Day: February 7, 2023

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Pharmaceuticals & Biotech Technology U.S

Cell Therapy Bioprocessing Market Projected to Reach $30M by 2028

The healthcare industry is heavily investing in developing safe and effective treatments using cell therapy technologies as an alternative to traditional treatments.

The result: The cell therapy bioprocessing market is ballooning at breakneck speed. 

The global cell therapy bioprocessing market size is predicted to hit a revenue of a staggering $30,052.61M by 2028—up from $ 11,192.50M in 2020. The market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 13.14% during the forecast period between 2020 and 2028, according to a report by Insight Partners published in medgadget. 

Cell therapy bioprocessing

Cell therapy bioprocessing is a subfield of bioprocess technology that blurs the lines between bioprocessing (biopharmaceutical manufacturing) and cell therapy. 

The goal is to develop robust and reproducible manufacturing processes for producing therapeutic cells by substituting, rebuilding, repairing, or regenerating damaged cells, tissues, and organs. 

Cell therapy bioprocessing holds great promise to revolutionize healthcare and treat chronic conditions—such as cancers, age-related blindness, macular degeneration, stroke, and more.

Driving Forces Behind the Cell Therapy Bioprocessing Market Growth

The growing need to efficiently treat chronic ailments has pushed research activities in cell and gene therapy bioprocessing which, in turn, is likely to propel the market’s growth over the coming years.

The increasing number of clinical trials conducted or underway is another leading factor contributing to the rapid growth of the cell therapy bioprocessing market.

Case in point: as of 2022, 1221 active clinical trials were conducted on cell and gene therapies, among which 342 were in phase 1/1b.

The report marks the advancement in genome editing as another driving force behind the cell therapy market growth. 

By allowing scientists to add, remove, or alter DNA in the genome at specific points, genome editing can provide effective treatment solutions for chronic ailments. 

Medical scientists hope that genome editing will act as a step-change in treating monogenic hereditary diseases—such as hemophilia, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, and Huntington’s disease. 

Interventions into the immune system can also help cure acquired diseases—e.g., AIDS or cancer. The potential of genome editing technologies, such as TALENs and Zinc-finger nuclease, has opened avenues in the modern therapeutic sector having the potential to accelerate market growth. 

Furthermore, the gradual invention of innovative technologies to support the development of avant-garde therapies has further aided market expansion. For example, CRISPR-Cas9 is one of the widely adopted genome editing technologies that yield higher accuracy. Being the cheapest yet highly efficient system to alter genetic traits in a cell, CRISPR-Cas9 has significantly fueled research activities. 

The Cell Therapy Bioprocessing Market Segmentation

According to the report, by technology, the market is segmented into a) lyophilization, b) bioreactor, c) electro-spinning, d) ultrasonic lysis, e) control-flow centrifugation, f) viral vector technology, g) cell immortalization technology, and h) genome editing technology. The bioreactor segment reigned in the cell therapy bioprocessing market, accounting for the largest revenue share in 2020. On the other hand, the genome editing technology segment is forecast to grow at the highest CAGR of 14.5% through the projection period.

By cell type, the market is segmented into a) immune cell, b) stem cell, c) hematopoietic stem cells, d) pluripotent stem cell, and e) human embryonic stem cell. The stem cell was the highest market-share segment in 2020 and is projected to record the highest CAGR of 14.0% during the forecast period.

In addition, by indication, the market is segmented into a) oncology, b) orthopedics, c) cardiovascular disease (CVD), c) wound healing, and more. Among the segments, oncology held the largest market share in 2020 and is foreseen to record the highest CAGR of 14.3% through the projection period.

The report highlights some of the key players in the market, such as Fresenius Kabi AG, Asahi Kasei Corporation, and Sartorius AG. Being at the forefront of adopting growth strategies, these companies strive to capitalize on the vast untapped potential of the cell therapy bioprocessing market.

How COVID-19 Impacted the Cell Therapy Bioprocessing Market Growth

The market growth of cell therapy bioprocessing was affected to a certain extent, with more focus put on curbing the onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic. Research activities halted for a certain period as research institutions had to slow down their trial enrollment process. 

In addition, the global pandemic harmed the production and supply chain efforts in the biopharma industries. 

However, the market now continues to advance, with many leading businesses planning to make their therapies more accessible. 

Navigate Challenges to Success

Researchers are trying to reap the full therapeutic and commercial benefits of cell therapy bioprocessing technologies. For that, emphasis must be placed on overcoming the challenges regarding today’s existing capabilities to generate clinical-grade cells at commercially relevant scales.

However, the development process for bringing cell therapies to patients is highly intricate. The process involves multiple bio-production and bioprocessing steps that need to be executed optimally to confirm the required safety and effectiveness of the final product.

With that said, for cell therapy products to hit the expected success, taking a process-driven approach to bioprocessing operations is critical.

The solution: leveraging a high-end bioprocessing solution with predefined workflow templates for each step in the pipeline

Such a class-leading system like Sapio Sciences’s Bioprocessing solution includes extensive sample, material, and instrument management, charting capabilities, and native data analysis. The result: streamlined operations and seamless collaboration across teams that accelerate product to market. 

Wrapping Up

After decades of relentless efforts, gene and cell therapy bioprocessing is set to flourish incredibly in the coming future. A flurry of recent successes has led to the approval of multiple life-improving therapeutics—and many more are under development. 

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Business Marketing & Sales Media & Communications Professional Services U.S

Marianne Schwab, Former National Talk Show Producer, Reveals Five Mistakes Businesses Make When Hiring a P.R. Agency or Publicist

Hiring a public relations agency (P.R. agency) or publicist can be a great way for businesses to improve their image and reputation, as well as increase their visibility. However, it’s important for businesses to avoid making mistakes when choosing a PR agency or publicist, since these mistakes can lead to wasted time and money, and even damage to the business’s reputation.

As a former national network TV talk show producer, Marianne Schwab has worked with P.R. Agencies for over twenty-five years and shares some insight on what to do look for to make a good match with an agency and the business they’ll be representing. She says, “When I produced daily talk shows, I got a lot of pitches from P.R. agencies and some were great, but many publicists were kind of clueless and didn’t understand how to effectively pitch television talk shows to get results for their clients. Overall, publicists are generalists in P.R. and have to pitch print publications like magazines and newspapers or online publications so pitching broadcast outlets like podcasts, radio, and television talks shows and news programs requires an entirely different skill set and contact database that many publicists don’t have.”

Schwab says when businesses or entrepreneurs hire a PR agency or publicist they need to avoid making these mistakes because they won’t just cost money, but they’ll end up with little to no media results which is the goal when investing in a public relations campaign.

Mistake #1 – Not doing their homework. It’s important for businesses to thoroughly research and compare different PR agencies or publicists before making a hiring decision. This includes looking at the agency’s or publicist’s track record, understanding their approach to P.R., and getting references from other clients that include the media results. Schwab says, “It’s also important to look at the types of clients they have worked with and are currently representing for two reasons. First, they need to be the right fit for your industry or aligned with your brand, and second, confirm that they do not currently represent any competitors which would be a conflict of interest. This can sometimes be tricky if you’re thinking about working with a brand that specializes in beauty and skin care. On one hand, they have developed media contacts for that industry that can help you, but on the other hand, they may represent competing products or brands and that can be an issue.”

Mistake #2 – Failing to set clear and realistic goals or objectives. Before hiring a PR agency or publicist, it’s crucial for businesses to have a clear idea of what they hope to achieve through public relations. Goals might include increasing brand awareness, improving media coverage, or managing a crisis, but should also be measurable like securing a specific number of placements in print and broadcast with a specific number of impressions for the audience as well. “PR campaigns do take time to get traction and produce results so you need to be realistic about the time not only needed to achieve these goals,” Schwab says, “but also do not expect national coverage when local media may be far more effective and realistic.”

Mistake #3 – Not communicating effectively. Communication is key to the success of any PR campaign. It’s important for businesses to provide their PR agency or publicist with all relevant information they need to represent the client, including details about the business and its products or services, as well as any challenges or issues that need to be addressed. In turn, the PR agency or publicist should keep the business informed about the progress of the campaign and any opportunities or challenges that arise.

Mistake #4 – Not being open to expert consultation or feedback. A good PR agency or publicist will provide honest and constructive feedback to help the business improve its PR efforts. It’s important for businesses to be open to this feedback and be willing to make changes based on it. Marianne Schwab advises, “Remember that you have hired an expert and your results will depend on how much you respect their advice and heed it. I always love when a client is open to ideas that may push the envelope just a bit since those are the pitches that get the best results.”

Mistake #5 – Overpaying for services: There are also other considerations especially when it comes to the fee for public relations services. “I’ve seen some small businesses and entrepreneurs get talked into buying ‘too much P.R.’ for the size of their business. Retainers for small agencies start around $3,000 per month and the major P.R. agencies charge up to $25,000 and more. Small companies don’t need a big agency and it breaks my heart when I see them invest a boatload of money and get little to no results in media placements especially when I know I can guarantee meaningful media placements for clients,” Schwab comments.

By avoiding these mistakes, businesses can improve their chances of success when working with a PR agency or publicist. A well-planned and executed PR campaign can be a valuable investment for any business, helping to build its reputation and reach new audiences.

Marianne Schwab has worked as a producer for over 25 years in New York and Los Angeles. She is currently the Executive Producer of CMP Media Cafe where she works with clients to develop compelling media hooks and story angles that get them TV and radio interviews in today’s complicated media environment. She shares tips on Instagram and has created an online training that shares her insider secrets to promoting a business on TV talk shows and details the types of guests producers love to book as guests.

Categories
Computers & Software Technology U.K U.S

Review Your Cybersecurity Stack to Stop API Breaches

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Earlier this month (January 2023, if you’re reading this in the future), T-Mobile revealed that it had been hacked and had the information of 37,000,000 customers stolen. 

The company filed an 8-K form with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is a document that companies must file if there is a development that shareholders should be aware of.

The form stated that the company had “…identified that a bad actor was obtaining data through a single Application Programming Interface (“API”) without authorization.”

Data breaches that exploit API security flaws are not new. Last year, a leading cybersecurity journal, SC Media, reported that API security incidents affected 95% of the surveyed organisations in 2021-22.

In a more recent article, the magazine discusses how re-evaluating the cybersecurity stack of the company might be essential for stopping API breaches.

If you aren’t sure what an API is, this article might be difficult to follow. So, to answer your question (and feel free to skip to the next section if you already know)…

What’s an API?

An API is a bit of software that helps two different applications “talk” to each other. APIs can be very useful in application and software development because they save you the time and effort of building a tool when something already exists. 

Simply use an API to get that tool to show up within your application and you’re done.

It’s like when you want to show your location on the map on your website. Why code your own map when you can use Google Maps and have it show up on your website using an API?

Why Are APIs Vulnerable to Attacks?

The problem is, with so many applications being built, the use of APIs has increased exponentially.

Since APIs are programs that transfer information between two entities, they are prime targets for those who want access to that information.

As a result, cyberattacks that exploit APIs are on the rise.

According to the SC Media article, the rate at which APIs are being developed makes them difficult to secure.

On top of that, most companies don’t even know how many APIs they have, let alone a complete list. So, they have no idea how many of their APIs can access sensitive information.

Finally, the biggest problem APIs are facing is attacks using bots. Malicious automation is used to find vulnerabilities in the APIs as well as to exploit these vulnerabilities to gain access.

That means bots can quickly—at a much, much faster rate than a human—get access to a company’s database and grab information that can then be used for nefarious purposes.

Now, don’t get me wrong. It’s not like developers aren’t doing anything to secure their APIs. API management best practices include a discussion about security. However, regular security tools, like WAFs and API gateways, can be inadequate for bot attacks.

Is Re-Evaluating Your Cybersecurity Stack the Answer?

In the article, SC Media cites a report by Forrester (Planning Guide 2023: Security and Risk) which says companies must evolve their defences to keep up with the evolving threats. 

That might mean reviewing your current cybersecurity stacks and removing tactics and solutions that don’t work. CISOs should also be focusing on API security and bot management in 2023, the article advises.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the bot defence should be “proactive and dynamic”. Companies should be aware of the potential vulnerabilities of their products and plan their defences accordingly, and not rely on a one-size-fits-all approach.

As the bots evolve and change their attack methods, your API security should be smart enough to block them from every direction. If it’s not, then it might be time to take a look at it with a critical eye.

Categories
Business Marketing & Sales Media & Communications Professional Services U.S

Ross B. Williams, Founder of Modern Profits, Reveals How Personal Branding Can Be a Game Changer for Entrepreneurs

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Personal branding has become one of the most important foundations for entrepreneurs as they build a business and professional reputation to promote their image to their ideal clients and there are three crucial keys to ensure personal branding success. Unfortunately, if these are not part of the initial business strategy, it can derail the best laid out plans since personal branding is much more than color combinations, fonts, and a cool logo. It is, in fact, an essential ingredient for every aspect of marketing a business that includes websites, social media posts, advertising, and everything digital.

Ross B. Williams, founder of Modern Profits, is a Personal Branding Strategist and he says, “When personal branding is done correctly, it will differentiate you from your competition and elevate your reputation, but business branding is very different from personal branding. Not only do you need to understand the difference between the two, but you also must understand why you need both. You can be successful at your business but if your personal branding is not aligned with who you are, you are missing opportunities that ultimately affect your bottom line.” 

Williams, who was recently interviewed on Tampa Bay’s Morning Blend, the local ABC-TV station, has a unique background as a personal branding strategist.  He has contributed multi-seven–figure sales revenue to several companies with his mastery of sales and uses his business building skills and digital marketing expertise to help successful business owners dramatically increase revenue by transforming their personal brand.  When he works with his clients, he incorporates three crucial keys to ensure personal branding success.

1. Personal branding should reflect the entrepreneur’s authentic self. A personal brand should be an accurate, yet authentic, version of who the entrepreneur is so they attract the types of clients with whom they want to work. According to Ross B. Williams, this is crucial for ultimate success, “I see a lot of successful entrepreneurs promoting their lifestyle on social media, for example, but I have no idea what they actually do, what business they’re in, or how I can help them by referring business. If people don’t know what you do, they can’t refer business to you and that is why a personal brand is so important.”

Ross continues, “The ultimate point to keep in mind is that people buy from people so your personal brand is a reflection of you even when you’re not the face of a company. Since you are promoting yourself, you need to create your branding assets according to your personality. If you are selling something that’s not true to you, others will feel it.” 

2. Entrepreneurs must build their personal brand alongside their business brand. Today, more than ever, it’s not enough to build a business brand, but entrepreneurs need to build a personal brand in tandem as they build their business. Why? Williams advises, “It’s imperative that you begin with the end in mind. If you have an exit strategy when you build your business to sell it five years down the road, you only want to be the ‘face’ of a successful business without having your name tied to the brand because if you do, you can’t sell your business as a separate brand.”

Ross goes on to say, “If you choose to sell your business someday without a personal brand developed alongside your company, you’d have to start another business from scratch and cannot use your name on your business.”

3. The logo and color combinations are just “gift wrap” for a personal brand. Many entrepreneurs start their personal branding with a logo and branding board, but it is much more complex and scientific, according to Williams, “Personal branding starts with how you make people feel with what you do in your business, how you want to be portrayed and have others see you, then you wrap it in colors and design. The graphic designer understands the creative color combinations, fun fonts, and logo design, but most don’t understand which colors, and even fonts, trigger emotions and attract clients to buy from you before they even get to peek inside the box. These are psychological touch points that can dramatically increase sales and ultimately revenues.”

Content creation for personal branding can be overwhelming for most business owners and that’s why Ross B. Williams has put this all together in a done for you package that’s simple for any business owner. The key is not to build a little bit at a time and then try to bring it all together since that’s chaotic or doesn’t match. “Effective personal branding demands that social media, photos, graphic design, and media are cohesive and congruent so that it extends your digital footprint and your omnipresence.” Ross concludes.

Ross helps coaches, consultants, entrepreneurs, and business owners build their personal brand with his brand accelerator package. This helps entrepreneurs perfect their messaging and expand their digital footprint with a website, funnel, social media, and press that seamlessly work together as a cohesive brand that people remember and buy from. 

Ross B. Williams works with clients based in the U.S. and around the world to develop personal branding strategies that get results. He is available for Personal Branding Strategy sessions and can be contacted at RossBWilliams.com or connect with Ross on Instragram.