diverse set of investment options, tax-deferred growth, and withdrawals free from state and federal taxes when used for qualified higher education expenses, such as tuition and fees, books, certain room and board costs, computer equipment, and other required supplies. ScholarShare 529 manages over $10.4 billion in plan assets across more than 345,000 accounts as of 9/30/20.

To open a ScholarShare 529 account or get more information about the plan, visit www.ScholarShare529.com. For information about the ScholarShare Investment Board, visit www.treasurer.ca.gov/scholarshare, like ScholarShare 529 on Facebook at www.facebook.com/scholarshare529, subscribe to the YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtlSHU65BSCSpYCAmSVXl4Q and follow them on Twitter at @ScholarShare529.

1 When you open a new ScholarShare 529 College Savings Plan account with a $50 contribution (and sign up for ongoing automatic contributions of $25 or more per month for six consecutive months) between December 9, 2020, at 12:01 a.m. and December 13, 2020, at 11:59 p.m. (PT), you will be mailed a $50 Target GiftCard on or before June 30, 2021. Visit ScholarShare529.com/holidayoffer for official Terms and Conditions. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Sponsored by ScholarShare 529 College Savings Plan.

Media Contact

Ryan Hoffman
[email protected]



Virtual Announcement About Developing New Applications for Pulse Flours

REGINA, Saskatchewan , Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Protein Industries Canada, with Avena Foods, Big Mountain Foods, Daiya Foods, Bakenology and The Village Bakery, will be making an announcement regarding a project focused on developing new food product applications for pulse flours.

The announcement will take place virtually on Tuesday, December 8, 2020, at 10 a.m. CST. Media can attend by registering at https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_OxFHwmAARh-Auyrj3YQSqQ. An opportunity to ask questions of the project partners will be provided following the announcement.

For more information, please contact:

Gabriel Valentini
Protein Industries Canada 
Winnipeg, MB
431-997-5889 
[email protected]



Alexandria Restaurant Partners (ARP) Installs Groundbreaking Far-UVC Light Technology to Inactivate Harmful Pathogens, Viruses

Mia’s Italian Kitchen and Vola’s Dockside Grill in Historic Old Town Alexandria, Virginia now equipped with Healthe’s ceiling-mounted air & surface sanitization lights to help protect employees, patrons in real-time

Alexandria, VA, Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As colder temperatures force many dining patrons indoors throughout the Commonwealth, Alexandria Restaurant Partners (ARP) has announced that they are stepping up their sanitization efforts. Two of ARP’s signature Old Town Alexandria, Virginia restaurants, Mia’s Italian Kitchen and Vola’s Dockside Grill, are now equipped with state-of-the-art sanitization lights. Called  Healthe SPACE™, this cutting-edge technology developed by Healthe Inc. uses Far-UVC 222 light to provide real-time mitigation and sanitize indoor air and surfaces in occupied spaces. 

“When it comes to protecting our guests and employees, we are not leaving anything to chance, especially as a rapid rise in COVID-19 cases puts new restrictions on the hospitality industry,” said ARP Partner, Scott Shaw. “Thanks to Healthe, we will have an added layer of protection to complement the existing technology we have in place to help protect our staff and patrons as well as keep our restaurants safely open for business.” 

ARP has installed Healthe SPACE in the fully tented outdoor dining space at Mia’s Italian Kitchen and in Vola’s Dockside Grill’s winter indoor lounge. SPACE is a ceiling-mounted light that produces a combination of general illumination and Far-UVC 222 sanitizing light to clean air and surfaces. SPACE replaces traditional downlight cans and can be easily retrofitted into existing standard 6” housings. 

Healthe’s technology complements ARP’s other ongoing sanitization efforts, including their recent installation of air purification technology in all of its Virginia restaurants to eliminate airborne particles, odors and pathogens. 

“This is certainly a precarious time for many businesses and we are committed to doing everything we can to help them be forward thinking leaders when it comes to health and wellness,” said Healthe Chief Commercial Officer Troy Temple. “Business to customer trust is so important and our sanitization solutions help entities like Alexandria Restaurant Partners to assure employees and customers that they are deploying germicidal measures that work in real-time.”

Healthe’s sanitization solutions are in use today throughout many sectors of our economy. Its products include a walkthrough portal (Healthe ENTRY) which sanitizes the surfaces of clothing and personal belongings as well an air sanitizing troffer (Healthe AIR). They include Washington, D.C.’s oldest private social service agency, Central Union Mission, Sauf Haus and Public Bar (Washington, D.C.), the famous Magnolia Bakery (New York City), the iconic Seattle Space Needle and the Miami Dolphins football facilities. These solutions are designed to complement existing health safety protocols such as wearing masks and proper social distancing. 

A growing library of evidence, including independent research backed by many peer-reviewed scientific and medical journals, demonstrates a clear role for Far-UVC light in promoting human health and wellness. This includes being effective at inactivating viral particles in the air and on surfaces as well as being safe for use in indoor environments. One recent study, led by one of the world’s leading Far-UVC researchers, Dr. David Brenner, director of the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University, demonstrated the technology’s safety and efficacy against airborne viruses, including coronaviruses. 

About Alexandria Restaurant Partners (ARP):

Founded nearly 25 years ago, Alexandria Restaurant Partners (ARP) is a leading Northern Virginia-based restaurant group that owns and operates Mia’s Italian Kitchen, Vola’s Dockside Grill, Theismann’s Restaurant and Bar, Palette 22, The Majestic, Riverside Taco Company and the upcoming Ada’s On The River and BARCA Pier & Wine Bar set to open in 2021, as well as Mia’s Italian Kitchen and Café Tu Tu Tango in Orlando, Fl. ARP’s mission is to achieve operational excellence for all of its restaurants by leading with integrity and being transparent. For more information please visit https://www.alexandriarestaurantpartners.com.

About Healthe:  

Healthe is the technology leader in developing and deploying sanitization, circadian and biological lighting solutions.  These products inactivate viruses and bacteria in the air and on surfaces, regulate the body’s internal clock, boost performance and enhance sleep. Healthe’s mission is to harness the power of light to create a more productive and healthier shared environment.  Learn more at www.healtheinc.com and connect on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram.

Attachment



Mallory McDonald
Pinkston
302.853.5344
[email protected]

Cellworks Personalized Biosimulation Clinical Trial Predicted ATO and ATRA Therapy Response in APL Patients with 93% Accuracy

myCare-021-01 study found CBM has high accuracy for predicting therapy response in APL patients and can identify patient-specific biomarkers in non-responders

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cellworks Group, Inc., a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology, today announced results from the myCare-021-01 clinical trial, which found that the Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) predicted response to Arsenic Trioxide (ATO) and All-trans-retinoic Acid (ATRA) in Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL) patients harboring PML-RARA fusions with 93% accuracy. The study also demonstrated that Cellworks CBM can identify new mechanisms of resistance in APL patients and suggest alternative regimens for non-responders by targeting patient-specific disease biomarkers unique to each.

Results from the myCare-021-01 clinical study will be featured as Oral and Poster Abstract #2784 on Monday, December 7, 2020 during the all-virtual 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition and published online at Blood®.

The vast majority (99%) of APL patients have the PML-RARA fusion gene, which is the most critical event involved in the pathogenesis of APL. (Source: PMID: 32182684). The PML-RARA fusion confers a selective sensitivity to the targeted drugs, ATO and ATRA, with response rates over 90% (Source: PMID: 31635329). However, the mechanism of resistance in the minority of APL non-responders is not well understood. This study used the Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) to predict response to the combination of ATO-ATRA in patients harboring the PML-RARA fusion and identify mechanisms of resistance.

“The ability of Cellworks CBM to accurately predict non-response to ATO and ATRA in APL patients with PML-RARA fusion up-front could prevent ineffective treatments, avoid unnecessary adverse events and reduce treatment costs,” said Dr. Scott Howard, MD, MSc, Professor at University of Tennessee Health Science Center. “In addition, we need an understanding of the mechanism of resistance in APL non-responders to prescribe more efficacious therapies and improve patient outcomes. In this study, the Cellworks CBM identified clinically relevant deletions to genes in patients who did not respond to ATO and ATRA and suggested alternative therapies. By taking this personalized approach to treating cancer patients, we can move the needle closer to the ideal 100% response rate.”

myCare-021-01 Clinical Study

In this study, outcomes of 30 APL patients treated with ATRA or ATRA plus ATO were compared with outcomes predicted by Cellworks CBM. Genomic data from 6 publications derived from whole exome sequencing (WES), targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS), copy number variation (CNV) and/or karyotype data were used. All data was anonymized, de-identified and exempt from IRB review.

The available genomic data for each profile was entered into the Cellworks CBM which generates a patient-specific disease protein network model using PubMed and other online resources. The CBM predicts the patient-specific biomarker and phenotype response of a personalized diseased cell to drug agents, radiation and cell signaling. Disease biomarkers that are unique to each patient were identified within the protein network models.

ATO and ATRA were simulated on all 30 patient cases. The treatment impact was assessed by quantitatively measuring the drug’s effect on a cell growth score which is a composite of the quantified values for cell proliferation, survival, and apoptosis, along with the simulated impact on each patient-specific disease biomarker score. Each patient-specific model was also digitally screened to identify response to ATO and ATRA.

Results of the study demonstrated that Cellworks CBM correctly predicted the response to ATO and ATRA in 28 of 30 cases. The overall prediction accuracy was 93% with a PPV of 100%, NPV of 60%, sensitivity of 93%, and specificity of 100%. In 2 of 30 patients who did not respond to ATO and ATRA, the CBM identified clinically relevant deletions to EZH2, KMT2E, and HIPK2 genes. All three genes are located on chromosome 7 and these non-responders had monosomy 7.

About Cellworks Group

Cellworks Group, Inc. is a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology. Using innovative multi-omics modeling, computational biosimulation and Artificial Intelligence heuristics, Cellworks predicts the most efficacious therapies for patients. The Cellworks unique biosimulation platform is a unified representation of biological knowledge curated from heterogeneous datasets and applied to finding cures. Backed by UnitedHealth Group, Sequoia Capital, Agilent and Artiman, Cellworks has the world’s strongest trans-disciplinary team of molecular biologists, cellular pathway modelers and software technologists working toward a common goal – attacking serious diseases to improve the lives of patients. The company is based in South San Francisco, California and has a research and development facility in Bangalore, India. For more information, visit www.cellworks.life and follow us on Twitter @cellworkslife.

All trademarks and registered trademarks in this document are the properties of their respective owners.

Media Contacts:

Barbara Reichert
Reichert Communications, LLC
[email protected]
415-225-2991

Michele Macpherson, Chief Business Officer
Cellworks Group, Inc.
[email protected] 



Cellworks Personalized Biosimulation Clinical Trials Achieve 90% Therapy Response Prediction Accuracy for AML and MDS Patients

myCare-020-01 and myCare-020-02 studies show Cellworks Singula™ has high accuracy and sensitivity in predicting complete response to physician prescribed therapies for AML and MDS patients

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cellworks Group, Inc., a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology, today announced results from the myCare-020-01 and myCare-020-02 clinical trials, which found that Cellworks Singula™ predicted response to standard care therapies with 92.3% accuracy for Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) patients and 90.3% accuracy for Myelodysplastic Syndromes (MDS) patients. The studies also show that Singula™ has high specificity in identifying AML and MDS patients who are unlikely to respond to physician prescribed therapies and can provide alternative treatment recommendations for these patients.

Singula™ predictions can be used to validate or reject a physician’s therapy selection decision prior to treatment, reduce patient risks and payer costs of unsuccessful treatments, and provide alternative treatment recommendations. Results from the myCare-020-01 clinical study will be featured as oral and poster abstract #989 during the all-virtual 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition,December 5-8, 2020. The myCare-020-02 clinical study is available online at Blood®.

Cellworks Singula™ therapy response predictions are generated through extensive biosimulation of a personalized patient disease model based on the patient’s multi-omics data. Utilizing an in-silico model of thousands of genes, Singula™ analyzes the downstream pathway impact of genomic, proteomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic aberration information on a patient’s disease. These downstream effects generate phenotypic impact, which are calculated against specific drugs or drug combinations to determine treatment efficacy.

“Despite using cytogenetic and molecular-risk stratification, the current overall outcome of AML and MDS patients remains relatively poor,” said Dr. Guido Marcucci, MD, Chair and Professor, Department of Hematologic Malignancies Translational Science, Director, Gehr; Family Center for Leukemia Research, Professor, Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, City of Hope; and Principal Investigator for the myCare-020-01 and myCare-020-02 clinical studies. “By using Cellworks multi-omic biosimulation, we can know an individual patient’s response to drugs before treatment, thereby identifying the most efficacious therapy for each patient more quickly and improving overall outcomes for AML and MDS patients.”

“Therapy selection for AML and MDS patients is often based on information considering only cytogenetics and/or molecular aberrations and ignoring other patient-specific omics information that could potentially enable selection of more effective treatments,” said Dr. Anthony Stein, MD, Hematologist/Oncologist, Director of the Leukemia Program; Co-Director of the Gehr Family Center for Leukemia Research; Clinical Professor of Hematology & Hematopoietic Transplantation at City of Hope; and Principal Investigator for the myCare-020-01 and myCare-020-02 clinical studies. “Cellworks multi-omic biosimulation is more comprehensive and takes into consideration the downstream pathway impact of genomic, proteomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic aberrations of a patient’s disease. This unique approach can identify the precise therapy for a patient’s variant of a particular cancer.”

myCare-020-01 Clinical Study

In this study, the performance of Singula™ was evaluated in a cohort of 474 AML patients aged 2 to 85. Singula™ utilizes individual patients’ next-generation sequencing (NGS) profiles to provide a dichotomous prediction of response or non-response to the physician prescribed treatments. The clinical outcome data for these subjects, i.e., complete response (CR) and overall survival (OS), were obtained from the TCGA and other 144 PubMed publications, each including information on patients’ cytogenetics, targeted gene mutations, and/or whole exome sequencing.

Blinded to clinical outcomes, Cellworks utilized the cytogenetic and molecular data to generate a Singula™ predicted response (i.e., CR vs non-response) classification for each patient. Statistical analyses, including assessments of accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and negative (NPV) and positive predictive (PPV) values were performed to compare the Singula™ predicted clinical response to the actual observed clinical response.

Study results show Cellworks Singula™ had 92.3% accuracy in predicting correctly observed patient complete response to the prescribed treatment with 97.3% sensitivity. Singula™ had 83.3% specificity for the non-responder patients. For each of the non-responders, Singula™ provided an alternative treatment therapy predicted to produce clinical response.

myCare-020-02 Clinical Study

Cellworks Singula™ was evaluated in an independent, randomly selected, retrospective cohort of 144 MDS patients aged 28 to 89 years (median 69). Singula™ utilizes an individual’s genomics profile to provide a dichotomous prediction of response or non-response to a given physician prescribed treatment (PPT). Outcome data for these subjects, including measurement of complete response (CR), were obtained from 42 PubMed publications, each including patient genomics data of either karyotyping, targeted gene panels, and/or whole exome sequencing.

Blinded to clinical outcomes, Cellworks utilized these data to generate a Singula™ classifier of responder vs non-responder in this MDS cohort. Statistical analyses, including assessments of accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, negative (NPV) and positive predictive (PPV) values were performed on the merged data to compare the Singula™ predicted response with the actual observed CR. Multivariate logistic regression models of complete response were performed incorporating covariates for patient age, PPT, and the Singula™ Classifier.

Study results reveal that Singula™ had 90.3% accuracy in predicting observed patient response from the physician prescribed treatment and accurately identify responders with 90.0% sensitivity. Importantly, Singula™ had 90.6% specificity for the subset of 64 patients (44.4%) that had a non-response. For 32% (17/54) of the Non-Responders patients, Singula™ provided an alternative Standard of Care treatment therapy. The remaining 37 patients were predicted to be non-responders to all remaining Standard of Care options, so did not have alternate treatment predictions.

About Cellworks Group

Cellworks Group, Inc. is a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology. Using innovative multi-omics modeling, computational biosimulation and Artificial Intelligence heuristics, Cellworks predicts the most efficacious therapies for patients. The Cellworks unique biosimulation platform is a unified representation of biological knowledge curated from heterogeneous datasets and applied to finding cures. Backed by UnitedHealth Group, Sequoia Capital, Agilent and Artiman, Cellworks has the world’s strongest trans-disciplinary team of molecular biologists, cellular pathway modelers and software technologists working toward a common goal – attacking serious diseases to improve the lives of patients. The company is based in South San Francisco, California and has a research and development facility in Bangalore, India. For more information, visit www.cellworks.life and follow us on Twitter @cellworkslife.

All trademarks and registered trademarks in this document are the properties of their respective owners.

Media Contacts:

Barbara Reichert
Reichert Communications, LLC
[email protected] or 415-225-2991

Michele Macpherson, Chief Business Officer
Cellworks Group, Inc.
[email protected]



Cellworks CBM Biosimulation Identifies Genomic Causes for Induction Failure in AML Patients and Suggests Alternative Therapies

myCare-021-02 study discovers patient-specific resistance mechanisms that can inform treatment planning and improve AML patient outcomes

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cellworks Group, Inc., a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology, today announced results from the myCare-021-02 clinical study, which found that personalized therapy response biosimulation using the Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) can improve prognostication and identify new therapeutic options for Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) patients with resistant disease by incorporating patient-specific disease biomarkers.

Cellworks CBM relies on multi-omics inputs from malignant cells to predict and identify potential therapies tailored to the unique molecular mechanisms for each patient’s disease. The identification of patient-specific resistance mechanisms for AML patients provides a new therapeutic imperative founded on deep molecular diagnosis that can inform treatment planning, reduce patient risks, enhance disease outcomes and lower treatment costs.

Results from the myCare-021-02 clinical study will be featured as Oral and Poster Abstract #2820 on Monday, December 7, 2020 during the all-virtual 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition and published online at Blood®.

“AML is the leading cause of leukemia-associated death today, but a personalized therapy approach using Cellworks CBM can improve patient outcomes,” said Dr. Michael Castro, MD, oncologist specializing in molecular oncology, precision medicine and immunotherapy of cancer and principal investigator for the myCare-021-02 clinical study. “Response to remission induction therapy varies by biologic subtype and by the drugs used for induction, but responses are not predictable, even within specific biologic subgroups. The Cellworks CBM biosimulation platform provides a personalized medicine approach that targets patient-specific disease biomarkers and treatment resistance mechanisms.”

“Induction failure for AML is not rare, even in biological subgroups expected to have sensitive disease,” said Dr. Scott Howard, MD, MSc, Professor at University of Tennessee Health Science Center. “Cellworks CBM can identify causes of failure for standard induction regimes and suggest alternative therapies based on co-occurring genomic abnormalities in patients with resistant disease, despite their favorable biology.”

myCare-021-02 Clinical Study

The aim of this study was to predict the response to induction chemotherapy regimens in AML patients and identify predictive genomic signatures, pathways and personalized treatment options for refractory patients. For the study, 57 AML patients with known therapy response were selected from PubMed publications. The cohort was split into 3 groups with CBFB-MYH11 fusion (n=19), RUNX1-RUNX1T1 fusion (n=10) and CEBPα del (n=28). All data was anonymized, de-identified and exempt from IRB review. NCCN offers specific recommendations for AML patients with these mutations and they are associated with high rates of remission after induction therapy.

The available genomic data for each profile was processed using the Cellworks CBM biosimulation platform to generate an AML subtype-specific protein network map using published information from PubMed and other online resources permitting patient-specific biomarkers to be mapped to sensitivity and resistance pathways. Drugs selected from a digital drug library were simulated for each patient across the three cohorts. Benefit was assessed by measuring each drug’s effect on a cell growth score, a composite of proliferation, viability and apoptosis indices.

Results from the study found that of 57 patients with favorable-risk AML, 6 (11%) experienced induction failure. 1/19 patients harboring CBFB-MYH11 fusion failed to respond to induction therapy and Cellworks CBM identified co-occurring gene aberrations responsible for resistance in the patient with resistant disease, who harbored trisomy 6 with amplification of GSTA1, GSTA2, GSTA4, DEK, TFAP2A, NFYA and EHMT2 causing dysregulation of pathways involved in treatment failure. Cellworks CBM also identified 3 prospective therapies that target this patient’s specific biomarkers.

Similarly, 2/10 patients with RUNX1-RUNX1T1 fusion failed to respond to induction therapy. Cellworks CBM identified a loss of function mutation in EZH2 causing increased levels of HOXA5 and HOXA9 as key orchestrators of treatment failure. Furthermore, Cellworks CBM also identified three prospective therapies for this patient, targeting patient-specific resistance mechanisms.

In the CEBPα cohort, 3/28 patients did not respond to induction therapy. For one of these patients, Cellworks CBM identified a DNMT3A loss of function mutation and consequential gain in the levels of HOXA5 and HOXA9 as key orchestrators of treatment failure. Again, Cellworks CBM identified three novel therapies for this patient targeting patient-specific biomarkers.

About Cellworks Group

Cellworks Group, Inc. is a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology. Using innovative multi-omics modeling, computational biosimulation and Artificial Intelligence heuristics, Cellworks predicts the most efficacious therapies for patients. The Cellworks unique biosimulation platform is a unified representation of biological knowledge curated from heterogeneous datasets and applied to finding cures. Backed by UnitedHealth Group, Sequoia Capital, Agilent and Artiman, Cellworks has the world’s strongest trans-disciplinary team of molecular biologists, cellular pathway modelers and software technologists working toward a common goal – attacking serious diseases to improve the lives of patients. The company is based in South San Francisco, California and has a research and development facility in Bangalore, India. For more information, visit www.cellworks.life and follow us on Twitter @cellworkslife.

All trademarks and registered trademarks in this document are the properties of their respective owners.

Media Contacts:

Barbara Reichert
Reichert Communications, LLC
[email protected] or 415-225-2991

Michele Macpherson, Chief Business Officer
Cellworks Group, Inc.
[email protected] 



eatNgage and Bichsel Medical Marketing Group (BMMG) Announce Strategic Partnership, Offering a Unique Engagement Platform for Healthcare Industry Online Events

eatNgage and BMMG partner to create healthcare-specific offering with compliant programs to include Sunshine Act reporting in support of medical industry virtual programs.

Denver, CO and Houston, TX, Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — eatNgage and Bichsel Medical Marketing Group (BMMG) are pleased to announce a strategic partnership bringing the world’s first healthcare-specific and compliant webinar dining room to the medical industry.

Now, more than ever, it is difficult for companies in the healthcare industry to connect and interact with their customers. Traditional meetings, lunch and learns, dinner symposia, etc. are all on hold, forcing in-person interactions to take place over the internet, where there are thousands of industry webinars and offerings from companies vying for the time and attention of the healthcare professional (HCP).

BMMG and eatNgage’s partnership offers a one-of-a-kind platform that integrates with existing video conferencing software and allows representatives from the medical industry to compliantly wine and dine HCPs while they engage in open discussions or procedural presentations remotely from the convenience and safety of their homes or offices. 

“We are delighted to partner with the folks at BMMG. They’ve helped us shape our healthcare-specific offering to address the unique needs of medical device, biotech and pharmaceutical companies when interacting with physicians, nurses and administrators,” says Avi Tessler, CEO at eatNgage. “Our unique offering has per-person cost limits, adheres to strict industry guidelines, and provides an easy means for the company representative to capture and report for Sunshine Act compliance.” Tessler goes on to say that eatNgage customers report 3 to 5 times more participation in web calls, with more than 95% turnout from registrants.

Lisa Bichsel, BMMG CEO, reports, “We need innovative ways to stand out from the crowd and engage with HCPs that bring back some of the dynamics of a casual business dinner, where we can build rapport, but also educate them on our product or procedure in a meaningful way. Compliantly, we can differentiate our program and ensure a better attendance by adding lunch or dinner to our educational programs, making efficient use of the clinician’s valued time.”

About eatNgage – eatNgage is an innovative online engagement platform that puts a unique spin on traditional webinars. Webinar hosts can Wine & Dine their clients remotely, have their participants enjoy a meal of their choice, while attending a presentation. eatNgage – Make any online audience feel grateful for the meal you sent and in return, they will offer their time and attention to your presentation.

About Bichsel Medical Marketing Group – Bichsel Medical Marketing Group (BMMG) is a company dedicated to helping med device, biotech and pharmaceutical companies commercialize their innovations. As a fully staffed medical marketing department and using its prior sales, marketing and management experience, the BMMG commercial team is in a unique position to think like an end-user. BMMG staff uses these skills to approach client offerings creatively to develop interesting, engaging solutions that resonate with their field sales organization, clinicians, patients and communities. 

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Media Contact for BMMG: Lisa Bichsel, CEO, Bichsel Medical Marketing Group, [email protected], 719-640-5640 

Media Contact for eatNgage: Tali Tessler, eatNgage, [email protected]



Lisa Bichsel
Bichsel Medical Marketing Group
719-640-5640
[email protected]

Cellworks CBM Identifies Genomic Signatures Impacting HOXA Regulation that Determine Response for AML Patients with Monosomy 7

myCare-02
1-04
s
tud
y
finds
genetic signatures associated with 100% remission rate from

A
ML
induction therapy despite presence of
Monosomy 7

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Dec. 07, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cellworks Group, Inc., a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology, today announced results from the myCare-021-04 clinical study, in which Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) analysis identified genomic alterations that determine chemotherapy response for patients with (-7) and identified novel genomic signatures of response and resistance. The study revealed that Cellworks CBM classification of patients harboring (-7) by HOXA biomarker analysis could enable personalized treatment plans, thereby avoiding unnecessary drug-related patient risks and reducing treatment costs.

Results from the myCare-021-04 clinical study will be featured as Oral and Poster Abstract #2906 on Monday, December 7, 2020 during the all-virtual 62nd American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition and published online at Blood®.

“For AML patients, Monosomy 7 is generally associated with poor response to induction chemotherapy,” said Dr. Michael Castro, MD, oncologist specializing in molecular oncology, precision medicine and immunotherapy of cancer and principal investigator for the myCare-021-04 clinical study. “But not all patients fare poorly, so the ability to identify responders and non-responders remains a high priority. Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) analysis can identify genetic signatures associated with therapy response and non-response for AML patients with Monosomy 7 in advance of treatment, which in turn can inform therapy planning and improve patient outcomes.”

“Monosomy 7 is one of the most common cytogenetic abnormalities in pediatric and adult myeloid malignancies, particularly in adverse-risk AML,” said Dr. Scott Howard, MD, MSc, Professor at University of Tennessee Health Science Center. “But this study revealed that Monosomy 7 alone does not confer resistance to chemotherapy. Cellworks CBM analysis identified other genomic alterations that determine chemotherapy response, which can enable a personalized approach to therapy.”

myCare-021-04 Clinical Study

Population

For this study, genomic data from 13 consecutive patients with (-7) were analyzed using the Cellworks Omics Biology Model (CBM) to generate patient-specific protein network models. All data was anonymized, de-identified and exempt from IRB review.

Methodology

For each model, disease simulations were performed and patients were segregated into HOXA-upregulated and HOXA-downregulated cohorts based on the simulation levels of HOXA5 and HOXA9. Digital drug simulations for induction chemotherapy were accomplished by measuring the impact of drug effect on a cell growth score, a composite of cell proliferation, viability and apoptosis indices. Each patient-specific model was analyzed to identify mechanisms underlying treatment outcomes.

Findings

In the study, 54% (7/13) of (-7) patients failed to achieve remission after induction chemotherapy, which highlighted that (-7) alone does not confer resistance to chemotherapy. Cellworks CBM analysis identified other genomic alterations that determine chemotherapy response, including DNA repair deficiency genes, mismatch repair (MMR), and homologous recombination repair (HRR) genes.

Study results show that alterations of chromatin regulation have consequences for transcription factors that regulate expression of DNA repair genes. Under conditions where DNA repair is enhanced, induction chemotherapy was 78% less likely to effect remission in (-7) AML patients undergoing induction chemotherapy. Loss of H3K27 methylation associated with loss of PRC2 function by any means resulted in HOXA-upregulation and upregulation of DNA repair genes induced resistance to induction therapy.

On the other hand, Cellworks CBM analysis identified genetic signatures associated with a 100% remission rate from AML induction therapy despite the presence of (-7). Generation of H3K27me caused by PRC2 activation resulting from numerous mechanisms led to HOXA-downregulation and 100% response to induction therapy.

The study demonstrated that stratification of patients harboring (-7) by HOXA biomarker analysis could inform treatment planning, avoid drug-related adverse events and reduce treatment costs.

About Cellworks Group

Cellworks Group, Inc. is a world leader in Personalized Medicine in the key therapeutic areas of Oncology and Immunology. Using innovative multi-omics modeling, computational biosimulation and Artificial Intelligence heuristics, Cellworks predicts the most efficacious therapies for patients. The Cellworks unique biosimulation platform is a unified representation of biological knowledge curated from heterogeneous datasets and applied to finding cures. Backed by UnitedHealth Group, Sequoia Capital, Agilent and Artiman, Cellworks has the world’s strongest trans-disciplinary team of molecular biologists, cellular pathway modelers and software technologists working toward a common goal – attacking serious diseases to improve the lives of patients. The company is based in South San Francisco, California and has a research and development facility in Bangalore, India. For more information, visit www.cellworks.life and follow us on Twitter @cellworkslife.

All trademarks and registered trademarks in this document are the properties of their respective owners.

Media Contacts:

Barbara Reichert
Reichert Communications, LLC
[email protected]
415-225-2991

Michele Macpherson, Chief Business Officer
Cellworks Group, Inc.
[email protected]

 



Luminex Corporation Declares Fourth Quarter Cash Dividend

PR Newswire

AUSTIN, Texas, Dec. 7, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — On December 3, 2020, Luminex Corporation (Nasdaq:LMNX) (the “Company”), announced that its board of directors approved a $0.01 increase in the quarterly dividend, to $0.10 per share of common stock, payable on January 14, 2021 to stockholders of record as of the close of business December 23, 2021.

About Luminex Corporation
At Luminex, our mission is to empower labs to obtain reliable, timely, and actionable answers, ultimately advancing health.  We offer a wide range of solutions applicable in diverse markets including clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical drug discovery, biomedical research, genomic and proteomic research, biodefense research, and food safety. We accelerate reliable answers while simplifying complexity and deliver certainty with a seamless experience. To learn more about Luminex, please visit us at www.luminexcorp.com.

Contact: 
Harriss Currie
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
512-219-8020
[email protected]

Carla Stanaford

Investor Relations
937-469-2120
[email protected] 

Cision View original content to download multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/luminex-corporation-declares-fourth-quarter-cash-dividend-301187455.html

SOURCE Luminex Corporation

New Jersey Resources Recognized as One of America’s Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek

New Jersey Resources Recognized as One of America’s Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek

Based on performance in areas of environmental, social and corporate governance

WALL, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
For the second consecutive year, New Jersey Resources (NYSE: NJR) has been named one of America’s Most Responsible Companies by Newsweek in recognition of its excellence and accomplishments in corporate social responsibility.

NJR was selected from a cross-industry pool of over 2,000 companies that were evaluated and ranked based on a detailed analysis of key performance indicators in three areas of corporate social responsibility: environmental, social and corporate governance.

“This is a great acknowledgement of our company’s commitment to sustainable practices for the environment, our employees and the communities we serve,” said Steve Westhoven, president and CEO of New Jersey Resources. “NJR continues to be a leader in reducing emissions, promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, and supporting communities through our corporate citizenship and volunteerism efforts. It’s an honor to be recognized for our commitment to these values.”

Environmental stewardship and sustainability have long been priorities for NJR. Its regulated utility, New Jersey Natural Gas, has been a leader in reducing emissions – making infrastructure upgrades and investments to build the most environmentally sound delivery system in the state, as measured by leaks per mile – as well as helping customers reduce their energy consumption through its energy-efficiency initiatives. NJR’s renewable energy subsidiary, Clean Energy Ventures, was one of the earliest investors in New Jersey’s solar market; and today, it is one of the largest, with over $1 billion invested in solar projects across all the state’s 21 counties.

To learn more about NJR’s leadership and commitment to sustainability, please visit www.njrsustainability.com.

America’s Most Responsible Companies 2021 is a project of Newsweek in partnership with Statista. For more information on the rankings and methodology for selection, please visit www.newsweek.com/americas-most-responsible-companies-2021.

About New Jersey Resources

New Jersey Resources (NYSE: NJR) is a Fortune 1000 company that, through its subsidiaries, provides safe and reliable natural gas and clean energy services, including transportation, distribution, asset management and home services. NJR is composed of five primary businesses:

  • New Jersey Natural Gas, NJR’s principal subsidiary, operates and maintains over 7,500 miles of natural gas transportation and distribution infrastructure to serve over half a million customers in New Jersey’s Monmouth, Ocean, Morris, Middlesex and Burlington counties.
  • Clean Energy Ventures invests in, owns and operates solar projects with a total capacity of more than 350 megawatts, providing residential and commercial customers with low-carbon solutions.
  • Energy Services manages a diversified portfolio of natural gas transportation and storage assets and provides physical natural gas services and customized energy solutions to its customers across North America.
  • Storage & Transportation serves customers from local distributors and producers to electric generators and wholesale marketers through its ownership of Leaf River Energy Center and the Adelphia Gateway Pipeline Project, as well as our 50 percent equity ownership in the Steckman Ridge natural gas storage facility, and our 20 percent equity interest in the PennEast Pipeline Project.
  • Home Services provides service contracts as well as heating, central air conditioning, water heaters, standby generators, solar and other indoor and outdoor comfort products to residential homes throughout New Jersey.

NJR and its more than 1,100 employees are committed to helping customers save energy and money by promoting conservation and encouraging efficiency through Conserve to Preserve® and initiatives such as The SAVEGREEN Project® and The Sunlight Advantage®. For more information about NJR: www.njresources.com.

Follow us on Twitter @NJNaturalGas.

“Like” us on facebook.com/NewJerseyNaturalGas.

Download our free NJR investor relations app for iPad, iPhone and Android.

Media:

Michael Kinney

732-938-1031

[email protected]

Investor:

Dennis Puma

732-938-1229

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: New Jersey United States North America

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Other Philanthropy Utilities Oil/Gas Environment Publishing Energy Communications Philanthropy

MEDIA:

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