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2022 Conference Agenda

24th Annual SoCalBio Conference

 October 6, 2022 – October 7, 2022 
Westin Long Beach
SoCalBio is a nonprofit, member-supported trade association that promotes life-science research, development, manufacturing, job creation and overall economic growth in the six counties of the Greater Los Angeles region (Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Riverside, and San Bernardino). The Council’s programs help local firms gain access to capital, potential partners and business support services. The annual SoCalBio Investor & Partnering Conference has grown to become the region’s premier showcase for emerging life-science companies and digital health companies.

This year, the SoCalBio Conference will feature:

  • About 30 emerging, pre-screened, and mentored bioscience companies,
  • High-quality keynote presentations touching on market and technology trends,
  • Plenary sessions
  • Ample opportunities for networking
Download the Agenda Here

Past Conferences Program

Agenda

Day 1, October 6, 2022

4:00 PMRegistration Start
5:00 PMCocktail Reception, Networking, Visit Exhibits
6:00 PMVIP Dinner
7:00 PMIntroductions by SoCalBio
7:15 PMWelcoming Remarks by the City of Long Beach
7:30 PM

“Nurturing Life-Science Industry Collaborations Between Canada and Southern California”

Remarks by the Honorable Canadian Consul General Zaib Shaikh

7:45 PMHonoring the SoCalBio Innovation Catalyst Program Members
8:30 PMDay one adjournment

Day 2, October 7, 2022

7:00 AMBreakfast & Sponsor Display Set up
8:30 AMSoCalBio Introductions and Sponsor Recognition
8:45 AMAcknowledging the SoCalBio Innovation Catalysts
9:00 AMKeynote Presentations:
The Biology/Engineering Conversion and the Rise of Integrative Biology
  • A Biotech Perspective by Phil Tagari, PhD, VP of Research, Amgen
  • A MedTech Perspective by Robert Greenberg, MD, PhD, Chair, Alfred Mann Foundation for Biomedical Engineering
10:00 AMBreak
10:15 AM

The Promise of Integrative Biology/Multi-Omics Paradigm

  • Applications & Innovations in Integrative Biology, by Carla Spine, PhD, President & CEO, NOA Therapeutics
11:15 AM

Computational Sciences and the Journey to Precision Medicine:

  • How Novel Computational Platforms Help Speed the Journey from Science To Value: A Presentation by Michael D. Orosz, Ph.D. , Research Director, Decision Systems, USC Information Sciences Institute
12:00 PMLuncheon featuring a Presentation by Documentary Film-Maker, Joe Gantz, on “Effective Story-Telling to Communicate the Value of Novel Medical Innovations”
 Technologies Frontier
(Centennial Ballroom)		Business Trends
(Barcelona Breakout Room)
1:00 PMThe Hunt for Biomarkers:
Enabling post genomic personalized medicine, and emerging technology governance to move systems science into clinical practice
Moderator:
  • Pankaj Singhal, PhD, President & CEO,
    GattaCo

Panelists:

  • Andre de Fusco, President & CEO, Hawkeye Bio
  • Robert Terbrueggen , PhD, President & CEO, DxTerity Diagnostics
  • Hsian Rong Tseng, Ph.D. D., Founder, Eximius
Funding Trends:
Who is Getting Money and Why in the Current Market?
Moderator:
  • Mark Siegfried, Business Development, CBIZ

Keynote Presentation:

  • Michael Tilghman, a Director, Silicon Valley
    Bank

Panelists:

  • Jay Goss, Managing Partner, Wavemaker Three-Sixty Health
  • Felicia Hus, PhD, Investor, Bold Capital Partners
  • Parisa Khosropour, Member — Healthcare, Tech Coast Angels
  • Steve Goldman, Member, Keiretsu SoCal
  • Carlos Solorzano, PhD, Sr. Principal, Section 32
1:00 PMEmerging Company Presentations
Biotech (Casablanca Breakout Room)
Cell & Protein Therapies:
Moderator:
  • Mohammad Kondri, Sr. Trade Commissioner, Life Sciences, Consulate General of Canada

Presenters:

  • Acorn Biolabs (Preserving the individual’s younger follicle cells for use in future cell treatments)
  • OkuloVision (Regeneration of retinal cones to restore vision)
  • Invectys (Developing CAR T for solid tumors)
  • Poseidon Laboratory (Developing an engineered protein scaffold as a biological therapeutic to address unmet medical needs)
MedTech/DH (Melbourne Breakout Room)
Critical Care Solutions:
Moderator:
  • Thomas Lobl, PhD., Entrepreneur-in-Residence, AMI – USC

Presenters:

  • Advanced Medical Device Technologies, Inc. (Advanced fluid warming, respiratory, and disinfectant solutions)
  • Niushan (A hearing device that bypasses the inner ear to present the sound to the hearing center of brain)
  • Acatechol (Self-sanitizing catheters preventing bloodstream infections )
  • AseptiScope (Infection protection for clinicians & patients)
2:00 PMTechnological Frontiers
(Centennial Ballroom)
Biometrics and Computational Technologies in Drug Development:
How AI Helps in identifying druggable molecules and the desired patient population, and in Predicting and Managing Cancer Drugs’ Adverse
Events
Moderator: 
  • Roger Anderson, PhD, COO, MERUVas

Panelists:

  • Jacob Berlin, PhD, CEO, Terray Therapeutics
  • John Shon, Chief Technology Officer, SerImmune Inc.
  • John Stroh, CEO, GATC Health
Business Trends
(Barcelona Breakout Room)
Strategic
Options for Emerging
Companies:
Partnering Strategies in the Current Tight Funding Environment
Moderator: 
  • Greg Zikos, Business Development, AMI – USC

Panelists:

  • Behram DaCosta, Sr. Director, Venture Capital, Sony Innovation Fund
  • Ruben Flores-Saaib, PhD, Academic Innovations and Partnerships Lead, General Inception
  • Gladys Nunez, Director, Amgen Ventures
  • Scott Ranelletti, Sr. Corporate Development Director, Medtronic Diabetes
2:00 PMEmerging Company Presentations
Biotech (Casablanca Breakout Room)
Precision Medicine:
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • Entelexo Biotherapeutics (Exosome-based therapeutics to treat autoimmune diseases)
  • SPG Therapeutics (Developing a novel compound for treating dermatology disorders)
  • Cenna Biosciences (Novel therapeutics for Alzheimer’s disease)
  • NuvOx Pharma (Oxygen therapeutics to treat diseases where hypoxia plays a role)
MedTech/DH (Melbourne Breakout Room)
Trauma Care Devices:
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • MACH32 (Auto- injector to stop hemorrhaging during trauma care)
  • Pneumenic Medical (A Novel Visual Detection Device for Needle Thoracostomy)
  • FluidIQ (Developing a platform of fluidics-operated devices dedicated to filling gaps in emergency and preparedness protocols)
3:00 PMCoffee & Cookies Break
3:15 PMTechnological Frontiers (Centennial Ballroom)
Smart Surgery:
A New Area in Surgical Technologies that Enable Precision MedTech Care
Moderator:
  • Steven Corr, Partner, Jones Day

Keynote Presenter:

  • Jean-Pierre Hubschman, MD, Founder, Horizon Surgical Devices

Panelists:

  • Arati Desai Wagabaza, CEO, Orcana Inc.
  • Devon Bream, CEO, Endoluxe
  • Avenda Health
Business Trends (Barcelona Room)
Los Angeles Area Incubators:
Are they Really Serving the Local Economy?
What Are the Metrics to Assess Performance?
Moderator:
  • Christopher Buser, PhD, Oak Crest Institute

Panelists:

  • Jamey Edwards, COO, Startup Health
  • Nick Mourlas, Head of JLABS San Diego
  • Robert Bishop, President, Pasadena Bio Collaborative Incubator
  • Greg Caushon, Director, Ventura Bioscience Center
3:15 PMEmerging Company Presentations
Biotech (Casablanca Breakout Room)
Precision Medicine …
Continued:
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • Phoenix Molecular Designs (A clinical-stage biotech developing breast cancer precision therapeutics)
  • Rancho Santa Fe Bio (Developing treatment of moderate aortic valve stenosis)
  • Syntr Health Technologies (Evidence-based, cost- effective therapies for the treatment of facial fat volume loss)
  • AmerStem (A plant- based platform for producing vaccine adjuvants)
Business Trends (Barcelona Room)
MedTech/DH (Melbourne Breakout Room)
Digital Health &
Connected Devices:
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • Telebionix (AI-driven wearable and insights to keep patients connected with caregivers)
  • SeeMedX (Creates smart noninvasive monitors and telehealth devices)
  • NZ Technologies (Advanced Human Machine Interaction products with applications in minimally invasive surgeries)
  • Hippo T&C (Specializes in ADHD virtual reality medical devices)
4:15 PMTechnological Frontiers (Centennial Ballroom)
Enabling a Distributed
Healthcare Regime:
Precision Medicine in Homecare Through Remote, Medical Grade Monitoring with Wearables and Other Smart Devices
Moderator:
  • William Dolphin, PhD, President, William Dolphin Consulting

Panelists:

  • Ruey-Kang Chang, MD, MPH, CEO, QT Medical, Inc.
  • Pierre-Alexandre Fournier, Co- founder/CEO – Hexoskin
  • Ronald J. Buschur, President & CEO, Advanced Medical Device Technologies Inc
Talent Development:
Companies pursuing opportunities in
Integrative Biology research require talented researchers who can work in collaborative interdisciplinary teams. These researchers should have skills not just in biology, but also in engineering and computational sciences. Do our educational institutions provide the
training and education of the next generation of scientists and researchers who will be future leaders in integrative research and can navigate across subdisciplines and engage in integrative thinking?
Moderator:
  • Christopher Buser, PhD, Oak Crest Institute

Panelists:

  • Song Li, PhD, Chair of Bioengineering, UCLA
  • Gerald Loeb, MD, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, University of Southern California & Founding Director, SynTouch Inc
  • Jiang (Jay) Guangqiang, CTO, Axonics Modulation Technologies
4:15 PMEmerging Company Presentations
Biotech (Casablanca Breakout Room)
Analytical Instruments:
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • Early Diagnostics (A UCLA spin –off focusing on early detection of cancer)
  • Pangea Laboratories (Early detection of bladder cancer and microbiome disorders)
  • CBio (Analytical equipment to facilitate cell and viral vector gene therapy)
  • Isoplexis (Instruments for single-cell functional proteomics)
MedTech/DH (Melbourne Breakout Room)
Digital Health :
Moderator: TBA
Presenters:
  • Geshtalti (SaaS in mental fitness)
  • Oncoustics (AI to analyze data streams on PoC Ultrasound revealing novel biomarkers for rapid disease diagnosis)
  • Deep01 (AI-Powered Anomaly Detection Solution of Brain CT Images)
  • OraQ (AI & machine learning for dental disease risk assessment)
5:15 PMClosing Cocktail Reception with Awards to Company Presenters
7:00 PMConference Adjourns