ATLANTA, April 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Matmerize, Inc., a pioneering AI-based polymer informatics company, and CJ Biomaterials, a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang and a primary producer of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymers, have joined forces to drive innovation in sustainable polymer solutions aimed at combating plastic pollution. In a recent collaboration with Matmerize, CJ Biomaterials successfully tested Matmerize’s cloud-based AI platform, PolymRize, to optimize bio-based polymers, ensuring they meet specific performance criteria across a wide range of applications.
Human life and plastic have become inseparable, but the environmental toll of plastic waste is undeniable. With more than 9 million tons of man-made plastic waste entering the ocean each year, the urgency to find sustainable alternatives has never been greater. In response to this challenge, CJ Biomaterials created PHACT, a groundbreaking 100% bio-based Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) using an innovative fermentation process, that degrades naturally in soil and ocean environments, mitigating the harmful impact of plastic pollution on marine ecosystems.
One of the key challenges in materials development is the lengthy and resource-intensive process of characterizing core properties. By leveraging Matmerize’s custom model training and predictive analytics platform PolymRize, CJ Biomaterials was able to rapidly estimate the performance of newly designed materials, enabling quicker decision-making and reducing time and costs compared to traditional methods.
“The collaboration with CJ Biomaterials goes beyond R&D efforts, significantly impacting work efficiency and cost reduction by prioritizing experiments through expertise and machine learning capabilities. This commitment to innovation not only promotes sustainable practices but also secures a competitive advantage for CJ Biomaterials in the polymer and plastic industry.” – Dr. Chiho Kim, CTO, Matmerize, Inc
As Matmerize, Inc and CJ Biomaterials continue to push the boundaries of innovation in polymer development, the companies remain dedicated to driving positive environmental change and shaping a greener, sustainable future for generations to come.
About Matmerize: Matmerize, a spin-out from the Georgia Institute of Technology, is at the forefront of pioneering solutions that bridge the gap between AI and materials engineering. Matmerize’s PolymRize platform utilizes virtual screening and AI algorithms to identify the most optimal materials, empowering technologists to focus their experimental efforts on the most promising options with precision and efficiency. This approach significantly accelerates the materials engineering process saving valuable time and resources. PolymRize represents a paradigm shift in industry, propelling clients ahead of the competition and driving innovation at an unprecedented pace.
About CJ Biomaterials:
Headquartered in Woburn, MA, USA, CJ Biomaterials develops meaningful solutions that positively affect our planet, human health, and well-being by addressing the challenges posed by plastic waste. The company invents and manufactures biopolymers and bio-based chemicals as part of a long-term vision to create a more sustainable future, by enabling true circular solutions that replace many non-recyclable, non-reusable and fossil fuel-based plastics and chemicals. CJ Biomaterials is a global leader in the manufacture of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs)–both polymers and associated basic chemicals. CJ Biomaterials, a business unit of CJ BIO, is part of CJ CheilJedang, a global lifestyle company with a vision to inspire a new life filled with health, happiness, and convenience.
ATLANTA, April 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Matmerize, Inc., a pioneering AI-based polymer informatics company, and CJ Biomaterials, a division of South Korea-based CJ CheilJedang and a primary producer of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymers, have joined forces to drive innovation in sustainable polymer solutions aimed at combating plastic pollution. In a recent collaboration with Matmerize, CJ Biomaterials successfully tested Matmerize’s cloud-based AI platform, PolymRize, to optimize bio-based polymers, ensuring they meet specific performance criteria across a wide range of applications.
Human life and plastic have become inseparable, but the environmental toll of plastic waste is undeniable. With more than 9 million tons of man-made plastic waste entering the ocean each year, the urgency to find sustainable alternatives has never been greater. In response to this challenge, CJ Biomaterials created PHACT, a groundbreaking 100% bio-based Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) using an innovative fermentation process, that degrades naturally in soil and ocean environments, mitigating the harmful impact of plastic pollution on marine ecosystems.
One of the key challenges in materials development is the lengthy and resource-intensive process of characterizing core properties. By leveraging Matmerize’s custom model training and predictive analytics platform PolymRize, CJ Biomaterials was able to rapidly estimate the performance of newly designed materials, enabling quicker decision-making and reducing time and costs compared to traditional methods.
“The collaboration with CJ Biomaterials goes beyond R&D efforts, significantly impacting work efficiency and cost reduction by prioritizing experiments through expertise and machine learning capabilities. This commitment to innovation not only promotes sustainable practices but also secures a competitive advantage for CJ Biomaterials in the polymer and plastic industry.” – Dr. Chiho Kim, CTO, Matmerize, Inc
As Matmerize, Inc and CJ Biomaterials continue to push the boundaries of innovation in polymer development, the companies remain dedicated to driving positive environmental change and shaping a greener, sustainable future for generations to come.
About Matmerize: Matmerize, a spin-out from the Georgia Institute of Technology, is at the forefront of pioneering solutions that bridge the gap between AI and materials engineering. Matmerize’s PolymRize platform utilizes virtual screening and AI algorithms to identify the most optimal materials, empowering technologists to focus their experimental efforts on the most promising options with precision and efficiency. This approach significantly accelerates the materials engineering process saving valuable time and resources. PolymRize represents a paradigm shift in industry, propelling clients ahead of the competition and driving innovation at an unprecedented pace.
About CJ Biomaterials:
Headquartered in Woburn, MA, USA, CJ Biomaterials develops meaningful solutions that positively affect our planet, human health, and well-being by addressing the challenges posed by plastic waste. The company invents and manufactures biopolymers and bio-based chemicals as part of a long-term vision to create a more sustainable future, by enabling true circular solutions that replace many non-recyclable, non-reusable and fossil fuel-based plastics and chemicals. CJ Biomaterials is a global leader in the manufacture of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs)–both polymers and associated basic chemicals. CJ Biomaterials, a business unit of CJ BIO, is part of CJ CheilJedang, a global lifestyle company with a vision to inspire a new life filled with health, happiness, and convenience.
The CEPI-funded study will evaluate the safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity of IAVI's single dose Lassa fever vaccine candidate
Key takeaways:
Participants in Nigeria have been vaccinated with a Lassa fever vaccine candidate in the first Phase 2 clinical trial of any Lassa vaccine.
Lassa fever is a deadly hemorrhagic fever common to West Africa. No approved vaccine currently exists.
More than 600 participants in Ghana, Liberia, and Nigeria are expected to enroll in the IAVI-sponsored trial, funded by CEPI.
NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / April 4, 2024 / Participants at HJF Medical Research International in Abuja, Nigeria, have been vaccinated in the first Phase 2 clinical trial of a Lassa fever virus (LASV) vaccine candidate to date, according to IAVI, a nonprofit scientific research organization and the trial sponsor. The study (IAVI C105/PREVAIL15) is funded by CEPI, an innovative global partnership working to accelerate the development of vaccines against epidemic and pandemic threats.
Dr. Bolaji (left) is the Nigeria-based HJFMRI principal investigator for the IAVI C105 Lassa fever vaccine clinical trial at HJFMRI in Abuja, Nigeria
The trial in Nigeria has been designed in consultation with in-country partners, including the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention and the Nigeria Lassa Vaccine Taskforce. HJF Medical Research International, Ltd/Gte (HJFMRI) has been conducting infectious diseases research in collaboration with HJF and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research in Nigeria since 2014. In addition to Nigeria, and pending regulatory approval, IAVI expects to enroll additional participants at the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR), College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, and the Partnership for Research on Vaccines and Infectious Diseases in Liberia (PREVAIL)1.
"Nigerian clinicians, scientists and community members are key leaders in this international collaboration, which will ensure that vaccine development incorporates local context, experience and perspectives while fostering sustainable in-country research capacity and partnerships," said Dr. Abdulwasiu Bolaji Tiamiyu, clinical research center director, HJFMRI, and principal investigator of IAVI C105 in Nigeria.
No approved vaccine currently exists for LASV, which causes an acute viral hemorrhagic illness called Lassa fever. Given its potential to cause a public health emergency of international concern, LASV is included in the World Health Organization R&D Blueprint of priority pathogens for which there is an urgent need for accelerated research and development (R&D) and countermeasures2. IAVI and members of the global Viral Hemorrhagic Fever Consortium have been collaborating since 2018 to accelerate clinical development of IAVI's single-dose LASV vaccine candidate in studies supported and funded by CEPI and the European & Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP). Read more.
An estimated 5,000 people die each year from LASV, and about 300,000 people fall ill across West Africa annually - though the true disease burden is thought to be much higher. Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea are most affected, but increasingly, neighboring countries are experiencing their own emerging outbreaks, with travelers occasionally carrying infections to other regions. Although most people who develop LASV have mild or no symptoms, approximately 20% will develop more serious symptoms including widespread bleeding and major organ failure. Approximately a third of those infected with LASV experience associated deafness, sometimes resulting in lifelong disability. Children under 10 years old, pregnant people, and health care workers are especially vulnerable to LASV infection.
"Continued outbreaks of Lassa fever and the emergence of Ebola Sudan in Uganda both underscore the need to have vaccines for known disease threats available for evaluation and use during outbreak situations - the overarching goal of IAVI's emerging infectious disease program." said Swati Gupta, DrPH, MPH, vice president and head of emerging infectious diseases and epidemiology, IAVI. "IAVI C105 is an important step toward attaining eventual licensure of a Lassa fever vaccine, should IAVI's vaccine candidate prove to have an acceptable safety profile and be efficacious. We are grateful to our funders, our clinical partners, and our consortium collaborators for their continued support of IAVI and commitment to a more secure world."
"Lassa fever has long been a threat to much of West Africa, and factors like climate change and population growth could exacerbate its transmission in coming decades," explains Dr. Richard Hatchett, CEO of CEPI. "The world urgently needs a Lassa vaccine for routine immunisation. The initiation of IAVI's new Phase 2 trial - the most advanced Lassa vaccine trial to date - is an important milestone in public health and signals that better tools to manage and prevent outbreaks are coming. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with IAVI and regional partners to advance this promising vaccine as quickly as possible."
IAVI's LASV vaccine candidate was well-tolerated and immunogenic among participants in both the U.S. and Liberian cohorts of IAVI's Phase I LASV vaccine trial (IAVI C102). Robust immune responses appear to be sustained for up to one year after vaccination3. In the Phase 2 study, researchers will evaluate the vaccine candidate's safety, tolerability, and immunogenicity at two different dosage levels in adults, including people living with HIV, as well as in adolescents and in children two years of age and older. Approximately 612 participants will be enrolled and followed for six months after vaccination to monitor their safety and immune responses. A subset of participants will be followed for an additional two years for extended safety and immunogenicity.
CEPI and IAVI are united in their commitment to global equitable access. Should the candidate be found to be safe and efficacious in clinical testing, IAVI is committed to making its Lassa vaccine affordable and accessible to all populations in need.
Harnessing a proven platform technology for global preparedness
IAVI's LASV vaccine candidate uses the same recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV) vector platform as ERVEBO®, Merck's single-dose Zaire ebolavirus (ZEBOV) vaccine, which is licensed in North America, Europe, and 10 African countries. The rVSV platform has been used extensively in adults and children4.
IAVI's goal is to develop and test rVSV-based vaccines against emerging infectious disease pathogens that pose epidemic threats as part of an overall preventive strategy which includes routine immunization as appropriate as well as stockpiles which can be rapidly deployed for larger outbreaks as needed. IAVI's EID portfolio includes a Sudan ebolavirus vaccine candidate supported by BARDA; a Lassa fever vaccine candidate supported by CEPI and EDCTP; a Marburg virus vaccine candidate supported by BARDA and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) of the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD); and an intranasal SARS-CoV-2 vaccine candidate supported by DOD DTRA and the Japan Ministry of Finance.
Much of the R&D on IAVI's rVSV platform is performed at the IAVI Vaccine Design and Development Lab (DDL) in Brooklyn, New York. The DDL is one of the world's leading viral vector vaccine R&D labs, known for innovation and generation of novel vaccine design concepts. Scientists with IAVI's Human Immunology Laboratory (HIL) in London, U.K., are involved in processing participant samples and developing the analytical assays needed to evaluate IAVI C105 participants' immune responses. They are also facilitating technology transfer of the assays to West African partner institutions.
IAVI's LASV vaccine candidate was manufactured by Batavia Biosciences in Leiden, The Netherlands, a contract-development and manufacturing organization focused on delivering sustainable, low-cost manufacturing solutions in the field of infectious disease and cancer. Through its partnership with Batavia, IAVI intends to develop an end-to-end platform for flexible, low-cost production of epidemic preparedness vaccines.
Results from IAVI C105 are expected in 2025 and will be made available through open-access publications and via scientific meetings to ensure all can benefit from the research.
IAVI is a nonprofit scientific research organization dedicated to addressing urgent, unmet global health challenges including HIV, tuberculosis, and emerging infectious diseases. Its mission is to translate scientific discoveries into affordable, globally accessible public health solutions. Read more at iavi.org.
CEPI was launched in 2017 as an innovative partnership between public, private, philanthropic and civil organisations. Its mission is to accelerate the development of vaccines and other biologic countermeasures against epidemic and pandemic threats so they can be accessible to all people in need. CEPI has supported the development of more than 50 vaccine candidates or platform technologies against multiple known high-risk pathogens or a future Disease X. Central to CEPI's pandemic-beating five-year plan for 2022-2026 is the ‘100 Days Mission' to compress the time taken to develop safe, effective, globally accessible vaccines against new threats to just 100 days.
About IAVI's rVSV vaccine candidates
IAVI holds a nonexclusive license to the rVSV vaccine candidates from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC). The vector was developed by scientists at PHAC's National Microbiology Laboratory.
IAVI initially developed its rVSV vector for HIV vaccine candidates and has since expanded its use to the development of vaccines addressing emerging infectious diseases (Lassa Fever, Marburg, Sudan ebolavirus, and COVID-19).
Funders who have made the development of IAVI's rVSV-vectored vaccine candidates possible include the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; the Government of Canada; the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Government of Japan; the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade; the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation; the U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office; the U.S. National Institutes of Health; and through the generous support of the American people from the United States Agency for International Development.
This project is funded in whole or in part with federal funds from the Department of Health and Human Services; Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response; Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority under contract number 75A50121C00077.
1 PREVAIL is a Liberia-U.S. clinical research collaboration established in 2014 by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the Ministry of Health in Liberia. In 2015, PREVAIL participated in a clinical trial (PREVAIL 1) of Merck's now-licensed Ebola Zaire vaccine ERVEBO®, which uses the same recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV) vector backbone as the candidates in IAVI's emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) vaccine development portfolio, including the IAVI LASV vaccine candidate being evaluated in a Phase I clinical trial.
Workplace Options (WPO) Debuts Data-Driven Study Across 9 Nations; Explores Workplace Issues, Need for Inclusive Leadership, and Renewed Commitment to Human-Centered Wellbeing
RALEIGH, N.C., April 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Amid mounting pressures and unprecedented challenges across the globe, psychologically safe workplaces have become a necessity for building organizational resilience and sustainable success. Leaders at every level recognize that they need to cultivate cultures of trust, openness, and inclusivity, where every voice is heard, valued, and respected.
The financial consequences are straightforward: Psychological safety is the lynchpin of employee engagement and the heart of bottom-line business results. The benefits range from talent retention and enhanced innovation to better customer service and stronger brand value.
Data Directly from Employees – Not Surveys or Opinions
As the largest independent provider of customized and localized wellbeing services, with more than 116,000 clients serving 79 million people, Workplace Options (WPO) has deep insight on global psychological safety, derived from data via the human-to-human counseling our clinical team conducted with in nine countries: Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Mexico, United Kingdom, and the United States.
The findings comprise the “WPO Psychological Safety Study: Global Context for Organizational Success,” a website and multimedia content hub that presents information on how psychological safety affects employees in different countries. The site includes multimedia resources, white papers, videos, articles, infographics, and other information on the global significance of psychological safety.
The “WPO Psychological Safety Study: Global Context for Organizational Success” can be accessed here: Psychological Safety.
“A culture built on psychological safety has immense value. Deep-rooted employee engagement leads to greater creativity, innovation, and an environment where people can be their authentic self in every aspect of their life,” said Alan King, President and CEO, Workplace Options. “The results from this study will help leaders and organizations make a transformative difference in people’s lives by building resilient cultures focused on wellbeing.”
Study Results – Comparing and Contrasting Workplace Concerns Across Countries
Individual country information has been derived from clinician engagement with customers, providing insight into workplace symptoms manifest in the employee’s emotions, cognitions, and attitudes toward work. These include: workplace stress, anxiety/panic, low mood, job performance, conflict/tension with manager, lack of recognition, and others.
Leaders can utilize the data to understand the challenges their employees face. For example, in Australia, “lack of recognition” is the top issue on employees’ minds. In contrast, employees in India identify “conflict/tension at work with manager” as their foremost issue. A company with operations in these two nations/regions can utilize the study results to gain deeper insight into strategies and tactics that will build psychological safety and organizational resilience.
Country
Workplace Concern (By Prevalence)
Australia
Lack of recognition, Work-life balance, Job performance
Canada
Concerns with daily work activities, Job performance, Conflict of values/ethical climate in the company, Conflict/tension at work with manager
China
Concerns with daily work activities, Lack of recognition, Lack of professional development
France
Lack of professional development, Job performance, Concerns with daily work activities
Germany
Work-life balance, Job performance, Conflict/tension at work with manager, Concerns with daily work activities
India
Conflict/tension at work with manager, Job performance, Work-life balance, Lack of professional development, Concerns with daily work activities
Mexico
Job performance, Concerns with daily work activities, Lack of recognition, Conflict/tension at work with manager
United Kingdom
Lack of recognition, Work-life balance, Concerns with daily work activities
United States
Work-life balance, Job performance, Conflict/tension at work with manager
The Value of Psychological Safety
Given the constantly shifting global business environment, leaders must create workplaces centered on psychological safety, which is a cornerstone of inclusive leadership. Teams that feel psychologically safe are more innovative, productive, and resilient in the face of adversity.
“As part of an overall corporate wellbeing strategy on a global scale, it is important to create a framework that allows the cultures and practices to be considered and recognized at the local level,” said Mary Ellen Gornick, WPO Consulting Group Founding Partner. “The study gives leaders the information they need to create inclusive cultures in the locations where they have operations. But they should also keep in mind that variances might exist in how strategies are implemented at the country level.”
Benefits of psychological safety include:
– Deeper employee engagement: Greater creativity, innovation, and development of new products, services, and solutions.
– Improved Team Performance: Open communication, collaboration, and constructive feedback within teams.
– Increased Employee Engagement and Retention: Engaged, motivated, and committed to their roles and the organization leads to higher levels of job satisfaction, lower turnover rates, and greater retention of top talent.
– Enhanced Problem-Solving and Decision-Making: Open dialogue and the exploration of diverse viewpoints leads to more effective problem-solving and decision-making processes.
– Greater Employee Well-Being: Creates a supportive environment where individuals feel valued, respected, and cared for, resulting in lower levels of stress, anxiety, burnout, and promotes holistic health and wellness.
– Enhanced Organizational Resilience: Better equipped to navigate change, uncertainty, and adversity, employees feel empowered to adapt, innovate, and collaborate, creating agility and resilience in the face of external pressures.
– Improved Customer Satisfaction: Employees who feel supported and empowered are more likely to engage with customers in a positive and empathetic manner, leading to higher levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty.
About the Data
Workplace symptoms are the ways in which workplace stressors or uncomfortable working conditions manifest in the employee’s emotions, cognition, and attitudes toward work. Because employees contact WPO when they are under stress or need help, the company is in a unique position to observe the kinds of workplace issues and challenges that employees face.
The details with individual employees are confidential and are recorded in secure case notes to facilitate ongoing support. WPO also captures data in more quantifiable formats and report on these in aggregate (without compromising participant confidentiality) to help our customer organizations understand employee needs and recognize potential risks at the organization and location level.
We have limited our consideration to those countries where the sample size – the number of cases with work-related issues and symptoms – is sufficient to make variations in the data statistically significant.
ABOUT WORKPLACE OPTIONS
Founded in 1982, Workplace Options (WPO) is the largest independent provider of holistic wellbeing solutions. Through customized programs, and a comprehensive global network of credentialed providers and professionals, WPO supports individuals to become healthier, happier, and more productive both personally and professionally. Trusted by 56 percent of Fortune 500 companies, WPO delivers high-quality care digitally and in-person to more than 79 million people across 116,000 organizations in more than 200 countries and territories.
Supply Chain Expansion focused on Product Performance and Sustained Growth
BONITA SPRINGS, Fla., April 04, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — e2Companies, a leading provider of data-driven solutions for grid modernization, is pleased to name Cummins Inc. CMI as an official supplier for the R3Di® System. This agreement provides e2Companies access to Cummins Inc. industry-leading generator sets that deliver exceptional power with high electrical efficiency.
“We continue to expand our supplier network with one goal in mind: top-notch performance,” said James Richmond, CEO and President at e2Companies. “Our agreement with Cummins Inc. reflects this commitment since they have set the benchmark for reliability with power generation. This allows us to uphold these standards while keeping up with increasing demand across global markets.”
“We are excited with the opportunity to supply our generator sets to the R3Di® System, a power generation solution that will provide seamless resiliency and reliability to customers” said Lucio Kroll, Managing Director of Microgrids at Cummins.
Cummins Inc. generator sets will be paired with the R3Di® System’s Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4) battery energy storage and continuous performance monitoring (Grove365) to deliver stable and conditioned power independent of grid issues. Cummins Inc. joins an expanding supplier network for e2Companies that includes Nuvation Energy, EPC Power, MSI Tec, and ABB Ltd.
About e2Companies
e2Companies is the first vertically integrated Virtual Utility® for power generation, distribution, and energy economics in the marketplace. e2Companies’ patented technology, the R3Di® System, provides a synthetic utility BUS with inertia for continuous on-site power and seamless resiliency, independent of grid conditions. The R3Di® System is continuously monitored by the Grove365 to optimize resources, track ESG targets, and unlock new revenue opportunities for customers.
e2Companies officially entered into a merger agreement with Minim, Inc. MINM on March 12, 2024, to create a NASDAQ-listed, comprehensive products and services company focused developing proprietary solutions for Grid 3.0, Autonomous Grid Stability.
Cummins Inc., a global power leader, is a corporation of complementary business segments that design, manufacture, distribute and service a broad portfolio of power solutions. The company’s products include diesel, natural gas, electric and hybrid powertrains and powertrain-related components including filtration, aftertreatment, turbochargers, fuel systems, controls systems, air handling systems, automated transmissions, axles, drivelines, brakes, suspension systems, electric power generation systems, batteries, electrified power systems, electric powertrains, hydrogen production and fuel cell products.
See how Cummins is powering a world that’s always on by accessing news releases and more information at www.cummins.com.
, to optimize bio-based polymers, ensuring they meet specific performance criteria across a wide range of applications.
