T2 Biosystems, a Lexington diagnostics company with no products yet on the market, announced the completion of a $40 million financing that will support the testing and commercialization of technology designed to rapidly identify fungal infections such as sepsis. The round was led by new investor Goldman Sachs and joined by existing investors Flagship Ventures, Polaris Partners, Aisling Capital, Flybridge Capital Partners, Physic Ventures, Arcus Ventures, Partners Healthcare, Camros Capital, and WS Investments Online marketing firm HubSpot has acquired two small start-ups, Chime and PrepWork, bringing their teams to Boston while promising more moves are on the way. Albright Technologies Inc., a Leominster-based company that makes silicone prototypes for customers in the medical, military, and consumer goods industries, said company president David Comeau, 66, will step down Jan. 1. Bob Waitt, vice president of business development, will assume the role of president and chief executive, Albright Technologies said. Albright added that Comeau “will continue to contribute on the technical side as part owner while working on a start-up project.” Founded in 1995, Albright Technologies initially focused on making plastic prototypes for the medical device industry. But in 2005, Albright said it made a strategic decision to transition from plastic to silicone. Waitt started with Albrite in 2000 and has had many positions over his years allowing him to learn all aspects of the company. JetBlue Airways will start flying between Boston and Houston on July 25, the carrier’s 49th destination out of Logan International Airport. Logan’s biggest airline will make the trip to William P. Hobby Airport twice a day, with an introductory sale price starting at $100 round trip for travel between Sept. 3 and Oct. 9. Currently, United is the only carrier that flies nonstop from Boston to Houston, landing at the larger George Bush Intercontinental Airport. JetBlue operates more than 100 flights a day out of Logan and plans to expand to 150. “JetBlue is committed to giving its customers more for less, which is particularly true for our new route to Houston, the first regularly scheduled service between these two airports,” JetBlue’s Dennis Corrigan said. Much has been written about the March Madness college basketball tournament and its potential for slowing down workplace productivity, the theory being that office drones become so engrossed in hoops hoop-la that they neglect the boss’s business. And given today’s technology, which can enable fans at work to keep tournament news under surveillance on their iPads, the opportunity for shirking assigned tasks is greater than ever. Now evidence is emerging that students are no slouches when it comes to using mobile devices to check in on basketball doings. The evidence comes in the form of new research from Jumptap Inc., a Boston firm that studies the habits of consumers who use mobile devices such as tablet computers and smartphones. Residential mortgage activity in Massachusetts rose almost 38 percent last year, as 2012 marked the best year on record since 2007, according to a new report from the Warren Group, a Boston firm that collects local real estate data. Federal regulators Wednesday approved Biogen Idec Inc.’s first pill to treat multiple sclerosis, a decision that cements the Weston biotechnology company’s dominance in the market for MS treatments and could allow thousands of patients to stop taking drugs by needle or through intravenous infusions. The Food and Drug Administration said Biogen Idec can sell the treatment, called Tecfidera, in the United States in the form of a capsule to be taken twice a day. Analysts have projected Tecfridera could become one of the best-selling drugs of all time by the end of the decade if MS patients shift from existing therapies now on the market. The company said it expects to start making the drug available to patients within days. | | |
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