Year-end roundup: A dozen Delaware biotech stories from 2019

As one of Delaware’s fastest-growing industries, biotech — our focus for Growing Industries Month of our editorial calendar in April — has had a lot going on over the past year, from startups (many coming out of the University of Delaware) to big-league venture funding.

As part of our miniseries of year-end roundups for 2019, here are a dozen biotech stories from the past year, in chronological order:

1. A Delaware biotech champion gets Marvin J. Johnson Award (January)

The University of Delaware became one of only two universities (along with University of California, Berkeley) that have had four of its scholars receive 2019 Marvin J. Johnson Award in microbial and biochemical technology from the American Chemical Society’s Division of Biochemical Technology. Recipient Kelvin Lee is a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at UD.

2. This Delaware teen is working to solve Asia’s arsenic rice crisis (February)

Preeti Krishnamani, then a senior at Charter School of Wilmington, was selected as a finalist in the prestigious national Regeneron Science Talent Search.

3. Watch these 8 homegrown Delaware biotech pitches (March)

Eight Delaware biotech entrepreneurs participated in DelawareBio’s Pitch to Partnership competition after a pitch training session hosted by Mike Rinkunas of Delaware Innovation Space.

4. TheraV’s ELIX device for amputees is testing well as the startup plans growth (April)

TheraV CEO Amira Idris Radović talked to Technical.ly about the feedback she’s gotten on the ELIX medical device, first made public in late 2018.

5. STEM spotlight: Biotech student Abigail Dela Paz (April)

We chatted with Dela Paz, then a UD senior studying the effect of electromagnetic fields on bones.

6. 5 Delaware biotech startups to watch (April)

To round out Growing Industries Month, we made a list of Delaware biotech startups to keep an eye on.

7. On DuPont’s rebirth day, biotech leaders answer the question ‘Why Delaware?’ (June)

Seven biotech leaders discussed why they had chosen the First State as part of DelawareBio’s Biotech Ecosystem Tour.

8. FMC is investing $50 million into its Newark agtech research facility (June)

In June, FMC announced plans to expand its global research and development HQ over the next three years.

9. Prelude Therapeutics lands $60 million in Series B funding (June

The cancer drug therapy company landed serious funding in June.

10. VC report: In Q2, Delaware saw the biggest raise in Greater Philadelphia (August)

A look at Delaware’s venture capital funding in 2019’s second quarter shows the economic importance of biotech in the state.

11. UD-led program receives $23.5M for biomed research (August)

The Delaware IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence, which includes such partners as Christiana Care Health System, Delaware Technical Community College, Delaware State University, Wesley College, Nemours, Wilmington VA Medical Center, Wilmington University and DelawareBio, aims to create opportunities in the biomedical field.

12. DuPont’s Nutritional Unit is up for bid in a potential $25B deal (September)

International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF) ultimately won the bidding war and acquired Dupont’s nutritional division for $26.2 billion.