Past EventNMBio February Meeting – Getting Financing Done; Two Biotech Success Stories

How they did it–join us to hear from two companies that secured financing through different means and sources.

Dr. Norvell will describe the strategy used by local venture-backed startup nanoMR to secure non-dilutive funding, including hardships, keys to success, and the impact the award had on the company.

Michael Vickers will tell us about his successful ventures with SBIRs as well as the unconventional path through a foreign public listing that the company has taken to secure funding and advance its development of cyclosporine based treatments for ALS and other neurological conditions. 

Speaker Bios:

Dr. Norvell earned a B.S. from the University of Notre Dame and a Ph.D. in Human Biological Chemistry & Genetics from the University of Texas Medical Branch. After postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School and Los Alamos National Laboratory, Dr. Norvell moved to Albuquerque and obtained an M.B.A. at the University of New Mexico.  During this time, she served as a life sciences and business consultant to local startups.  Dr. Norvell joined Azano Pharmaceuticals in 2009 as COO and successfully attracted NIH funding to carry out early studies on a potential drug candidate for lupus nephritis.  She joined nanoMR full-time in 2011 and serves as the Director of Business and Technology Development.  In this role, she works with a cross-functional team to develop strategic business opportunities and R&D collaborations and to advance initiatives to support the corporate vision and goals, including the successful recruitment of a multimillion award from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for the advanced development of a medical device for the rapid detection of bloodstream infections.

Michael Vickers is a graduate of the University of New Mexico’s Anderson Schools of Management with a BBA in Financial Management. Vickers manages the operations of Maas Biolab, LLC and oversees the company’s several ongoing drug development projects including good manufacturing practices production of Maas Biolab’s cyclosporine formuation Mitogard(R), good laboratory practices dose range finding toxicology studies and compilation of an Investigational New Drug (IND) application.  Mr. Vickers co-authored Maas Biolab’s successful grant proposals including a National Insitutes of Health (NIH) fast track SBIR grant as well as a Fort Detrick Tech Transfer Initiative grant and helped Maas Biolab list its subsidiary NeuroVive Pharmaceutical on the Nasdaq Nordic stock exchange.  Michael also managed the company’s Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) contract studying the brain penetration and effectiveness of cyclosporine in models of nerve agent exposure.