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August 2011

BioSciCon, Inc. participated at the 2011 NIH Annual SBIR/STTR Conference, held in June 2011 in Bethesda, MD, with the poster entitled: Capitalization of investing into medical device development on the health market.

BioSciCon Consortium participated at the NIH Conference on Cancer Detection and Diagnostics Technologies for Global Health . Bethesda, MD, August 2011 with the presentation entitled: Low cost medical devices combined with telemedicine reduce health disparities between developed and underdeveloped countries.

July 2011

ATTENTION
BioSciCon Consortium has decided to license some of its MarkPap® pipeline products for global cervical cancer screening. Interested parties, please send inquiries to info@bioscicon.com for more details.

April 2011

Dr. Olivera Markovic, Director of BioSciCon, Inc. provided an interview to the Virginia Telehealth Network on the current progress of telemedicine efforts of BioSciCon's Consortium to bring expert medical healthcare to the remote point-of-care locations in low-resource areas, where it is most needed.

Please visit the Virginia Telehealth Network web site.

January 2011

BioSciCon Consortium submitted Application for NIH US India Collaborative Program on Low-Cost Medical Devices.

December 2010

BioSciCon Consortium submitted Application to NIH for SBIR phase-1 Grant.

July 2010

BioSciCon, Inc. has been selected for the 2010 Best of Rockville Award in the Biological Research category by the US Commerce Association. Click here to read more.

May 2010

BioSciCon, Inc. is featured at Virginia Telehealth Network Web Site. BioSciCon, Inc is developing IT and Mobile Telehealth Center for Telecytopathology Services in Rockville, MD

January 2010

MarkPap Pacific, LLC is featured in Washington Post
MarkPap Pacific, LLC and its activities were featured in the Washington Post on December 28, 2010. Click here to read the Washington Post article.

November 2009

MarkPap Pacific, LLC signs a Trade Agreement with Chinese Partner
MarkPap Pacific LLC, a Company from the BioSciCon Consortium, signed a Trade Agreement with Chinese Partner to bring the MarkPap Test to China market: To sell minimum one million tests per year and to use telemedicine (telecytopathology) services during the next five years.

September 2009

BioSciCon and its companies on the forefront of mHealth current development
The mHealth denotes delivering health care services using mobile wireless communications that has recently emerged as a new viable option for providing health care in developing countries. The Year 2009 is proclaimed as the Year of mHealth. According to the United Nations Foundation, the mHealth is “a high reach, cost-efficient method for making healthcare more accessible, affordable and effective across the developing world.” Many regions in the world do not have access to the Internet, but 80% of the world’s population lives in regions with mobile phone accessibility. This is a huge market for the new mHealth methods, products and services, and a target for the Global Health Initiative and its followers.

BioSciCon’s Consortium of Companies is on the forefront of mHealth current development. We are developing a platform technology for wireless telecytopathology/telemicroscopy that uses mobile cellphone cameras for capturing microscopic images directly from the microscope in remote locations and wireless transmission of those images to distant centers for evaluation by professionals with or without interceptions of web-based digital-image networking systems. The system provides opportunity for the results to be returned to the end users within hours. We have a patentable discovery that could be a revolutionary solution for improving health service delivery and surveillance in the developing world where it is most needed.

The MarkPap® Wireless Telecytopathology™ is based on our prior experience with our proprietary MarkPap® Digital Telecytopathology™. Application of mobile phones for capturing and transmitting microscopic images directly from the microscope with cellphone camera is not an easy task, but we are aware of the challenges and the Wireless Telecytopathology Team is solving them. Please visit www.bioscicon.com/gallery.html to see the Gallery, the actual images obtained with a cellphone camera, applied for early detection of abnormal cells on cervical smears. The previous Gallery, the MarkPap Gallery, is created with a digital camera and it is possible to compare the quality of images between the two.

mHealth heralds a new era in medical communications and health service delivery and requires capable and well equipped multidisciplinary groups and teams devoting their energy to this task. Then the success is warranted.

August 2009

BioSciCon, Inc. becomes a Corporate Partner of Johns Hopkins University
BioSciCon, Inc. became officially a Corporate Partner of Johns Hopkins University, Montgomery County Campus in Rockville, MD. " We are extremely pleased to be able to meet the needs of this small R&D company on our campus, said Elaine Amir, Executive Director, Johns Hopkins Montgomery County "We've been long planning to create an incubator or accelerator on our campus, and the addition of BioSciCon to our campus is a first step in doing so". (Hopkins Happenings, July/August Issue, 2009).

March 2009

BioSciCon's MarkPap® Wireless™ Images for Telehealth

In August 2008, we introduced the MarkPap® Wireless™ technology. The technology is based on using standard microscopes and mobile cell camera phones for capturing and transmission of microscopic images to digital imaging systems in order to enable worldwide telemedical diagnosis of pathological specimens. Below is an example of MarkPap® images collected by (1) mobile cell phone camera and (2) digital camera with software for digital image analysis. It is obvious that these two images are comparable and that the image analysis or medical diagnosis could be performed interchangeably.

 
Image 1   Image 2

Both images are taken from the same cervical specimen, processed with MarkPap® test, where abnormal cells were identified with the red biomarker. Normal cells are blue and do not contain the marker. The marker makes the important difference for identification of the medical condition preexisted in the specimen and visualized by the MarkPap® test. We believe that wireless telecytopathology will make a big advancement in global health (telehealth). Only a microscope and a cell phone will allow transmission of images for evaluation at distant places. BioSciCon is inviting scientists and licensing around the world to join their efforts and bring together this opportunity to the world for saving more human lives.

August 2008

Attention! MarkPap® Wireless™: Wireless telemedicine for pathology and cytopathology
BioSciCon, Inc. filed a Patent Application with the US Patent and Trademark Office for MarkPap® Wireless. This most recent product of the platform MarkPap® Technology is aimed for wireless transmission of microscopic images from remote parts of the world to a laboratory with professionals for evaluation (telecytopathology). According to most recent estimates, worldwide cell phone usage is expected to reach 3.5 billions connections by the end of this year with a highest annual growth in Asia and Africa. BioSciCon, Inc. continues working tirelessly to fulfill its mission bringing an affordable and accessible cervical cancer screening to all women in the world to save women's lives. To speed up this most recent development, BioSciCon welcomes investments/contributions for co-development of MarkPap® Wireless.

June 2008

Dr. Nenad Markovic and Dr. Olivera Markovic authored the book "What Every Woman Should Know about Cervical Cancer" that has been published by Springer and will be available for purchasing in July 2008. Please visit Springer Web Site.

This book is intended for wide audience: General public, including healthy women at all ages and their spouses, girls and their parents, women suffering from cervical dysplasia, cervical cancer, their families
What Every Woman Should Know about Cervical Cancer
and caregivers. It will also well serve students and their instructors at colleges and universities and health professionals involved in women's health.

Recent introduction of HPV vaccines has raised hopes for immunization against cervical cancer and for the first time in the history of humanity for eradication of cervical cancer. The new 'opportunity' has changed many current views on cervical cancer prevention, control, diagnosis and treatment. Many canons and guidelines became subject to review and many revisions are coming. This book is intended to summarize most of these events and to present them in a language understandable for general public. We expect the book will bring all readers the rationale for optimism and will provide guidelines as how to gain knowledge and skills for critical thinking and making educated decision when it will be necessary in their lives.

June 2008

BioSciCon Team for Telecytopathology participated at BIO 2008 International Convention. San Diego, California, June 2008 with a poster in the Innovative Corridor. The title of the presentation is A tool for integration of cytology, HPV screening and telecytopathology.

May 2008

An independent study using MarkPap test in cervical cancer screening has been performed in India by the Department of Pathology and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the All India Institute for Medical Sciences (AIMS), New Delhi, India The paper is entitled Cervical acid phosphatase detection: A guide to abnormal cells in cytology smear screening for cervical cancer. It is published in Indian Journal of Cytology, 25 (1),1-5, 2008.

April 2008

The Global Academy for Women's Health Team participated with an abstract entitled Ask for women' opinion first on FASEB Experimental Biology, 2008. Today's Research: Tomorrow's Health. San Diego, California, April 5-9, 2008.

November 2007

Drs Markovic participated on the 55th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Cytopathology held in Huston on November 2-6, 2007. They presented the results of the application of MarkPap technology and its prospective in telecytopathology.

Please click here to download the abstract. (PDF format)

May 2007

BioSciCon participated with a poster MarkPap Test and HPV vaccination in the Innovation Corridor at the BIO 2007 International Convention held in Boston, MA May 6-9, 2007.

At the Larta Venture Forum 2007, BioSciCon had a business Power Point Presentation "BioSciCon presents MarkPap Technology" given by Mr.Michael Dailey. The Forum that was held on May 1 and 2, 2007 in San Francisco, CA, is a cumulative event of the NIH Commercialization Assistant Program, where the new achievements and prospective of MarkPap technology and BioSciCon national and global business opportunities for investment were presented.
http://www.theventureforum.com/PresentingCompaniesList.asp

April 2007

BioSciCon participated at the Experimental Biology Meeting held in Washington DC, April 18 -May 2, 2007.
Dr. Nenad Markovic presented the concept on cytopathology between art and science, with advantages and problems of color digital imaging and telecytopathology. Dr. Olivera Markovic disclosed the first results of the survey how women feel about getting their samples for Pap test at home, and provided prospective on a Home Pap Test.

March 2007

During the course of the NIH Commercialization Assistance Program 2006/2007, BioSciCon presented its business opportunity at the Larta NIH-CAP Outcome Workshop, March 26-30 in Washington, DC.

Dr. Olivera Markovic, Founder of BioSciCon was honored among entrepreneurs 2007 on the Women in Bio 5th Annual Dinner, "Innovation Without Borders" that was held in Washington DC on March 27, 2007.

December 2006

Local, national and international citations for BioSciCon:

BioSciCon at FITCI
http://www.platinumpublicrelations.com/pdf/06REL-March-BioSciCon%20at%20FITCI.pdf

BioSciCon listed as a corporate partner in World Science
http://www.world-science.net/x04.htm

October 2006

Dr. Nenad Markovic presented a poster entitled MarkPap(r) technology, a new business opportunity for the Mid-Atlantic biotechnology in the Innovation Corridor at the Mid-Atlantic 2006 BIO in Washington DC.

September 2006

BioSciCon, as NIH/SBIR phase 2 grant recipient, was selected by the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD to participate in 2006 NIH Commercialization Assistance Program, to foster commercialization of the MarkPap technology. Larta Institute from Los Angeles, CA was assigned to this program.

April 2006

Drs. Markovic participated at the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR). They presented the biomarker-based MarkPap Digital technology, which allows the MarkPap test to be performed in a small laboratory by low-trained technician with easy-to-use MarkPap Kit. Guided by marker-positivity, the technician selects suspicious microscopic fields and transmits the images in diagnostic centers for evaluation by professionals. The results could be returned within hours. The MarkPap Digital opens a prospective for cytological screening around the world.

The same prospective for global cervical cancer control with MarkPap technology was presented at the Innovative Corridor, BIO 2006 Convention in Chicago, IL.

March 2006

Drs. Markovic participated at the Annual Meeting of the American Federation for Clinical Research (AFCR), Clinical Research 2006, held in Washington, DC. They presented their results on the application of the MarkPap test on HPV positive specimens. Since MarkPap could detect HPV infected cells together with cytological signs of abnormality, it was discussed of exploring this test as a potential method for monitoring the success of the HPV vaccination.

At the Clinical Research 2006, Drs. Markovic also announced the prospective of moving Pap test to be performed in doctor's offices, when the new MarkPap Digital will be developed.

Drs. Markovic actively participated on the NIH/NCI organized 4th Early Detection Network Scientific Conference held in Philadelphia. They presented the principle and the pilot results of MarkPap biomarker-based telecytopathology.


December 2005

From June through December 2005, BioSciCon started systematic research and development of its second generation product MarkPap® Digital in collaboration with New Hope Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Gaithersburg, MD; GT Vision, Inc., Hagerstown, MD and ComputerCraft, Inc., McLean, VA. Because of the presence of the biomarker (the hallmark of MarkPap technology), which is amenable for digital photography and image analysis, MarkPap test is qualified for telecytopathology. This is our new product MarkPap® Digital, a potential integrated device combining image acquisition, image delivery and image analysis modules. MarkPap® Digital will provide an opportunity the slides to be stained in one location and the images from the microscopic field to be transmitted into a center for evaluation. This practically means that a general laboratory technician (in a remote laboratory or a nurse in a doctor’s office) can stain a specimen using the MarkPap® kit and will look on the specimen under the microscope searching only for “red” cells (marker positive--abnormal cells). Then, he/she will capture images with a digital camera (mounted on the microscope) and will transmit them via Internet to the center with pathologist/cytotechnologist for evaluation. The result may be sent back electronically within hours.

The development of another product MarkPap Self, which allows a woman to take a specimen in the privacy of her home, is also in progress. Please see
http://www.bioscicon.com/markpapproducts.html.

November 2005

BioSciCon’ poster, “MarkPap System. Current status and prospective” was presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Cytopathology in San Diego, CA in November, 2005

September 2005

BioSciCon web site is cited at and is linked with the World Science web site: http://world-science.net/home/links.html

August 2005

Another Success Story about BioSciCon appeared on the SCORE DC Chapter web site. Please click here to access this story.

July 2005

Read more about BioSciCon presentation on the Century Club Breakfast at the Business Alliance George Masson Press Release of June 9, 2005
http://www.businessalliance.org/grubstake-presenters.html. and
http://www.businessalliance.org/grubstake-news.html .

June 2005

Dr. Olivera Markovic and Dr. Nenad Markovic participated in the Convention BIO 2005, held in Philadelphia, PA . They presented a poster in the Innovative Corridor with co-authors Dr. Shelly Parr and Dr. Vojislav Zizic. The abstract "MarkPap® technology for cervical cancer control" can be found at:
http://www.bio.org/events/2005/poster/posteronline/index.asp

BioSciCon was selected by the Century Club of George Mason University for a business presentation at the Century Club Grubstake Breakfast. The presentation took place on June 9 at Hilton, McLean, VA. Dr. Nenad Markovic presented the Company and its products. The PP Presentation can be viewed at the Publication Page (publication # 17)

May 2005

The PP presentation "MarkPap® test for cervical cancer screening" by Dr Nenad Markovic, Dr. Olivera Markovic, Dr. Edward Henderson and the Cervical Cancer Study Group, from ASCO National Meeting 2005, can be viewed by clicking here-------
www.asco.org/ac/0,1003,_12-002511-00_18-0034-00_19-004969,00.asp

On May 18, 2005, BioSciCon, Inc. Rockville, MD,  received the prestigious SCORE "Small Business Client of the Year 2005 Award." This award was presented to Dr. Olivera and Dr. Nenad Markovic at the Annual SCORE Luncheon at the Wyndham Hotel in Washington, DC in the presence of SCORE Chapter 1 counselors, highest SBA officials and guests. BioSciCon was awarded in recognition of a highly successful company, and for its achievements  in the development of new products for cervical cancer screening and prevention that will improve global healthcare and save women's lives.

March 2005

BioSciCon is announcing the incorporation of a business development arm:
MarkPap, LLC

The mission of MarkPap, LLC is to commercialize the MarkPap® technology products. The LLC is accepting applications for new members and for the management team. If interested, please contact us at info@bioscicon.com. More information to follow.

February 2005

News from BioSciCon Research and Development.

BioSciCon is currently developing the MarkPap® Digital and the MarkPap® Self tests.

MarkPap® Digital is the MarkPap® test combined with IT technology into a system for telecytopathology, based upon the biomarker. MarkPap® Digital is intended for low-resource countries, where a general technician can locally perform the simple MarkPap® test with the easy-to-use kit, make digital images of "marked" microscopic fields, and transmit them via internet for evaluation. This is a chance for women in remote parts of the world to have an affordable cervical cancer screening within hours.

MarkPap® Self is also based on the same competitive advantage: The presence of the biomarker on abnormal cells. Since the biomarker is a chemical compound deposited inside the cytoplasm, it is not a subject of deterioration like cellular integrity/morphology. We have seen retained red biomarker even in parts of cytoplasm after cell disintegration. This is a basis of prospective use of MarkPap® test in vaginal specimens of self-obtained material (MarkPap® Self Test). This test could be particularly important for women who do not have access to doctor‚s offices, yet to have cervical cancer screening.

We believe that MarkPap® technology should revive the cytological approach to cervical cancer screening and will provide to the rest of the world the same benefit that Pap test has given to the developed countries. MarkPap® technology  is compatible with other technologies for cervical cancer screening.

January 2005

We have recently completed three clinical trials. We compared a combination (marker+Pap) versus Pap alone, and found that the combination is superior for detection of true positive/abnormal specimens (up to 50%), for reduction of false-negatives (more than 50%), and has equivalent specificity with the control Pap test. The presence of the biomarker reduced the screening time from 6 min to 3 min per slide. A total of 2,000 subject/specimens were analyzed by subgroups including: low- risk general population, high-risk population, Pap smear control for MarkPap® smears, and ThinPrep Pap test control for liquid-based MarkPap® test.


BioSciCon Press Release 2004 

December 2004

We are proud to announce the development of two new Research Sites in Los Angeles, CA, US. BioSciCon is also developing two new International Research Sites in New Delhi, India and in Belgrade, Serbia and Montenegro. More information will follow.

October 2004

BioSciCon started exploring equity investment options with local angels and VCs in order to secure financing for the regulatory study required from FDA approval for the US market, and the commercialization of the technology. For more information please contact us at info@bioscicon.com, or call 1-301-610-9130.

August 2004

BioSciCon is finalizing phase II/III clinical laboratory trials of the MarkPap® Test. We are currently searching for funding partnership (with individuals or other enterprises) that will assist us in bringing the new product to market.

July 2004

A paper by Markovic O, Markovic N, and BioSciCon's Cervical Cancer Study Group: Cervical acid phosphatase: A biomarker of cervical dysplasia and potential surrogate endpoint for colposcopy appeared in Disease Markers 19(6), 279-286, 2003/2004. The abstract and the full text are available at:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query

SBIR and STTR Success Story for BioSciCon, Inc.
http://grants1.nih.gov/grants/funding/sbir_successes/155.htm

June 2004

Markovic N., Markovic, O. Markovic, J. Sundeen, W. Smith Jr., Markovic S., BioSciCon Cervical Cancer Research Group*: Pap test and new biomarker-based technology for enhancing visibility of abnormal cells. 40th American Society for Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting, ASCO 2004, New Orleans, Louisiana. June 2004. J Clin Oncol, 22,9561,2004 www.asco.org/ac/1,1003,_12-002636-00_18-0026-00_19-003023,00.asp

Drs. Nenad and Olivera Markovic participated in the 3rd Annual Early Detection Research Workshop (EDRN) organized from NCI, NIH in Bethesda, MD. They presented the development of MarkPap® Technology: From idea to commercial products. A biomarker-based, in vitro diagnostic device with potentials for cervical cancer screening. Book of Abstracts P-28, 2004.

Drs. Olivera and Nenad Markovic participated in the 6th Annual SBIR/STTR Conference (June 23-24, 2004), organized by NIH in Bethesda, MD. They presented, as NIH SBIR 2nd phase awardees, their translational research entitled MarkPap® Technology for cervical cancer screening. Abstract Book p.7, 2004.

May 2004

Dr. Lewis Townsend, President Contemporary Women's Health Associates, Bethesda MD and Drs. Olivera and Nenad Markovic attended the 52nd Annual Clinical Meeting of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in Philadelphia, PA. They presented the results on MarkPap® test reduces false-negative rates of cervical cancer screening. Townsend L, Markovic O, Markovic N, BioSciCon Cervical Cancer Study Group*, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Suppl. 103, (4), 81S,2004.

*BioSciCon Cervical Cancer Study Group: Parr Shelley, MD., Ross Alan, MD., Sundeen James, MD., Rosser Rufus, MD., Gould Jed MD., Posarac Vladan, MD., Mrs. Linda Townsend.

April 2004

Dr. James Sundeen, President Diagnostic Pathology Services, Clarksburg, MD and Medical Director Department of Pathology Prince George Hospital, Cheverly, MD attended the American Federation for Medical Research Clinical Research Meeting in Chicago, IL. He presented the results on Cervical Acid Phosphatase and PreservCyt®. Markovic N, Markovic O, Sundeen J, Smith W.Jr: Inv Medicine 52, Suppl 2,80,2004.

Drs. Olivera and Nenad Markovic and Dr. Christopher Kemp, President, Kemp Technologies, Frederick, MD, attended the Experimental Biology Meeting 2004 in Washington, DC. They presented the results on: Could the enzyme-enhanced Pap test be automated? Markovic O, Markovic N, Kemp C: The FACEB J., Experimental Biology 2004, Abstracts Part 1, A200.

Another poster, A cytoplasmic biomarker for liquid-based Pap was presented on the same meeting. Markovic O, Markovic N, Sundeen J., Smith W. Jr: The FACEB J. Experimental Biology 2004, Abstracts Part 1, A200.

March, 2004

Dr. William Smith, Director, Department of Pathology, Suburban Hospital, Bethesda, MD attended the 2004 Biennial Meeting of the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology held in Disney's Contemporary Resort, FL, March 2004. He presented the MarkPap® System for cervical cancer screening. Smith W Jr, Markovic N, Markovic O, Kumar A, Bermeyo, Mollish P, late Morris M: ASCCP 2004 Biennial Meeting. Book of Abstracts, p.340.

February, 2004

Dr. Olivera Markovic attended the Symposium on Predictive Oncology & Intervention Strategies in Nice, France, February 7-10, 2004. She presented the following scientific communications:
Enhancing Pap test with a new biological marker of cervical dysplasia
MarkPap® Kit for cervical cancer screening
MarkPap® Test applied on specimens from solution

Markovic O, Markovic N: Cancer Detection and Prevention, 2004 Symposium Volume, S-53(21), S-149(318,319). See also
http://www.cancerprev.org/Meetings/2004/Symposia/992/318

January, 2004

Cervical acid phosphatase: A new biomarker of cervical dysplasia appeared in Arch Oncol 11,243-247,2003. Authors Dr. Olivera Markovic and Dr. Nenad Markovic, with the members of the BioSciCon Cervical Cancer Study Group: Dr. James Sundeen, Dr. William Smith, Dr. Shelley Parr, Dr. Lewis Townsend, Dr. Allan Ross, Dr Rufus Rosser, and Dr. Jed Gould.