Cambridge Health Innovation Virtual Bike Ride

Harvard Hall(1465-1483 Mass Ave)

Harvard Hall was the site of the first classes of the  Harvard Medical School , which had only a handful students and three faculty when it was established in 1782. At the time, medical education typically consisted of only a semester or two of formal lectures, followed by an apprenticeship with a practicing physician. Teaching hospitals did not exist, so clinical training requirements were minimal.

Over time the School grew in knowledge, influence, and resources, helping to shape medicine in the United States and beyond. HMS boasts  ten Nobel Prizes  shared by sixteen researchers. The School moved from Cambridge to Boston in 1810, and to its current location on Longwood Avenue in 1906.

BOA Biomedical (44 Brattle St)

BOA Biomedical produces a technology developed at the  Wyss Institute at Harvard University  that physically removes bacteria and other pathogens from the blood, which helps to avert sepsis, allows for faster identification of the infectious agent, and can help combat antibiotic resistance.

This technology can be applied to new pathogens, such as coronaviruses, and BOA is testing its ability to capture and identify clinical samples of the virus that causes  COVID-19 .

Mount Auburn Hospital (330 Mt Auburn St)

 Mount Auburn Hospital  was the first hospital in Cambridge, opening to patients 1886 as the Cambridge Hospital. Founder Emily E. Parsons was a Cambridge resident and army nurse during the Civil War, and one of the few trained women nurses in the country at the time.

Mount Auburn Hospital is a teaching hospital of the Harvard Medical School. Current hospital president Jeanette Clough is the first woman and first nurse to lead a HMS teaching hospital. 

Vaxess Technologies (790 Memorial Dr)

Seeking to overcome barriers to conventional needle use, Vaxess is developing a  patch therapy  for administering vaccines and therapeutics that does not require refrigeration and is shelf-stable.

Vaxess has begun work to develop a  combined COVID-19 and seasonal influenza vaccine  using this patch technology.

Evelo Biosciences (620 Memorial Dr)

Evelo is developing oral biologic drugs that act on cells in the small intestine, which play a central role in governing the body's immune, metabolic, and neurological systems. Currently they are investigating  two therapies  for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

One of these therapies,  EDP1815 , has the potential to help resolve inflammation from COVID-19 to prevent some life-threatening complications. It has been approved for two clinical trials.

AbbVie (200 Sidney St)

AbbVie is a biopharmaceutical research and manufacturing company with therapeutic focuses in immunology, oncology, neuroscience, virology, and eye care. At the Cambridge Research Center, AbbVie conducts research on the biological mechanisms underlying neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's.

AbbVie is involved in a number of  COVID-19 research and development projects , including development of a new antibody therapy and study of therapy to reduce immune response.

CENTOGENE (99 Erie St)

CENTOGENE is a rare disease company focused on transforming clinical, genetic, and biochemical data into medical solutions. The company's data repository combines worldwide clinical and epidemiological data, and detailed access to phenotype, genotype, proteomics, and metabolomics data to aid in the development of new treatments. 

CENTOGENE conducts both  pharmaceutical  and  diagnostic  research. They developed a  COVID-19 test  that analyzes throat swabs.

Takeda (35 Landsdowne St)

Takeda is a biopharmaceutical research and development organization that focuses on therapies in oncology, rare diseases, neuroscience, and gastroenterology. They also make targeted investments in plasma-derived therapies and vaccines. Takeda is a co-founder of the  CoVIg-19 Plasma Alliance , which is working to develop and manufacture a non-branded plasma-derived medicine as a potential treatment option for people hospitalized with COVID-19.

Cambridge is home to the the headquarters of  Takeda Oncology , which focuses specifically on oncology research and development, drug discovery, and business.

Novartis(181 Mass Ave)

Novartis is a large pharmaceutical company that develops and commercializes medicines for a broad scope of disease areas.  The Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research , headquartered in Cambridge, is the global pharmaceutical research organization of Novartis.

With its large-scale manufacturing capacity, Novartis has signed agreements to use its facilities in Europe to produce the  Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine  and the  CureVac COVID-19 vaccine candidate .

Pfizer (1 Portland St)

The Cambridge facilities of biopharmaceutical company Pfizer opened in 2014 and focus on research and development in inflammation and immunology, rare diseases, and internal medicine. Massachusetts is also the global headquarters for Pfizer’s  Centers for Therapeutic Innovation , which facilitates collaboration between Pfizer scientists and other institutions and investigators.

Along with BioNTech, Pfizer developed a highly effective COVID-19 vaccine based on messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. Other Pfizer innovations include a vaccine for pneumonia and treatments for chronic nerve pain, breast cancer, and cholesterol. 

Ragon Institute (400 Technology Sq)

The  Ragon Institute  of Mass General Hospital, MIT, and Harvard was established in February 2009 with the mission to harness the immune system to prevent and cure human disease. Its initial goal was to develop an effective vaccine for HIV/AIDS, and it currently has a vaccine in clinical efficacy trials.

Since its establishment, the Institute has expanded its research to five additional priority areas: Global infectious diseases, emerging infectious diseases, vaccine development, basic and applied immunology, and clinical studies. The Ragon Institute is currently undertaking a number of  COVID-19 research projects .

Moderna (200 Technology Sq)

Moderna is a pharmaceutical and biotechnology company headquartered in Kendall Square that specializes in the development of mRNA vaccines and therapies in the fields of infectious diseases, rare diseases, and immuno-oncology. Moderna became a household name in 2020 when its COVID-19 vaccine became the second to be approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Whitehead Institute (455 Main St)

The  Whitehead Institute  is a non-profit research institution affiliated with MIT that is dedicated to improving health through  biomedical research , as well as research in  climate change and sustainability . The Institute is also committed to science education, with opportunities for  research Fellows  and  MIT students , as well as  programs  for teachers and middle and high school students.

During the pandemic, efforts have included  COVID-19 research  and exploration of the science of  RNA .

Broad Institute (415 Main St)

Following the completion of the  Human Genome Project ,  Broad Institute  was launched in 2004 to improve human health by using genomics to advance understanding of the biology and treatment of human disease. In partnership with MIT, Harvard, and Harvard-affiliated hospitals, the Institute fosters collaboration between scientific disciplines (biology, chemistry, medicine, computer science, and engineering) to advance research in areas including infectious disease, cancer, psychiatric research, and cardiovascular disease.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Broad converted part of its Kendall Square lab space into a  high-throughput testing facility , with an average turnaround time of less than 24 hours. They also organized testing support around areas of critical need, including: hospitals and clinics; nursing homes, long-term care facilities, and homeless shelters; high-impact communities; and educational institutions.

nference (1 Main St)

nference is a biomedical-focused tech startup headquartered in Cambridge that has used data-driven approaches in molecular, clinical, and epidemiological research of COVID-19. Their  COVID-19 studies  have been valuable in providing evidence for vaccine effectiveness, identifying which cell types are susceptible to infection, understanding trends, and more.

Sanofi Genzyme (500 Kendall St)

Sanofi Genzyme is the Cambridge-based specialty care unit of global biopharmaceutical company Sanofi, focused on rare diseases, rare blood disorders, neurology, immunology, and oncology.

Sanofi currently has two COVID-19 vaccine candidates in development, a  recombinant protein-based vaccine  and a  mRNA-based vaccine candidate .

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals (300 Third St)

Alnylam, headquartered in Cambridge, is developing therapies that use  RNAi (RNA interference)  to disable the production of the genes that cause specific diseases. The company is currently focused on diseases in four therapeutic areas: genetic diseases, cardiometabolic diseases, infectious diseases, and central nervous system and ocular diseases.

In 2020, Alnylam identified a  RNAi therapeutic development candidate  for the treatment of COVID-19.

Bristol Myers Squibb (100 Binney St)

Bristol Myers Squibb is a global biopharmaceutical company. The Research & Development site at Kendall Square in Cambridge focuses on understanding the complexities of cancer resistance, and a second R&D site in Alewife focuses on discovery biology, translational science, and chemistry research.

Bristol Myers Squibb organized and leads the  COVID-19 Testing Industry Consortium , which brings together 19 companies (including some in Cambridge) with expertise in precision medicine, diagnostics, occupational health, pharmaceuticals and clinical testing laboratories, to help provide clarity and potential solutions to COVID-19 testing challenges.

Biogen (225 Binney St)

Biogen is a biotechnology and pharmaceutical company headquartered in Cambridge that focuses on neurological diseases, including Alzheimer's, Multiple Sclerosis, and Spinal Muscular Atrophy.

Biogen also operates a  Community Lab  in Cambridge, where local middle and high school students engage in hands-on biotechnology experiments and interact with scientists and other biotech professionals. The Community Lab has continued to offer virtual programming during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) Cambridge Hospital (1493 Cambridge St)

 Cambridge Hospital  is one of two  CHA  acute care hospitals, providing 24-hour emergency care, maternity, mental health care, primary care, specialty care, surgery, and overnight hospital care. It is also a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School and the Tufts University School of Medicine.

In addition to its hospitals, the CHA operates many Care and Health Centers across Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Revere, and Malden. Beyond patient care, the CHA has a robust  Department of Community Health Improvement  and operates the nationally accredited  Cambridge Public Health Department . It also helps operate three COVID-19 vaccination centers as part of the  Metro North COVID-19 Vaccination Partnership .

Cambridge Public Library (449 Broadway)

We end our ride back where we started at the  Public Library . We hope you enjoyed the ride and learned more about health innovation in Cambridge. Be sure to  check out a book  and the learn more about the library's other  health resources !

Find more Cambridge-themed bike rides at  cambridgema.gov/bikerides .