Magnetics Business & Technology - Summer 2018 - 31

INDUSTRY NEWS
Rare Earth Concentrate Product
The high NdPr content was achieved through a process enhancement. This step removed the bulk of low-valued cerium and enabled production of a more valuable concentrate product. The
quoted value for NdPr oxide is approximately $55.00 per kg, which
represents an increase of approximately 30% over the past year.
"This process enhancement utilizes the unique oxidation states of
cerium to remove, or deplete, the bulk of the cerium from the other
rare earths, all of which are chemically similar," said Kurt Forrester, PhD, Medallion's consulting metallurgist. "Cerium depletion
is one example of the value-add process enhancements we are
looking to deploy in our monazite extraction process to maximize
recovery of valuable materials and effectively utilize reagents."
The table below summarizes the distribution of REEs contained
in the tested monazite sand feedstock and the carbonate concentrate produced in the recent testwork.

The company's magnetic nanoparticles are used to tag cancer
cells which then can be be detected by its highly sensitive magnetic sensors to locate and characterise tumors at very early stages.
Ultimately, the nanoparticle technology could be applied to both
detection as well as delivery of treatment therapy, tapping into a
$100 billion market opportunity, the company says.
In October, Imagion lined up ChemConnection BV, a Dutch contract manufacturer, to produce clinical-grade MagSense nanoparticle formulations for planned breast cancer clinical studies. Along
with another contract manufacturer, Starfish Medical, that has
been lined up to produce the magneric sensors, Imagion has been
moving forward to enable clinical trials to begin before the end of
this year.

Leading Cancer Center Takes Equity Stake in Imagion
Biosytems, Developer of Magne c Nanopar cles
Imagion Biosystems Ltd, a company developing magnetic
nanoparticle technology for the earlier detection of cancer, has
recently made a number of advancements in its progress toward
commercialization of its MagSense technology. Imagion is based
in Melbourne, Australia and has research and development operations in the USA.
In April, the company's principal collaborator, the MD Anderson
Cancer Center in Houston, TX, agreed to take an equity stake in
the firm by converting a significant portion of the current sponsored research program fees into shares of the company.
One of the world's largest cancer research and treatment organizations, the center has been working collaboratively with Imagion to develop and validate the magnetic relaxometry technology
since 2014. It created a Magnetic Relaxometry Research Laboratory in the Department of Imaging Physics and has been helping to
validate biological models, improve computational algorithms, and
develop new nanoparticle chemistries under a three-year sponsored research program.

Dr. Farideh Bischoﬀ, VP of Clinical Research at Imagion
Also in April, the company announced that it would relocate its
U.S. business operations to San Diego, CA which has become
a leading biotechnology hub and is home to more than 1,200 life
science, biopharma and medical device companies.
The move comes as the company's plans for clinical testing of
its cancer detection technology begins to solidify. Combined with
the recent addition of Dr. Farideh Bischoff, who joined in February
as vice president of clinical research, the move to San Diego is
planned to further accelerate the company's development of the
MagSense technology. "Relocating to an active biotech community like San Diego will facilitate clinical development and open
new opportunities for diagnostic and therapeutic collaborations,"
said Dr. Bischoff.
See related article on page 6

Blog Contributors Needed for 2018

Bob Proulx, Executive Chairman of Imagion
"We are delighted to welcome the MD Anderson Cancer Center as
a shareholder," said Bob Proulx, executive chairman of Imagion.
"They have been an excellent collaborator helping to unlock the
potential value of our technology."
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Summer 2018 * Magnetics Business & Technology

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