This program is offered in partnership with the Biotechnology Industry Organization and managed by a SoCalBio committee composed of seasoned industry executives and headed by Dr. Pankaj Singhal of Osmetech Molecular Diagnostics (photo right). Through the SoCalBio Group Purchasing Program, member companies receive significant discounts on lab supplies and pre-owned instruments, office supplies, computer and technology products, industrial gas, various forms of insurance and employee benefits, news distribution, technical publications, employee screening, moving & storage, translation services, and credit & collection services.

For more information, visit our web site at:

• January 22, SoCalBio Networking Forum in Orange County (UCI University Club):

"Getting the Best Valuation in the Current Financial Environment" ... More Info ... RSVP

• January 29, SoCalBio Workshop on Accessing SBIR/STTR Funding for Research (UCLA Faculty Center):

"Attend this workshop to sharpen your grant-writing skills and learn how to tap various government funding opportunities from such sources as the NIH, NSF, DoD and Energy Department, to support your R&D efforts" ... More Info ..... RSVP

• February 26, SoCalBio HR Conference (Irvine Marriott)

"Talent Management in a Down Economy" ... More Info ..... RSVP

Based in the City of Irvine, California, Shimokaji & Associates counsels clients in establishing, maintaining, and protecting intellectual property rights, both domestically and internationally. 

Learn more: http://www.shimokaji.com

• "Innovation" is Dead. Herald The Birth of "Transformation" as The Key Concept for 2009

 "Innovation" died in 2008, killed off by overuse, misuse, narrowness, incrementalism and failure to evolve. It was done in by CEOs, consultants, marketeers, advertisers and business journalists who degraded and devalued the idea by conflating it with change, technology, design, globalization, trendiness, and anything "new." It was done it by an obsession with measurement, metrics and math and a demand for predictability in an unpredictable world ... Continue

• Researchers at Second Sight Medical Products of Sylmar Hope to Restore Sight Through Artificial Retinas

Co-founded by Dr. Robert Greenberg (photo right), Second Sight is developing an eye implant, named Argus, consists of a tiny camera mounted on a pair of dark glasses and a hip-mounted microprocessor. The bionic gadget relays images to a silicon chip containing an array of electrodes - conductors of electrical signals - that is surgically attached to the front of the retina. The electrodes create  a pattern of light and dark spots in the visual processing center at the back of the brain ... Read more

• Keeping Up Appearances In a Downturn: Vanity Appears to Be Trumping Frugality in a Looks-Conscious Society

Despite the dismal economic climate, most women -- and men -- who undergo appearance-enhancing treatments such as Botox injections are spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars a year to maintain the regimen, aesthetic physicians say. Meanwhile, some older patients who are putting off or forgoing expensive facelifts are instead opting for less-costly injections and laser treatments.... Read more

• Do you know that in 2008 Only two out of 23 Original PMAs Were Granted to Firms in the Los Angeles/Orange County Region?

The first company is Hoya Surgical Optics (Chino Hills) which won approval for the Hoya iSpheric Model YA-60BB Intraocular Lens. The device is indicated for primary implantation in the capsular bag of the eye for the visual correction of aphakia in adult patients in whom a cataractous lens has been removed. ... Read more

The second company is 3F Therapeutics, Inc. (Lake Forest) -- now part of the Minneapolis, MN-based ATS Medical --  which won approval for the ATS 3F Aortic Bioprosthesis, Model 1000. The device is indicated for the replacement of diseased, damaged, or malfunctioning native or prosthetic aortic valves... Read more

• 2008: Worst VC-Backed Liquidity Year Since 2003

2008 was the slowest year from VC-backed liquidity events since 2003, according to new data from Dow Jones VentureSource. The year saw only $24.1 billion in IPO and M&A exit value, which was down 58% from the $57.6 billion produced in 2007. This included a fourth quarter without a single IPO ... Read more