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Microchip Biotech’s
Spring Arrival Adds to Park's Biotech
Contingent
By Nicole Zaro Stahl Is there a biotech cluster emerging in Hacienda? Barney Saunders, Ph.D. and Chief Commercial Officer at Microchip Biotechnologies Inc. (MBI), suggests as much, noting the recent arrival of Waters Corp. and Roche Molecular Diagnostics’ new research facility. Now Microchip Biotech is following in their footsteps, with refurbishing underway in the 16,000 square feet of space at 5720 Stoneridge Drive the company will occupy later this spring. Like its fellow Hacienda life-sciences tenants, MBI’s specialty is tools for biotechnology research. Where one such company puts down roots, others are apt to follow, Saunders observes. “The more companies in the tools space that establish themselves here, the more attractive it becomes to others. Plus Hacienda is a great location, and we have a very nice-looking facility that will be built out the way we want it,” he says. MBI’s focus is on streamlining sample preparation and analysis for the life sciences, through both equipment and sample size. The company’s proprietary technology dramatically shrinks the need for large sample volumes to nanoscale size, reduces labor costs through automation, increases reliability, and can provide major savings in the use of highly expensive reagents and scarce samples. Until now, Saunders explains, the processes for preparing biological samples have tended to be complex and expensive, with researchers having to choose between two less-than-perfect alternatives: error-prone manual procedures or expensive, large robotic systems. MBI’s vision is “to create devices—using simple valves, routers, and circuits in glass and plastic—that integrate, automate, and simplify the analysis of biological materials.” The cornerstone of this approach is microfluidics, a miniaturized environment where sample quantities are smaller than a water droplet. The company’s exclusive microscale on-chip valves (MOVe) technology offers superior sample mixing properties, a major leap forward in automating and integrating sequencing reactions, making the entire process much more efficient. MBI’s first product, the Apollo 100, is specifically designed for Sanger-based DNA sequencing, the standard at the thousands of university DNA-sequencing centers around the country. The company’s ultimate goal is to develop complete “sample-to-answer” solutions in a portable footprint, thus allowing all kinds of analysis and measurement to take place outside the lab. “This will lead to the creation of simple-to-use, fully automated, high-performance systems with reduced reagent costs and improved analytic efficiencies using only the tiniest amounts of sample,” Saunders explains. Among the potential applications he mentions is the ability to carry out DNA testing at a crime scene. Other examples include testing agricultural crops for pathogens like E. coli O157:H7, which contaminated fresh spinach in 2006, while they are still out in the field; and helping hospitals detect microorganisms that produce problematic infections like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Incorporated in July 2003, MBI has grown to approximately 40 employees. The new facility will include wet research labs, a small clean room for prototyping, and small-scale manufacturing rooms, “very different from a full-scale fab,” Saunders points out. “In classic Silicon Valley mode, we contract out for various pieces, and then do the final assembly and test here.” For more information, visit www.microchipbiotech.com. OOBA’s Hibiscus
Beverage Packs Plenty of Flower
Power
By Nicole Zaro Stahl “Something special is happening here,” remarks Janet Di Giovanna, Chief Marketing Officer at HiBix Corp., which moved into new headquarters at 5860 W. Las Positas Blvd. in early January. Di Giovanna is referring to the track record of the less-than-a-year-old company whose product has been singled out as “one of the top 10 trends to watch in 2009” by Datamonitor, an international market research firm. HiBix is the maker of OOBA, the first-ever line of sparkling beverages based on hibiscus extract. The first two OOBA products, Hibiscus & Lime and Hibiscus & Orange, debuted in 16-ounce bottles in the grab-and-go coolers at Whole Foods markets this past fall. Formula creator and company founder John-David Enright has a great story to tell about how that transpired. Familiar with the healthful attributes of hibiscus from his years in the pharmaceutical industry, Enright set about developing a new kind of “good-for-you” beverage from scratch in rented lab space in Hayward. He also established some important business contacts. Then, last July, he walked into a meeting with Whole Foods corporate buyers in Austin carrying a refilled soda bottle with a lab label on it that read, “Hibiscus with Attitude.” After a taste test, the buyers liked the “gently carbonated, lightly sweetened” beverage so much they decided on the spot to do an exclusive national roll-out. As Enright suspected, the all-natural OOBA drinks proved to be an ideal fit for the label- and ingredient-conscious Whole Foods shoppers, a highly educated, discerning, and adventurous demographic that “understands ‘better-for-you’ products better than anyone in the United States,” he says. A 55-cents-off hang tag on the distinctive PET bottle (the shape of an inverted ice cream cone) invited consumers to try the next new thing. “We shipped product to every Whole Foods store in the nation, almost 300 of them,” comments Di Giovanna.“We will have run close to 700,000 bottles of OOBA, which is pretty meaningful in the grand scheme of things, especially considering that, with the exception of a few food shows aimed at distributors and a small couponing effort, we have done no advertising or major promotions.” The next step is already underway, with HiBix expanding distribution to other major grocery chains. Enright may have labored by himself in the lab, but he assembled a seasoned sales and marketing team and contracted with “a very well-established organization in Los Angeles” to produce and bottle OOBA. The almost-overnight success has not ruffled Enright’s aplomb. He finds tremendous gratification in sharing the healthful properties of the hibiscus at the heart of OOBA, an acronym for One of Botany’s Advantages. “The science behind the efficacy of the hibiscus species is solid,” he states. “Hibiscus extract contains many of the same antioxidant compounds as red wine, including flavonoids, polyphenols, and anthocyanins, which have been demonstrated to prevent the oxidation of LDL or ‘bad’cholesterol, and positively affect hypertension (high blood pressure).” So eat, drink, and be healthy! For more information, visit www.oobabeverage.com. |
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| Last modified: May 04 2010 06:34:09 Copyright © 2010 HBPOA |
