Bringing new thinking to bioscience research

On October 14th, the UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School will play host to the Laurence Crowley lecture series on the business of biotechnology, which will look at various aspects of the increasing complexity of biotechnology research and development.

The event will comprise a series of master classes followed by thought-provoking lectures on various aspects of the theme given by Prof John Martin of University College London; senior vice president and general manager of Alexion Pharmaceuticals Ireland, Julie O'Neill; and Dr Rudi Pauwels, chief executive of Swiss personalised medicine specialist company Biocartis.

The lectures are being run in association with Perrigo and are organised by Jan Rosier, Élan professor of the business of biotechnology at the School of Biomolecular and Biomedical Science at the UCD Conway Institute.

"The aim of the event is to get people who are linked with the biotech industry in one way or another to share their views with the public," Prof Rosier explains. These views are normally shared only within the industry and the goal of this event is to bring them to the attention of a wider public here in Ireland.

“We want to bring to the forefront of debate some thought-provoking ideas; things that would generate personal reflection among members of the audience,” Prof Rosier adds. “But we want to get away from the classical industry pep talk as well so we have invited three speakers from different areas of the industry.”

Prof Martin will address the growing complexity of biological sciences research. “It is at the same stage as physics was back in the 1950s or 1960s,” says Prof Rosier.

“It has reached the stage where new kinds of mathematics have to be developed to deal with the data. This growing complexity has a link to the funding relationship between research and industry.

“The question is where the research should take place. Prof Martin believes it should take place in an academic environment and then be transferred to industry where it can be commercialised. Industry is not necessarily creative but it is very innovative. His point is that the research should take place where there is the freedom to be creative. Not everyone will agree with him of course.”

According to Prof Rosier, there is a growing understanding of this reality within industry generally. “Industry has already accepted this reality in ways and many companies are going back to the universities for creative work. The core message is around where the funding will go and what is the best environment for the research? Some of his ideas are really provocative.”

Julie O’Neill comes from a very different position on the research spectrum. “She is in a very specific and particular situation,” Prof Rosier says. “Her role puts her at the centre of the interaction between R&D and the manufacturing supply chain.

Years ago it was much more simple. In the old days of small molecule chemical synthesis you did the research and initial production in the lab and then you upscaled it and brought it to the manufacturing plant. The chemistry was rather simple even in a complex plant.”

But things have changed dramatically since then and the industry is now dealing with antibodies and complex organisms in the production of new medicines. This has had a huge impact at the manufacturing end where far greater knowledge of the biological sciences is now required. “This increased complexity is bringing manufacturing much closer to R&D,” he says.

He believes this will bring benefits to this country. “Ireland’s strong focus on manufacturing is a plus in this regard. Research has been taken right into the manufacturing environment. The two have never been so close. Manufacturing people are becoming R&D people in part as a result. Julie will talk about these changes and the increasing interaction between research and the manufacturing environment.”

The third speaker, Rudi Pauwels, will look at the changing nature of healthcare and the growth in personalised medicine.

“Biocartis is based on the assumption that the availability of the enormous amount of data coming from the biological sciences will have a tremendous impact on the way health services are provided to people. In the old days you were diagnosed by a physician, had a medicine prescribed, and went away and took it. It will now become increasingly personalised with specific diagnostic instruments being used to help diagnose the condition and prescribe the treatment. This is very much where medical care is going in the future.”

This new personalised medicine is being enabled by the vast amounts of data being generated by current medical research. This data is not only pointing to what medicines and treatments patients will best respond to but also those to which they will not respond positively. This will allow far better targeted prescription of medicines in future.

“This can only be done through the explosion of new information coming from biological sciences research and this is what Rudi will be discussing. We need to start thinking about the changing relationships between research, manufacturing, how medicines are prescribed and delivered, new product developments, and much else as well. We hope that the three lectures and the master classes will give the audience a framework for new thinking on these questions.”

To register your attendance or to find out more about the Laurence Crowley Lecture Series on October 14th, see smurfitschool.ie/lclectureseries.