The Promise of Plants in Pharmaceutical Production: iBio's Robert Erwin
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (9/9/15)
The growing need for recombinant proteins for vaccines and therapeutics is causing the biotech industry to look beyond vat fermentation and cell cultures for protein expression systems that, like iBio Inc.'s iBioLaunch technology, can increase yields quickly, safely and inexpensively. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, iBio's President Robert L. (Bob) Erwin describes the iBioLaunch technology and what it offers to drug developers and investors. More >

CAR T-Cell Therapeutics: Alan Leong of BioWatch Looks Beyond the Buzz for Solid Early-Stage Plays
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (9/9/15)
CAR T-cell therapies show amazing potential in treating blood cancers, but there's a lot of work to do before the cells are ready for commercialization. Alan Leong, senior analyst with BioWatch, tells The Life Sciences Report about the latest in CAR T-cell therapeutics and how some companies are hedging their bets by developing bispecific antibodies. He also describes the reality behind the growing excitement in regenerative medicine, and what investors should know about some very innovative, but often overlooked, small companies. More >

Buy Biotech When There's Blood on the Street: Pontifax's Ran Nussbaum
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report   (9/2/15)
Ran Nussbaum, managing partner with The Pontifax Group, doesn't worry too much about overall market volatility. Biotechs, he feels, are somewhat immune to turmoil because their fundamentals are based in real life. He prefers to play on good science and unmet medical needs, and then sit tight until a stock is discovered. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Nussbaum describes a few takeover candidates primed for stellar growth, as well as promising names that are part of the movement toward personalized medicine. More >

Disrupting Treatment of Cardiovascular Disease with Epigenetics: Resverlogix CEO Donald McCaffrey
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (8/26/15)
The evidence is mounting: Resverlogix Corp.'s first-in-class, epigenetics-based drug candidate has demonstrated its ability to significantly reduce major adverse cardiac events (MACE)—death, heart attacks, strokes and heart failure, particularly in diabetic patients—in three consecutive clinical trials. That, company President and CEO Donald McCaffrey tells The Life Sciences Report, is why RVX-208 will likely be a blockbuster. More >

Novel Technology Platforms with Dramatic Growth Potential: Wedbush's David Nierengarten
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (8/26/15)
In the past five years, development of new therapies has aimed for true disease modification and actual cures. Many novel ideas are now in the clinic, and have opened up fresh opportunities for dramatic industry growth, especially in the gene and cellular therapy realm. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, David Nierengarten of Wedbush Securities brings a handful of select names to investors' attention, including a couple of companies with technologies that could revolutionize medicine. More >

Acquisitions Power Growth of Companies and Portfolios: StoneCastle's Bruce Campbell
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (8/19/15)
Small-cap life science investors in the U.S. are focused on binary-event catalysts and major milestones that either propel stocks into the stratosphere or crash them to the ground. In Canada the focus is a bit different. Bruce Campbell of StoneCastle Investment Management has made a killing over the past year on rather unadventurous healthcare companies that have been acquiring smaller businesses and growing outward by fixing spokes to a hub. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Campbell describes five small-cap growth stories poised to ring up more acquisitions, more cash flow and more share price appreciation to portfolios. More >

Harness Biotech Volatility with an Options Strategy: Theta Strategy Capital's Eden Rahim
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (8/12/15)
Volatility is the nature of the biotech beast, and it must be tamed or utilized to advantage. That's the philosophy of Eden Rahim, portfolio manager and option strategist at Theta Strategies Capital. Can you grow a portfolio if some of your more successful names are called away by option buyers before the stock goes into the stratosphere? The answer is yes, and in this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Rahim describes his technique and leaves readers with six names that he fully expects to reap very large gains. More >

The Next Phase for MultiStem: Athersys' Gil Van Bokkelen
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report   (8/12/15)
Regenerative medicine is surging toward the mainstream, and Athersys Inc. is riding the crest. Potential safety concerns surrounding cell therapies have been largely addressed, and now the efficacy of the company's MultiStem platform in several massive markets, including stroke, heart attack and acute pulmonary disease, are ready to be tested. As the company advances its portfolio of programs, Chairman and CEO Gil Van Bokkelen tells The Life Sciences Report about the promise that MultiStem holds for both patients and investors. More >

Regenerative Medicine in Japan: CJ PARTNERS' Colin Lee Novick
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (8/5/15)
Regenerative medicine is just beginning to be understood by governments and investors alike. Last autumn, new regulations took effect in Japan that promise to speed patient access to some of these new therapies. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Colin Lee Novick, managing partner with CJ PARTNERS, describes Japan's regenerative medicine frontier and lists investment-worthy companies that are pushing the boundaries. More >

Cantor Fitzgerald's Caroline Corner: Cutting-Edge Devices and Diagnostics Deliver Drugs and Profits
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (7/29/15)
Medical technology is not considered a huge-margin investment in the way that the biotech and drug industries are. However, some of today's medtech blurs the line, including hybrid companies developing stem cell and drug-device delivery systems that address complex disease indications ranging from blindness to spinal paralysis. Caroline Corner of Cantor Fitzgerald follows companies with technologies that can both address dire diseases and reap windfalls for investors. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Corner brings important names to investors' attention. More >

Biota Pharmaceuticals' Direct-Acting Antivirals Target the Root Cause of Viral Conditions
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (7/14/15)
Direct-acting antiviral therapies are poised to become a major disruptive technology in treatment for viruses, including human rhinovirus and human papillomavirus. Dr. Joseph M. Patti, CEO of Biota Pharmaceuticals Inc., tells The Life Sciences Report about the novel antiviral therapies in his company's pipeline that address the cause of viral conditions, rather than merely the symptoms. More >

Zacks' Jason Napodano Is Not Focused on a Biotech Bubble
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (7/8/15)
It's all about the fundamentals for Jason Napodano, CFA, of Zacks Investment Research. Revenue and earnings at the big biotechs are signaling investors that the market is still strong, and that there is still a huge thirst for early-stage devices, small molecules, biologics and cellular therapies. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Napodano details the upside for small-cap biotech names that he believes will be huge gainers for investor portfolios. More >

Probe Biotech's Diverse Subsectors for Undervalued Companies: Van Leeuwenhoeck's Marcel Wijma
Source: Gail Dutton of The Life Sciences Report  (7/1/15)
The life sciences industry is evolving rapidly. Many say it's at the beginning of an explosive growth stage that will see the development and commercialization of novel therapeutics and diagnostics still being imagined in scientific laboratories today. This explosion of innovation also means an explosion of investment opportunity. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Marcel Wijma, chief research analyst at Van Leeuwenhoeck Institute, explores some smaller companies working on the industry's forefront. More >

A Clear Vision for a Turnaround: Ron Najafi of NovaBay Pharmaceuticals
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (6/24/15)
What a difference just nine months can make. NovaBay Pharmaceuticals Inc. has a materially derisked business strategy with new products coming rapidly to market, big-time distribution partners in place and new shareholders embracing the stock following a drug trial disappointment in mid-August 2014. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, company founder, President and CEO Dr. Ramin "Ron" Najafi talks about the turnaround and how he is steering the product portfolio toward a hockey-stick sales growth curve. More >

Opportunities in Cancer Immunotherapy Throttle Up: George Zavoico of JonesTrading
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (6/24/15)
Biotech investors are abuzz over immune checkpoint inhibitors and T-cell therapies, but which ones do you pick? JonesTrading Institutional Services Senior Equity Analyst George Zavoico is moving rapidly to initiate coverage on some key names in this space, and is casting a wide net in hopes of catching winners. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Zavoico delineates some movers and shakers in the cancer immunotherapy field, and recommends investors keep their pencils sharp and eyes open as data emerge over the next year or two. More >

Capitalize on Comeback Stories in Micro-Cap Biotech: Joe Pantginis of ROTH Capital Partners
Source: George S. Mack of The Life Sciences Report  (6/17/15)
The list of problems with investing in micro-cap biotech stocks begins with extreme volatility and lack of liquidity and ends with the inability to get validation from sophisticated investors who are unable to own such small companies. Nevertheless, sift through the pile and investors can find gems. Joseph Pantginis of ROTH Capital Partners recognizes the characteristics that make some of these tiny companies move up the ladder in market valuation. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Pantginis discusses five names with development programs capable of generating dramatic growth. More >

The Big Picture: Edison's Pooya Hemami Looks Beyond Cancer for Biotech Winners
Source: Peter Byrne of The Life Sciences Report  (6/10/15)
Analyst Pooya Hemami of Edison Investment Research casts a wide net when it comes to investment opportunities in the life sciences. You name it, his universe includes it: artificial sweeteners, blood tests, sleep aids, cancer treatments, brain health. In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Dr. Hemami reflects on the biotech market at midyear, and describes a robust basket of outstanding companies with pipeline treasures. More >

An Undervalued Biotech Is Testing the Cure for Cancer Now, and Chen Lin Wants In
Source: Peter Byrne of The Life Sciences Report  (6/3/15)
Chen Lin produces a monthly scorecard that tracks the performance of the stocks in which he invests. Every month, he reveals how he is doing in his newsletter, What Is Chen Buying? What is Chen Selling? In this interview with The Life Sciences Report, Lin identifies undervalued companies with paradigm-shattering pipeline products that could turn small change into big profits. More >

It's All in the Delivery: How RXi Pharmaceuticals' Innovative Platform Will Transform Medicine
Source: BTV/The Life Sciences Report  (5/29/15)
Inhibition—developing therapies that can suppress certain disease mechanisms—is a major thrust in modern biotech. With its unique RNA interference delivery platform, spun out from the mind of a Nobel laureate, CEO Dr. Geert Cauwenbergh tells The Life Sciences Report about the transformational treatments RXi Pharmaceuticals Corporation has in the pipeline, therapies that can both enrich lives and investors' portfolios. More >