Birmingham’s Southern Research tests parts 3-D printed in space for NASA
Could 3-D printers transform the International Space Station into a manufacturing hub and one day function as the heart of an on-demand machine shop in space that enables NASA to mount crewed missions deep into the solar system? Engineers at Southern Research are helping NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center explore the capabilities of additive manufacturing technologies that have major logistics implications for the nation’s ambitious future space missions. “When NASA sends a crew to Mars, there can’t be a resupply mission. There is just no way to send them replacement parts if equipment breaks or a part fails in deep space,” said Madison Parks, an advanced mechanical engineer in Southern Research’s Engineering division. “On a mission to Mars, a 3-D printer will have to go with the crew. A part failing in orbit can be replaced after a resupply mission, but a resupply mission to a craft on the way to Mars would be too costly and may result in a loss of the mission. The crew will need to be entirely self-sufficient,” he said. Parks is working with Marshall’s engineers to come up with an answer to a critical question facing NASA’s plans for space-borne three-dimensional printing: Are parts manufactured in zero gravity going to behave just like those produced on Earth-bound 3-D printers? The ISS is already equipped with a 3-D printer. In 2014, California-based Made in Space sent a polymer printer to the space station, followed two years later by a more advanced device. It’s been used to print plastic tools used around the station, along with other non mission-critical items. To help NASA understand the properties of materials printed in an in-space 3-D polymer printer, Parks and his team are testing specimens of materials printed in space and comparing them to similar specimens produced on Earth. Along with tension and compression tests on these materials, Southern Research will be performing digital image correlation (DIC). DIC is a non-contact optical method that employs tracking and image registration techniques for accurate 3-D measurements of changes on the surface during a mechanical or thermal loading. Measuring full-field displacements and strains during the mechanical tests will help engineers understand the material behavior and overall effect of print passes and how they relate to zero-gravity 3-D printing versus Earth 3-D printing. “For safety reasons, NASA has to understand the materials before they use them,” Parks said. “You have to understand where and how these parts, which are manufactured in space, can be used. Doing otherwise could lead to parts and systems failing prematurely.” Southern Research’s Engineering division, which specializes in analyzing how materials perform in extreme environments, has collaborated with NASA for decades. Its engineers analyzed the thermal and mechanical properties of potential heat shield materials for the Apollo program and provided crucial support for the Space Shuttle, particularly in the “Return to Flight” missions after the Columbia accident. Today, Southern Research is involved in the Space Launch System, the massive rocket NASA is developing for planned Mars missions. For NASA, three-dimensional printing offers a fast and inexpensive way to manufacture parts on a spacecraft, exactly when they’re needed. That’s a huge benefit to long-term missions and has the potential to fundamentally change how NASA plans logistics operations for human spaceflight. “Right now, there are thousands of parts for the International Space Station sitting in NASA storage, and most of them will never be used,” Parks said. “But they have to have all these parts on hand to launch to the ISS in case something breaks or fails.” “What Southern Research and NASA are working together on is a foundational effort with the goal of the ISS crew being able to print the parts they need as they need them, which will help the astronauts accomplish their missions,” he said. This story originally appeared on Southern Research’s website. Republished with permission from the Alabama NewsCenter.
Birmingham’s Southern Research receives funding from US DOE
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has selected Southern Research for an award of up to $1.5 million to advance technology for carbon dioxide (CO2) utilization. The DOE award, now being negotiated, will fund scale-up and field testing of a catalytic process for conversion of CO2 and shale-derived ethane to ethylene, a valuable olefin. Olefins serve as building blocks for a sweeping variety of products such as packaging, plastics, textiles, paints and electronics. Industrial demand for olefins such as ethylene and propylene is rising at 4 to 5 percent annually as living standards improve across the world. This diagram shows the process of how carbon dioxide is transformed into light olefins. (Southern Research) Over the last two years on a previously funded DOE study, Southern Research has developed a novel nano-engineered catalyst-driven process for the production of light olefins, such as ethylene, using CO2 from coal-fired flue gas and lower alkanes derived from shale gas feedstock. This lab scale study demonstrated the conversion, selectivity and stability of this new generation catalyst in presence of flue gas impurities and low concentrations of CO2. The results of the lab scale study led to this new award, which consists of constructing and operating a field scale unit. This project will produce and test a larger amount of catalyst and validate both the process reliability and the ability to produce ethylene at the next engineering scale. “Ethylene and propylene are the highest-volume petrochemicals in use today. Current production methods are capital- and energy-intensive as well as large greenhouse gas emitters,” said Corey Tyree, Ph.D., senior director of Energy and Environment at Southern Research. “By combining CO2 with shale gas, which is readily available in the U.S., our new process promises to have meaningful economic and environmental impact,” he said. The project’s long-term goal is a commercially viable and environmentally friendly technology for producing light olefins via CO2 utilization. Environmental benefits Production techniques for ethylene, which is manufactured in amounts greater than any other chemical, typically use naphtha or ethane as raw materials, and require a large amount of energy to crack apart molecules. Principal investigator Amit Goyal, Ph.D., director, Sustainable Chemistry and Catalysis, said Southern Research’s innovative process concept can use CO2 directly (or captured) from coal-fired power plants, or derived from any source, to produce light olefins. The new technique can yield significant environmental benefits by becoming a net consumer of CO2, he added. “Ethylene alone accounts for 1 percent of the world’s energy consumption and 180 to 200 million tons of CO2 emission,” Goyal said. “Due to the large magnitude of ethylene production, any reduction on the energy requirement will be highly impactful.” The approach would reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired plants, the top emitters of the colorless, odorless gas in the U.S power sector. In 2015, coal-based power plants in the United States emitted nearly 1.4 billion metric tons of CO2. “Coal is abundant and cheap, making it a vital energy source,” said Jadid Samad, Ph.D., advanced chemical engineer and co-principal investigator for Southern Research. “A smart solution to the issue of emissions from coal-fired power plants lies in the prospect of using CO2 as feedstock to produce valuable chemicals.” Converting CO2 Samad said Southern Research’s approach on the project directly supports the Carbon Use and Reuse research and development portfolio being assembled by DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy. The portfolio is developing and testing novel approaches that convert captured CO2 from coal-fired power plants into usable products. The funding from the Office of Fossil Energy for Southern Research’s project totals $1,499,442. The office announced Oct. 31 that it has committed a total of $18.7 million to funding projects to support its Carbon Use and Reuse R&D portfolio. Southern Research’s partners include 8 Rivers Capital LLC, a company developing and commercializing sustainable infrastructure technologies, which will provide support on the project’s techno-economic analysis. The National Carbon Capture Center, a DOE site for testing innovative technologies, will provide the field site and flue gas feed generated at a utility plant for the project. The center is operated by Southern Company and based in Wilsonville. In addition, a petrochemical consultant will provide guidance on catalyst development, as well as scale-up and commercialization aspects of the project. This story originally appeared on Southern Research’s website. Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Southern Research is advancing green chemistry in the heart of Alabama
Birmingham’s Southern Research has developed a reputation in cancer treatment and other medical advancement, but an area where it is showing much promise today could end up having its greatest worldwide impact. Environmental research has emerged as an exciting field for Southern Research, so much so that it has become one of three pillars the institution is focusing on in its Change Campaign fundraising efforts. The “Earth” pillar focuses on green chemistry and ways to reduce the use of petroleum in consumer goods or find ways of recycling carbon dioxide, among other initiatives. The mind pillar focuses on neuroscience to find treatments for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and Lou Gehrig’s disease, or ALS. The body pillar focuses on cancer treatments. The fundraising for green chemistry is a vital part of Southern Research’s efforts in the field. “It is highly competitive,” said Amit Goyal, director of Sustainable Chemistry and Catalysis at Southern Research. “A lot of this is high-risk, high-reward, so it is funded by federal funds.” Most federal funds are directed at universities and national labs, Goyal said. “A lot of times good ideas also do not get funded,” he said. “It’s not just that they’re not good enough.” Jonathan Geisen is an attorney with Baker Donelson law firm and is a “Change Agent” working on the Change Campaign for the Earth pillar. Green chemistry as an area of great promise at Southern Research. (Getty Images) “I think green chemistry, environmental R&D is going to have a harder time sometimes raising funds than health-care research or other medical innovations,” Geisen said. “It’s a long game and I think it’s the sort of thing that we really need to support.” Geisen said he knew more about the other areas of research than he did green chemistry when he joined the Change Campaign. “When I got involved with this particular group and met with some of the scientists and met with some of the other people involved with the program, I was just blown away,” he said. The more he knows about the areas of focus, the more excited he is to support the Earth pillar, Geisen said. “I think some of the things that Southern Research is doing – alternative fuels, different types of recycling plans – there are so many things going on here that I was unaware of until I got involved,” he said. “It’s the sort of thing that we need to support in this community to continue to improve our life.” Goyal said there are a couple of areas where Southern Research shows great promise. Southern Research is looking to use plant-based materials to replace many petroleum-based products. (Getty Images) “There are two areas that we are really excited about,” he said. “(One is) a chemical that we are trying to make from sugars extracted from plants that are used in fibers in clothing and carbon fibers. It’s a high-growth area, so it might have a lower inertia to become commercialized if we’re successful. The second is to use CO2. There is a lot of CO2 that if it can be consumed rather than just emitted it can lower greenhouse gas emissions.” Philanthropic funds give Southern Research freedom to explore those ideas. The payoff could be huge, Goyal said, as a large amount of petroleum-based products could become plant-based and have rippling benefits on the economy. “It is not easily to compete with petroleum-derived sources, these things developed over the last century,” he said. “If you think of a commodity chemical, it usually costs about $1 a kilogram, so there is not much room between the feedstock price and the final product, which is a chemical in this case. To develop processes at scale to produce at the same economic value with less greenhouse gas is quite challenging. We’re trying to address that.” Geisen said Southern Research is a vital part of the three-legged stool that makes up the entrepreneurial and innovation base for Birmingham, along with UAB and Innovation Depot. “Birmingham needs things like Southern Research,” he said. “We need places that are innovative, that are bringing the best and the brightest to Birmingham.” The Change Campaign ends October 11 with the “An Evening of Change” event. Republished with permission from the Alabama NewsCenter.
Alabama’s largest county looks to continue economic development momentum
With the recent announcements of thousands of jobs coming into Jefferson County in connection with Amazon’s advanced robotics fulfillment center, DC BLOX’s data center and Shipt’s decision to keep its corporate headquarters in Birmingham, local officials are working from a playbook that has four steps, they say. It all begins with Alabama’s business climate that has been ranked as best in the United States for growth potential and workforce training by Business Facilities magazine, said Commissioner David Carrington, chair of the county’s Finance, Information Technology and Business Development Committee. The second is that Jefferson County is the economic center of the state, with the largest population and number of jobs. In 2016, companies announced they were going to create 14,500 jobs and invest $5.1 billion in Alabama. The Birmingham-Hoover metro area accounted for about 20 percent of those jobs and 25 percent of the capital investment. Jefferson County alone was responsible for 1,436 announced jobs and $506 million in capital investment. “In fact, the metro area’s gross domestic product is greater than Mobile, Montgomery and Huntsville combined,” Carrington said. “In 2017, according to the Alabama Department of Commerce, Jefferson County led the state with 2,200 new announced jobs in targeted industries.” The next step is collaboration among partners that often include the Birmingham Business Alliance (BBA), University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) and, if a proposed site is in a city, the city. “As in most successful projects, it was a well-coordinated community effort that led to a successful conclusion, and we’re very grateful to our partners and allies for their great work on this project,” said Lee Smith, East Region CEO for BBVA Compass and 2018 chairman of the BBA, after the area secured Amazon’s $325 million investment. “The county actively listens to the prospect’s needs and then participates in the development of an aggressive marketing plan with (those) partners,” Carrington said. Fourth, a project team is in place that “leverages our community’s assets,” Carrington said. “. . . We will talk about our enviable road and rail transportation network when talking to a distribution company; or UAB, Southern Research and Innovation Depot when talking to a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) company; or our central, geographic proximity to Mercedes, Honda, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Kia and the soon to be open Toyota/Mazda plants when talking to an automotive supplier.” All of those steps are done under a positioning umbrella, he said. “Even if we don’t win a project, we want the company and their consultants to ‘have a good feeling’ about the community so we will be considered for a future project,” he said. Carrington pointed to the community’s Amazon HQ2 “BringAtoB” campaign. “The primary project team knew that Birmingham was at best a long shot, but, despite the odds, we put together an innovative vision and proposal for the company to consider,” he said. “While we didn’t win the headquarters, we caught Amazon’s attention and less than a year later announced an 855,000-square-foot advanced robotics fulfillment center in Bessemer.” Republished with the permission of the Alabama Newscenter.
Kay Ivey to Alabama economic developers: “Momentum is on our side.”
Alabama’s two main economic development leaders urged state economic developers to continue to evolve and advance to help keep the momentum Alabama has enjoyed in landing and expanding industry. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and Alabama Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield addressed the 2018 Summer Conference of the Economic Development Association of Alabama Monday. Both had much to brag about. Alabama’s economy has roared back since the Great Recession a few years ago to post the lowest unemployment in state history and some of the biggest names in business now — or soon will — have significant operations in the state. Gov. Kay Ivey addresses the 2018 EDAA Summer Conference from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo. Consider: Alabama unemployment in October 2009 was 11.8 percent. In May 2018, it was 3.9 percent. Alabama’s gross domestic product (a measure of total economic output) was 2.5 percent in 2009. In 2017, it was 3.3 percent. In 2017, the state announced economic development projects with $4.4 billion in capital investment that will create an estimated 15,456 jobs. Monday, AIDT, the state’s lead workforce training department, announced it is working a record number 135 projects with 30,000 jobs. Alabama Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield shared his cautious optimism with leaders at the Economic Development Association of Alabama summer conference. (Mike Tomberlin/Alabama Newscenter) “Times have gotten better. The strategy is paying off,” Canfield said. “But we’re not yet where we want to be.” Ivey credited economic developers at the local level across the state with helping achieve the success. “These jobs are in large cities like Mobile and Birmingham, but they’re also in smaller towns like Brewton and Bridgeport,” she said. “We’ve celebrated announcements and groundbreakings with companies like Google and Facebook and Boeing and with some growing companies, too, like Kimber Firearms and AutoCar. Y’all, momentum is on our side and I want Alabama to be every company’s first choice for their location.” Ivey said corporate CEOs from around the world tell her they are successful in Alabama because of the quality and productivity of their employees in the state. Part of keeping the momentum the governor talked about is gearing economic development toward the jobs and businesses of the future. “We’re really focused a lot on technology and innovation, the growth of entrepreneurship,” he said. “It’s really about growing the knowledge economy in Alabama that will support the industry that’s here.” Canfield said the state is about to get a major tool to work with in that regard. Alabama EPSCoR, which represents research universities and private institutions like Southern Research and HudsonAlpha, is close to unveiling a gamechanger. “EPSCoR is putting together and about to launch a digital database that’s searchable so that economic developers and site consultants and companies who want to be able to find out where they can link their product development and their own internal research with that of public universities or private research institutions, they will actually be able to go into this database and if they want to find something like who is doing research right now on composite materials, who is doing research on nickel alloys in the aerospace sector, who is doing additive manufacturing and powder alloy research in technology development? They can actually go in and be linked to the specific researchers doing that work, not just at the university level, but at the researcher level,” Canfield said. “So at the state level, we will be able to provide that connectivity. This will really help us advance economic development to the next level.” Canfield’s optimism is due, in part, to education at all levels of the state (K-12, community colleges and universities,) along with worker training initiatives working closely to complement each other’s efforts. “I think the state has never been better aligned in terms of workforce preparedness,” he said. “That terminology really includes everything from education – the academic side of education but also skills development and certifications – anything that’s industry-specific, industry-recognized and equips Alabamians with the right tools necessary to be able to do the right jobs.” With that alignment, Ivey wants to ensure education and worker training are looking ahead to what’s needed. “We’ve got a great workforce, but we have got to keep the pipeline full with folks trained with higher skills to meet the jobs that we know are coming, and some of them are already here,” Ivey said. Many of those next-generation jobs will be in aerospace. Ivey said the state delegation’s recent efforts at the Farnborough International Air Show are paying off. “Even more good news may be on the horizon for Alabama,” she said. “I’m proud of what Airbus and Bombardier are doing to finalize their plans to create a second assembly line in Mobile for the A220 series. And, also, Leonardo is still in the running to be awarded the contract from the United States Air Force to build the T-100 trainers. Y’all, if Leonardo is successful and gets that contract, there are going to be 750 new jobs in Macon County. That is huge.” Canfield, too, is hopeful for the state’s chances on the T-100 trainer. “I am so eager to hear positive news for Tuskegee and Macon County,” he said. Ivey said watching Alabamians get good-paying jobs is the true goal of economic development. “All of this good news gives me great hope about our fine state,” she said. “We all want Alabamians to be able to achieve their dreams, live in a safe environment, have a quality of life and create a reputation for the state of Alabama that is envied worldwide.” Greg Canfield at the 2018 EDAA Summer Conference from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo. Republished with the permission of the Alabama Newscenter.
EDPA’s ‘imerge’ event honors Alabama’s top innovators
Alabama’s top innovators gathered in Birmingham recently to celebrate the region’s thriving entrepreneurial scene and collaborate on ways to make it stronger. The Economic Development Partnership of Alabama’s 2018 “imerge” event awarded $151,000 to winners of an Alabama Launchpad startup pitch competition and honored industry leaders with EDPA’s annual Innovation Awards. Attendees networked over food and drink as EDPA transformed the covered parking area of its office on First Avenue South into a pop-up performance venue. Entrepreneurs who have helped fuel the growing innovation ecosystem in Birmingham and across the state talked about how the Magic City has shaped their companies’ culture and played a role in their success. “Birmingham, and particularly the South, has a certain way of putting people first and really caring for people,” said Bill Smith, founder and CEO of Shipt, the same-day delivery marketplace that last week announced a plan to create 881 jobs in Birmingham over the next several years. Smith said Shipt, which was acquired byTarget last year, has been able to scale that culture to locations and shoppers across the country as it aggressively expands. “That’s been a huge part of our success and will continue to be part of our success in the future.” $1 billion reasons Smith was part of a panel discussion – “$1 Billion Reasons to Believe in Alabama” – so named because the companies that were a part of it represented more than $1 billion in recent transactions. Also part of the panel were Shegun Otulana, founder and CEO of Theranest, and Chad Trull of Hospicelink. Otulana offered encouragement to entrepreneurs who are just getting started. “It’s a journey, and it’s not going to be easy. Don’t be afraid to fail,” he said. “Keep at it and seek counsel and hopefully it gets you to the right place.” Birmingham auto racing software developer Apex Pro won $100,000 in the seed category of the startup competition, as well as the $1,000 audience choice award. Global Inspections of Mobile won $50,000 in the concept category. Other special guests at imerge included Henrique Dubugras, co-founder of San Francisco-based financial technology company Brex and Nashville singer-songwriter and entrepreneur Holly Williams. EDPA President Steve Spencer said imerge brings together the many facets of Alabama’s vibrant entrepreneurial scene in one place to foster even more growth. “These are the stars of Alabama innovation here tonight. We want to create an environment where people can work with each other, learn from each other and celebrate each other,” he said. The 2018 EDPA Innovation Award winners are: Lifetime Achievement in Innovation: Art Tipton, Birmingham, is president and CEO of Southern Research, one of the leading research organizations in the U.S. in the areas of drug discovery and development, engineering and energy and environmental sciences. Startup of the Year: XpertDox, Birmingham, is a free web-based resource that connects patients to expert doctors, hospitals, ongoing clinical trials and peer-to-peer support. Outstanding Achievement in Innovative Manufacturing: Alignment Simple Solutions, Pelham, manufactures portable, affordable and accurate wheel alignment products and accessories for all vehicles. Corporate Innovator of the Year (small company, 10-50 employees): Inventure Renewables Inc., Tuscaloosa, pioneers process technologies for the rapid, low-cost, high-yield extraction of natural, biochemical and material building blocks from low-value/waste to provide cost-effective, carbon-neutral biofuels, biochemicals and biomaterials. Corporate Innovator of the Year (large company, 50-plus employees): Shipt, Birmingham, is a membership-based online grocery marketplace delivering fresh foods and household essentials through a community of shoppers and a convenient app. Startup Executive of the Year: Dr. Karim Budhwani, Birmingham, is CEO of CerFlux Personalized Medicine, which aims to reduce the pain, reduce the discomfort and reduce the cost of cancer treatment. Business Executive of the Year: Miranda Bouldin Frost, Huntsville, is president and CEO of LogiCore, which since its inception in 2002 has been an innovative resource for Department of Defense, government and commercial clients. Social Entrepreneur of the Year: Buddy Palmer is president and CEO of Create Birmingham, which has a mission to invest in imagination and invention. Through its programs, Create Birmingham constructs and supports diverse avenues for commercial and nonprofit creative success. “imerging” Young Leaders awards: Dustin Embrey, Connie Griesemer, Wayne Heard, Trent Kocurek, Chris Maurice, Ben Podbielski and Jeff Zeiders. Republished with the permission of the Alabama Newscenter.
Military awards Alabama’s GeneCapture $1 million contract to develop portable disease detector
The Department of Defense has awarded Huntsville’s GeneCapture a $1 million, two-year contract to develop a portable device that war fighters can use to identify disease-causing germs. The Small Business Technology Transfer Research (STTR) contract is from the DOD’s Joint Science and Technology Office for Chemical and Biological Defense. GeneCapture, a resident associate company at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, has developed a “gene signature matching platform” that screens for hundreds of pathogens in less than one hour. The multi-pathogen test is conducted using a small, inexpensive disposable cartridge and can be used to test samples from humans and animals. The technique is being evaluated as a possible solution for a portable infection diagnostic device for use in forward deployed military operations. GeneCapture is collaborating on this contract with Birmingham’s Southern Research, which will provide its expertise in infectious diseases, purifying genetic material for testing and designing clinical trials for the Food and Drug Administration. “It has been a dream of mine to bring this technology to market so that critical diagnostic decisions can be made quickly, which will save lives,” said Krishnan Chittur, chemical engineering professor emeritus at the University of Alabama in Huntsville and co-founder of GeneCapture. The original discovery was patented by UAH and exclusively licensed to GeneCapture. Krishnan Chittur, Ph.D., CTO of GeneCapture, and Art Tipton, Ph.D., President and CEO of Southern Research. The Huntsville company and Birmingham-based research institute will work together on a device to quickly identify diseases for the U.S. military. (contributed) Chittur said the technology uses genetic probes to capture the “signature” of germs. An optical scan identifies which germ is present and produces a result in about 45 minutes. “It’s a completely new technique that would have been impossible without the advances in genetics and genomics discoveries of the last decade,” he said. “That is one of the reasons we are located at the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology – the research that’s happening here is cutting-edge.” Paula Koelle, chief scientist at GeneCapture and principal investigator for the STTR Phase II contract, will lead the effort to produce the disposable cartridges and desktop analyzer for a set of pathogens selected by the DOD that present potential biological threats to the war fighter. The resulting technology could have uses beyond the battlefield. The portable platform could enable civilian applications, such as rapid infection diagnosis in schools, urgent care clinics, doctors’ offices, nursing homes, veterinary clinics, cruise ships and airports. Southern Research’s proven track record supporting new platforms for detecting and preventing newly emerged and highly dangerous and infectious disease pathogens made the nonprofit the perfect partner on the project. “The opportunity to work closely with GeneCapture is a perfect match for Southern Research,” said Art Tipton, Southern Research president and CEO. “We have a history of reaching out to the life sciences community, which benefits both our state economy and the global healthcare industry. Our infectious disease scientists will produce reference tests and accelerate the clinical testing of GeneCapture’s new platform.” Working for the DOD drives home the sense of urgency when it comes to disease-causing germs around the world. “GeneCapture is focused on reducing the risk we all have of being infected from emerging pathogens and global pandemics – the clock is ticking,” said GeneCapture CEO and co-founder Peggy Sammon. “The GeneCapture team is working diligently to bring an affordable, portable solution to this critical problem by connecting with disease experts around the world to incorporate their needs into this product.” Republished with permission from the Alabama NewsCenter.
Analysis: Alabama bioscience industry’s impact tops $7.3 billion a year
Alabama’s multifaceted biosciences industry generates $7.3 billion in economic activity annually while supporting 780 companies and nearly 48,000 direct and indirect jobs across the state, according to a new analysis by researchers at the University of Alabama. The comprehensive study underscores the contributions and growth potential of the statewide life sciences sector, a robust combination of research institutions, medical labs, innovative startups, international pharmaceutical manufacturers and more. “We have exceptional strengths in biosciences, including world-class research organizations and a roster of cutting-edge companies, so it’s a natural growth area for the state,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “We’re committed to helping accelerate the development of the life sciences sector, and we want the state to become home to more of these high-paying jobs and the talented individuals to fill them,” he added. Massive impact The analysis, conducted for the BioAlabama industry trade group, shows that Alabama’s 780 life sciences companies directly employ 17,871 workers, each earning an average annual salary of $67,664. Total expenditures of those companies exceed $3.8 billion a year. Other key findings in the University of Alabama report: The bioscience industry’s 47,980 direct and indirect jobs in Alabama support a total yearly payroll of $2.3 billion. The industry contributes $3.9 billion annually to Alabama’s gross domestic product (GDP), nearly 2 percent of the state’s total economic output. The industry’s earnings impact generates $161.4 million in tax revenue annually, including $74.7 million in state income taxes and $86.7 million in state and local sales taxes. In addition, the UA researchers examined the economic contributions of bio-industries such as agricultural feedstock and chemicals, and bioscience-related distribution. They found that these activities magnified the impact of the core life sciences sector in Alabama, elevating overall economic output to $11 billion a year with more than 70,000 jobs and annual tax revenue topping $233 million. “This analysis confirms the far-reaching impact of Alabama’s bioscience industries throughout the state, and demonstrates why we continue to pursue strategies that allow the sector to continue to grow and create even more high-caliber jobs across the state,” said Blair King, president-elect of BioAlabama and manager of economic development and existing industry at Alabama Power Co. Diverse activities The foundations of Alabama’s bioscience research rest on the work conducted by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), Southern Research, the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology, and the University of South Alabama’s Mitchell Cancer Institute. The specialties of these organizations include drug discovery and development, genomics, and personalized medicine. They also frequently engage in collaborations such as the Alabama Drug Discovery Alliance, a partnership between UAB and Southern Research that has developed a pipeline of potential therapeutics for diseases such as cancer and diabetes. Alabama is also home to multinational companies involved in pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturing. In March, Germany’s Evonik, for example, announced plans to expand production of biomaterials and launch a Global Competence Center for Medical Devices at its Birmingham facility. “Evonik’s investments in the Birmingham site reflect its commitment to the medical device and drug delivery business as well as the city of Birmingham and its history of world-class medical research and technology,” said Kel Boisvert, Birmingham site manager for Evonik. Other manufacturers operating in the state include Kowa Pharmaceuticals (Montgomery), Nektar Therapeutics (Huntsville), Baxter and Pharmavite (both Opelika), and Oxford Pharmaceuticals, Avanti Polar Lipids and BioHorizons (all Birmingham). At the same time, a number of innovative startup companies have sprung up in Alabama, with many of them based at HudsonAlpha and Birmingham’s Innovation Depot, the Southeast’s largest technology business incubator. Promising startups include Birmingham’s Blondin Bioscience, Huntsville’s GeneCapture, Mobile’s Swift Biotech and Auburn’s Vitruvias Therapeutics. “We are fortunate to have started our business in Alabama because we have benefited from the highly collaborative entrepreneurial spirit throughout the state, including Alabama Launchpad and the various Small Business Development Centers, and especially our connection with HudsonAlpha and the University of Alabama in Huntsville,” said BioAlabama President Peggy Sammon, CEO and co-founder of GeneCapture. “We have been able to find highly skilled molecular biologists, chemical engineers, optical engineers and lab specialists,” she added. “Our membership in BioAlabama has connected us with other scientists and business professionals who have significantly helped us advance our business plan.” Alabama’s research universities are key players in the bioscience ecosystem and contribute to the industry’s economic impact. The network includes Auburn University, USA, Tuskegee University, Alabama State University, Alabama A&M University and the three University of Alabama System campuses. The analysis is the first to comprehensively examine the economic impact of the state’s bioscience sector. It was prepared by Senior Research Economist Sam Addy, Ph.D., and his team at the Center for Business and Economic Research at the University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Business, with assistance from BioAlabama. Addy noted in the report that investing in life sciences should remain a pillar of the state’s overall economic development strategy. “Alabama should continue to keep biosciences as a focus in its economic development strategy since these industries provide high-wage jobs and are highly productive,” he writes. What others say “Since launching its cancer program in 1946, Southern Research has discovered seven FDA-approved oncology drugs and made many significant discoveries that have helped patients with cancer and other diseases,” said Art Tipton, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Birmingham nonprofit. “This highlights the vital importance of the groundbreaking bioscience work that continues to be done in labs in Alabama.” “I see UAB as not only the hub for healthcare innovation in Birmingham, but definitely throughout the state and the region,” said Kathy Nugent, Ph.D., executive director of UAB’s Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. “That means producing as many companies as possible. It’s harder to produce biotech companies, because it takes time to develop new drug therapies. What we’re trying to do is think about it strategically and give our faculty the resources they need to be entrepreneurial to turn their research into new life sciences ventures.” “HudsonAlpha has gone from just a handful of startups and faculty to more than 35 life sciences companies and 15 faculty investigators in just 10 years,” said Carter Wells, vice president for economic development at HudsonAlpha. “It goes to show that Jim Hudson and Lonnie McMillian’s model works, and we’re proud
Jefferson Co. Commissioner, breast cancer survivor Sandra Little Brown highlights local breast cancer partnerships
Three years after Jefferson County Commissioner Sandra Little Brown fought her own battle with breast cancer and won, she’s still working to help increase awareness about the life-threatening disease. On Friday, she joined forces with St. Vincent’s Health System to host a community breakfast to highlight local partnerships that are doing their part in helping improve breast cancer awareness, research and care in the Birmingham metro area. Speakers at the event included: Veronica Wehby-Upchurch | Executive Diector of Susan G. Komen North Central Alabama Dr. Bo Xu | Chair of the Oncology Department at Southern Research Beth Bradner Davis | Executive Director of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama Susan Sellers | President of St. Vincent’s Foundation Caroline McClain | Manager of Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center Brenna Powell | Chief Strategy officer at St. Vincent’s Health System. Local partnerships The program highlighted the work of Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center, which is a collaboration between all Birmingham area hospitals, the Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham, and other community partners. Forge’s creation was first announced in 2014. “This program brings together Birmingham’s wonderful healthcare resources with the goal of improving support and care for all people who have been diagnosed with breast cancer,” said Caroline McClain, manager of Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center ahead of the event. “Forge works locally and in rural communities to remove barriers to care and gaps in service; navigate survivors and their families through diagnosis, treatment, and beyond; and support and educate healthcare professionals. Forge is constantly evolving to meet the ever-changing needs of survivors, their families, and the health systems. We are proud to provide exactly what they need, when they need it, and how they need it.” The event also highlighted two Birmingham-based entities: Southern Research and the Breast Cancer Research Foundation of Alabama, that are working to advance knowledge and develop new therapies for breast cancer. Susan G. Komen’s North Central Alabama chapter discussed its work with local organizations and individuals to raise awareness about breast cancer, which is one of the most common cancers among U.S. women. Breast cancer facts The American Cancer Society estimates that 266,120 women across the country this year will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and almost 41,000 will die from the disease. The Cancer Society estimates that 3,760 of those cases and 670 of those deaths will be in Alabama. Early detection and proper treatment can reduce the risk of dying from breast cancer. Over the past 20 years, progress in treatment and early detection has led to improved survival for people of all ages, races and stages of breast cancer. But experts say work remains to be done to ensure women are aware of the importance of regular screening and have access to tests that can find breast cancer early, when the chances of survival are highest. Increasingly, attention also has been focused on the importance of continued follow-up care even after breast cancer treatment has been completed. Survivors may need ongoing emotional support, and their treatment may leave them at higher risk of other conditions, such as heart disease, that require ongoing attention. “It’s exciting to see the work being done right here in our own community to meet all the needs – from raising basic awareness, to finding new treatments, to providing the best possible care over the long term,” said Brown. “There is more work to do, but we are making progress every day.”
Southern Research programs aim to shield against pandemic flu dangers
With experts predicting another deadly influenza pandemic in the future, Southern Research scientists are working on several fronts to help limit the death toll from a catastrophic flu outbreak that one day slams the nation. Birmingham-based Southern Research conducts tests on emerging pandemic strains and participates in strategic government vaccine programs focusing on highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) strains that pose potentially grave public health risks. In addition, Southern Research has performed toxicology studies for flu vaccine platforms and provided pre-clinical studies on vaccine candidates, along with clinical trial support for vaccine makers. The nonprofit organization has also researched antiviral treatment approaches that could protect people after infection. “Scientists will tell you it’s not if, it’s when we have a pandemic. That’s the way the flu virus works,” said Landon Westfall, Ph.D., a senior project manager and infectious disease scientist at Southern Research. “It’s like the San Andreas fault – the big one is coming one day. The idea is since we can’t prevent it, we should prepare for it. That’s the goal.” Pandemic influenza strains pose a much greater threat than even the nastiest strains of seasonal flu. The dominant seasonal strain this year, H3N2*, fits that description, causing an above-average rate of hospitalizations and prompting Alabama to declare a public health emergency. The current flu season’s misery is worsened because the available vaccine is only moderately effective. “That’s the challenge with flu. Vaccines don’t always work,” Westfall said. “Most of the time, they protect 55 to 60 percent of the population. That’s kind of the goal of influenza vaccines. But there will always be subsets of the population that won’t be protected.” Elevated dangers Novel avian or swine flu strains, however, have the potential to cause lethal damage on a global scale. Because these dreaded strains are new, very few people have immunity against them, so they can spread widely and rapidly, sickening a large segment of the population, Westfall said. When pandemics emerge, more than half of an affected population can be infected in a single year, while the number of deaths stemming from the flu outbreak can sharply exceed normal levels. The goal is to prevent a global calamity like the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed more than 50 million people, and outbreaks in 1957 and 1968 that each killed at least 1 million people worldwide. The last pandemic, the 2009 H1N1 swine flu outbreak, killed as many as 575,000 people. More information on pandemics.That’s why the work being conducted by Southern Research and other organizations as part of the U.S. government’s influenza preparedness programs is critically important, Westfall said. For more than a decade, pandemic fears have centered on the highly lethal H5N1 avian influenza, despite the fact that the so-called “bird flu” virus does not infect humans easily. If a mutated form of the H5N1 virus became easily transmissible from person to person while retaining its severe effects, the public health consequences could be very serious, the World Health Organization warns. “For the most part, avian influenza affects birds. When the virus makes a jump from one species to another, say from bird to human, that’s a big thing,” said Westfall, who oversees the influenza virology program for Southern Research’s Drug Development division. “That’s a rapid evolution for a virus that will likely cause major problems. In cases where the avian flu has infected humans, the mortality rate has been around 60 percent.” Southern Research scientists have worked on influenza projects for government agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority. The organization has also worked with a number of commercial clients. “We’re recognized as one of the leading supporters for clinical vaccine research, especially for flu,” Westfall said. “That is partly because of our history in the field but also because of our capabilities to test a large volume of samples in a relatively short time.” The next pandemic Although most experts believe another influenza pandemic is inevitable, Westfall said it is impossible to predict when or where it will occur, or how severe its impact will be. It’s almost impossible to predict with certainty the subtype of influenza virus most likely to cause the next worldwide outbreak. While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the risk of H7N9 is currently low because human-to-human transmission is rare, the CDC still rates the strain as having the greatest potential to cause a pandemic.Late in 2017, scientists reported that a new strain of H7N9 avian flu circulating in China showed the ability to transmit easily among animals with highly lethal results, raising alarm about its potential to trigger a global human pandemic. Westfall said the evolving nature of influenza viruses presents tough challenges to the research community. “Flu is like a malleable pathogen that can change from week to week, from month to month, and from region to region,” he said. “Every person who gets infected with the flu basically creates a small change in that virus that’s then passed on to multiple people. Flu constantly changes that way.” *In the designation of influenza subtypes, the H refers to hemagglutinin, a protein found on the surface of flu viruses, while the N refers to viral neuraminidase, another protein present on the surface of the virus. This story originally appeared on the Southern Research website. Republished with permission from the Alabama NewsCenter.
Southern Research technology to provide unique look at solar eclipse
A high-definition imaging system developed by Southern Research and deployed on NASA aircraft flying nearly 10 miles above Earth will give scientists a unique look at the sun’s corona during a rare total eclipse taking place over the United States in August. As a bonus, Southern Research’s Airborne Imaging and Recording System (AIRS) will provide highly detailed observations of Mercury’s surface and could uncover the first solid evidence of the existence of Vulcanoids, a belt of asteroids believed to be circling the sun. Johanna Lewis, director of Engineering’s Program Management Office at Southern Research, stands next to the AIRS/DyNAMITE instrument that will provide a unique look at the sun and Mercury during the 2017 solar eclipse. (Southern Research) To capture this data, Southern Research and its AIRS/DyNAMITE technology are supporting the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), which won a NASA contract to carry out the mission during the Aug. 21 eclipse. AIRS/DyNAMITE turrets will be mounted on two NASA WB-57 research aircraft, which will fly at 50,000 feet and collect high-resolution video and infrared data throughout the first total solar eclipse occurring over the length of the entire continental U.S. in 99 years. “NASA is providing the WB-57 aircraft, Southern Research is providing the unique onboard sensors and Southwest Research Institute is conducting the science,” said Johanna Lewis, director of the Program Management Office in SR’s Engineering Division. “Southern Research will be handling the data collection, and we will be making sure that Southwest Research Institute is getting the best data that we can provide on Mercury and the sun,” she added. Unprecedented observations The total eclipse will unfold over 14 states, from Oregon to South Carolina, as the moon’s shadow completely blocks the sun, turning day into night for a few minutes. For scientists, the event is a chance to get a close look at the otherwise hidden solar corona, as well as planets and stars normally obscured by the sun’s blinding light. SwRI says the mission will provide the clearest images ever of the sun’s outer atmosphere and the first thermal images of surface temperature variations on Mercury. “This airborne platform provides us with higher-quality, higher-speed images than are achievable from current or previous space-borne instruments,” said Amir Caspi, Ph.D., principal investigator of the project and a senior research scientist in SwRI’s Boulder, Colorado, office. “We hope to better understand what causes the corona and why it’s so hot. It’s millions of degrees Celsius, hundreds of times hotter than the visible surface below,” he added. “The corona is the source of electromagnetic storms here at Earth, which can damage satellites, cause power grid blackouts and disrupt communication and GPS signals, so it’s important to better understand it.” ‘Eyes in the sky’ Lewis and John Wiseman, Ph.D., a senior project leader in Southern Research’s Engineering Division, traveled to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston this month for test flights of one of the WB-57 aircraft with an AIRS/DyNAMITE instrument modified for the mission. Three NASA AIRS/DyNAMITE-equipped WB-57 aircraft fly over Houston. (Southern Research) “The system provides a means of tracking events you might not be able to get elsewhere, with simultaneous mid-wave infrared and visible light data,” said Wiseman, one of the instrument’s inventors. “It’s configurable, and we have had a number of payloads in it, so it’s very versatile.” Southern Research developed the technology in partnership with NASA, which was looking for a system to capture HD video of the July 26, 2005, launch of the Space Shuttle’s “Return to Flight” mission after the Columbia mishap. Acting as “eyes in the sky” for NASA, the system, from a distance of 20 miles, captured full-motion video of the shuttle’s liftoff and tracked it to 146,000 feet. “It was developed as an experiment, and it was supposed to have about five to 10 flights,” Wiseman said. Since then, the high-altitude video system has been used to monitor critical rocket launches, to collect data for science missions and to assist the Department of Defense on security missions. In the past six years alone, the AIRS/DyNAMITE technology has flown on almost 500 flights. Extended view of eclipse On Aug. 21, the twin WB-57 aircraft flying in the stratosphere over Carbondale, Illinois, will tag-team the total eclipse, gathering exceptionally accurate measurements of the solar corona to better understand how energy moves throughout the sun’s atmosphere, according to NASA. From a vantage point high above the clouds and Earth’s weather systems, the AIRS/DyNAMITE-equipped planes will get a clear view of the eclipse and collect data during totality for about 8 minutes. That’s far longer than the 2 minutes and 40 seconds available to ground stations monitoring the event. In addition, the instruments will be in position to make unprecedented observations of Mercury’s surface in infrared light, which can be otherwise hindered by radiation from the sun. Scientists hope these measurements will give new information about how Mercury’s surface temperature changes as its day turns to night, shedding light on its surface composition, NASA says. “Because Mercury is so close to the sun, it’s very difficult to perform direct observations. When the moon is going into eclipse over the sun, we will have a rare opportunity to collect Mercury infrared data,” Lewis said. There’s even more to this mission. While the sun’s bright light is blocked, AIRS’ HD cameras will search the skies for evidence of vulcanoids, a hypothetical band of asteroids traveling around the sun in Mercury’s atmosphere. That’s important because vulcanoids could provide insights about the creation of the planets and the solar system’s earliest period. “Most people have never heard of vulcanoids before. This will be a unique opportunity for them to look for these things that scientists theorize are there, but nobody has ever proven,” Lewis said. “If we provided the instrument that proves they were there, that would be a major accomplishment.” Flying with the WB-57 Southern Research will play another important role in the eclipse mission. A Houston-based SR communications engineer, Donald Darrow, will serve as the special equipment operator in the back seat of one of the WB-57 aircraft, operating the AIRS/DyNAMITE instrument during the flight. Lewis said a
Birmingham agency wins extension for Zika virus research
The Birmingham-based Southern Research is expanding its work on the Zika virus. The National Institutes of Health has awarded the non-profit organization a contract extension worth $650,000 to expand a screening effort to include testing of the virus. The goal of the work is to identify compounds that may serve as drug agents to combat Zika, which is transmitted by the bite of a tropical mosquito. Zika is so mild in people that most who get it don’t even know they are sick. But it is believed to cause serious birth defects if women are infected while pregnant. Health officials have been concerned mostly with helping women who are pregnant or about to become pregnant avoid the disease. Republished with permission of the Associated Press.
