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Agenda

8:30 Registration and Light Breakfast

9:10 Welcoming Remarks Joanne Gere, Executive Director, BioPharma Research Council

Wanona Satcher, Founder/Creative Director, Durham Urban Innovation Center

Cheryl Meliones, Duke Translational Research Institute

9:20 Moving Traditional Drug Development into the 21st Century Medicinal chemistry for accelerating compound development. Rajendar Deora, Ph.D, Associate Professor, Wake Forest School of Medicine

Mark Parisi, Executive Director, Asinex Corporation

9:45 Plant Pathways Elucidation Project (P2EP): A Student-driven Initiative Fusing Plant Science with Human Health Moderator: Michael Todd, Executive Director, North Carolina Research Campus

Mary Ann Lila, Ph.D., Director of the Plants for Human Health Institute, NCSU

Cory Brouwer, Ph.D., Director of the Bioinformatics Services Division, UNCC

Clyde Higgs, VP for Business Development, Castle & Cooke NC, Inc.

Richard Linchango, Ph.D. Student in Bioinformatics, UNCC

10:30 Break

10:45 Emerging Paradigms in Collaboration IV Partnership models are evolving as research and commercialization goals are refreshed. In this panel we learn about successful examples and lessons learned. Moderator: Frances Ligler, DPhil, DSc,

Lampe Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering, UNC-Chapel Hill & NC State University

Bradford Walters, MD, Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer, RTI International

Brian Smith, Senior Partnership Developer, NCSU Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development

11:30

Lunch

 

12:45

Breakthrough Technologies Roundtable A diverse round-up of exciting work from across the region. Moderator: Deborah Thompson, Ph.D.

Director of Partnership Development, NCSU College of Ag and Life Sciences

Rodolphe Barrangou, Ph.D., Associate Professor, NC State University, CRISPR-Cas

Ashok Krishnamurthy, Ph.D.,

Deputy Director, RENCI (Renaissance Computing Institute), Cyber Tools for Pressing Problems

Caterina Gallippi, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, UNC Chapel Hill,

Affiliated Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, NC State University

Andrew Murphy, Ph.D., Director of Bioseparation Technology, ProteoVec, Modular Protein Production

2:00 Break

2:30 Licensing Perspectives for Agricultural Sciences Some of the most complex yet productive partnerships are built through the process of licensing discoveries, methods, and products. This panel will share insights and experiences that are relevant across the agbio community. Moderator: Allan Wenck, Ph.D., JD, Head of Trait Validation US, Bayer CropScience

Kelly Sexton, Ph.D., Director, Office of Tech Transfer, NC State University

Al Kriz, Ph.D., Global Strategic Alliance Manager - Bayer CropScience

Andy Renz, Ph.D., Vice President Business Development - Benson Hill Biosystems

Dan Tomso, Ph.D., Chief Science Officer, Agbiome

Martha Dunn, Ph.D., Senior Licensing Manager, Syngenta

3:45 Closure Jacob Traverse, Enterprise and Technology Development Director, Agricultural Biotechnology,

NC Biotechnology Center

Ashok Krishnamurthy, Ph.D., Deputy Director, RENCI (Renaissance Computing Institute)

Joanne Gere, Executive Director, BioPharma Research Council

Welcome! We have had a great experience working with our committee this year (See back page). True to our mission to bring together scientists from across the research community, we have honed a day that will hopefully open new doors for you and your work! In addition to our event exhibitors and sponsors, we would like to thank PlanetConnect, our Founding sponsor. We at the BRC build upon the 20-year history of internal pharmaceutical conferences that PCI has produced for major companies around the globe. Joanne Gere Executive Director BioPharma Research Council

 

Moving Traditional Drug Development into the 21st Century Medicinal chemistry for accelerating compound development A discussion of the collaboration between the Deora laboratory and Asinex on the development of novel anti-Bordetella pertussis agents, the bacterial pathogen that causes whooping cough or pertussis. The US and other parts of the developed world are experiencing increased outbreaks of this vaccine-preventable disease. By combining breakthrough screening approaches and existing compound libraries, the partnership is focused upon transcription regulators that have a high likelihood of inhibiting the growth, survival and virulence of B. pertussis. Rajendar Deora, Ph.D, Associate Professor, Wake Forest School of Medicine. Dr. Deora’s interests include virulence mechanisms of bacterial pathogens; molecular determinants of pathogenesis and biofilm development; host pathogen interactions; effectiveness of small molecules on the colonization of and biofilm formation in the murine respiratory tract; and vaccine development. Mark Parisi, Executive Director, Asinex Corporation, has more than 20 years of international business experience and was instrumental in the founding and development of ASINEX Corporation. He is responsible for multiple start up companies and has over 16 years of experience in the life science field.

Plant Pathways Elucidation Project (P2EP): A Student-driven Initiative Fusing Plant Science with Human Health The Plant Pathways Elucidation Project, or P2EP, is a groundbreaking $1.9 million program that engages college students from across North Carolina in a first-of-its-kind education and research endeavor. The program is fueled by one of the largest consortiums of academic and industry organizations ever assembled at the N.C. Research Campus. P2EP teams up university scientists, industry leaders and college students who together will explore plant pathways to answer why and how plants, like fruits and vegetables, benefit human health. Michael Todd (Moderator) serves as the Executive Director at the North Carolina Research Campus located in Kannapolis, N.C. In this role, he coordinates diverse campus partners, plans strategically to identify and address critical campus priorities, and works to achieve outlined objectives by driving strategic plans forward. Mr. Todd also provides management, budgeting and facilities leadership to support UNC Campus partners. Dr. Mary Ann Lila’s research focuses on the bioactive compounds found in some foods, particularly fruits and vegetables, that confer human health benefits when the food is eaten. As director of the Plants for Human Health Institute, NCSU, Dr. Lila contends that the benefits of eating foods and beverages rich in these compounds are well-established, but the identity and protective mechanisms of the compounds have not been defined in all cases. As the David H. Murdock Distinguished Professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, Dr. Lila’s research is aimed at identifying bioactive compounds and understanding how they work. She is particularly interested in compounds that appear to help counteract chronic disease and promote endurance. Dr. Cory R. Brouwer is Director of the Bioinformatics Services Division and Associate Professor of Bioinformatics and Genomics at UNC Charlotte. He and his team provide a wide range of bioinformatics and computational biology services to the NCRC, UNC Charlotte and surrounding area life sciences community. Some recent projects have involved de novo assembly of genomes and transcriptomes using next generation sequencing, clinical association studies and comparative genomics.

 

Plant Pathways Elucidation Project (P2EP) continues

Clyde Higgs is Vice President for Business Development, Castle & Cooke Inc. He is primarily responsible for recruiting new business and venture capital investment for the NC Research Campus (NCRC) located in Kannapolis, NC. His leadership has helped bring major companies like Monsanto and General Mills as well as universities and Carolinas Healthcare System to the NCRC.

Clyde is actively involved with the NC Agricultural and Life Sciences Research Foundation, NC Community Colleges Foundation, East Carolina University Medical and Health Sciences Foundation and NorthEast Foundation. In 2007, Clyde received the Paul Harris Fellowship from the Kannapolis Rotary Club for his efforts in launching the life sciences center. He also served as a guest lecturer at the University of North Texas and Texas Christian University.

Richard Linchango, Ph.D. Student in Bioinformatics, UNCC Richard Linchangco is a PhD student in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, under the advisement of Dr. Cory Brouwer. He earned his Professional Science Master’s in Bioinformatics from UNC Charlotte and his B.S. in Biological Sciences at the University of Illinois at Chicago. His research interests are rooted in knowledge-based bioinformatics, including methods for ontologies, data mining, and data integration.

Emerging Paradigms in Collaboration IV Partnership models are evolving as research and commercialization goals are refreshed. In this panel we learn about successful examples and lessons learned. Moderator Frances S. Ligler (D.Phil., D.Sc., Oxford University) is the Lampe Distinguished Professor in the Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering at UNC and NC State and a Councillor of the National Academy of Engineering. Her research spans biomaterials, biosensors, microfluidics biochemistry, immunology, and analytical chemistry. She has over 375 full-length publications and patents, which have led to eleven commercial biosensors and have been cited over 12,000 times (GS H=64). Major Awards include the Christopher Columbus Foundation Homeland Security Award (2003), Presidential Rank of Distinguished Senior Professional by President Bush (2003), Presidential Rank of Meritorious Senior Professional by President Obama (2012) and an honorary doctorate from the Agricultural University of Athens, Greece (2014). Bradford Walters, MD, Ph.D., Chief Medical Officer, RTI International Bradford Walters, MD, PhD, MBA, is a vice president and the chief medical officer of RTI International. After completing his PhD, MD, a surgical internship, and a neurosurgical residency, he joined the faculty of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine, where he assisted in establishing the radiosurgery program and the epilepsy surgery program. His research focused on central nervous system trauma. After completing his MBA, he joined Academy Funds serving as principal and then partner, and on the boards of directors of Kucera Pharmaceutical Company, ParinGenix, and Curry Pharmaceuticals. He was then appointed a member of the Building Entrepreneurial Companies Work Group of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center Strategic Plan, and to the Governor's Task Force on Nanotechnology and North Carolina's Economy. From 1999 through 2006, he served as a member of the board of directors of NCHICA. Last year he was appointed to the North Carolina Board of Science, Technology, and Innovation. Dr. Walters has brought three new chemical entities into five Phase I clinical trials. Brian Smith, Senior Partnership Developer, NC State University Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development As Senior Partnership Developer at NC State, Mr. Smith leads the Industry Alliance effort including implementing and managing the university’s Master Research Agreements with Eastman Chemical Company and SAS. He facilitates collaborative research between university faculty and industry partners and focuses on building long term multidisciplinary research collaborations that realize mutual benefits for all partners. Prior to joining NC State in 2013, he spent over 12 years in the natural sciences field building strong partnerships between research, regulatory, and private sector interests in areas including fisheries, offshore energy development, marine spatial planning, wetland restoration and land management. Brian has a MS degree in Fisheries Biology and has worked in academia, state government and federal government developing partnerships at local, regional and national scales. Brian is the hands-on expert representing the breadth of research capabilities and intellectual capacity at NC State.

 

Breakthrough Technologies Roundtable A diverse round-up of exciting work from across the region. Deborah Thompson, Ph.D., (Moderator) is Director of Partnership Development, NC State University, College of Ag and Life Sciences. Dr. Thompson has more than 15 years of research and development experience in molecular biology, genetics, cell culture, botany, and entomology in academic, government, and industry laboratories. She has authored peer-reviewed publications in subjects ranging from plant and insect gene regulation to protein expression, biopesticides, and bioremediation. As Partnership Developer for the College of Ag and Life Sciences, Deborah develops and manages partnerships among faculty and corporations. She facilitates college partnering with the full spectrum of corporate partners, from small start-ups to large multi-nationals, coordinates multidisciplinary proposals, and fosters research, training, and extension partnerships. Rodolphe Barrangou, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences at North Carolina State University, focusing on CRISPR-Cas systems, and their use for bacterial genotyping, building prokaryotic immunity, and Cas9-mediated genome editing in industrial bacteria. Dr Barrangou earned a BS in Biological Sciences, a MS in Biological Engineering, a MS in Food Science from NC State University, a PhD in Genomics from NC State University and a MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After 9 years in R&D and M&A at Danisco and DuPont, he joined the Faculty at NC State University in 2013. Ashok Krishnamurthy, Ph.D., is Deputy Director, RENCI (Renaissance Computing Institute), Cyber Tools for Pressing Problems. He is responsible for managing and enhancing research partnerships with faculty at UNC Chapel Hill, Duke University and North Carolina State University, building relationships between RENCI and Triangle area businesses, and leading efforts to bring new federal research funding to RENCI and its partner institutions. Dr. Krishnamurthy worked closely with Ahalt during his tenure as OSC executive director (2004–2009) and played a crucial role in establishing OSC’s successful industrial outreach initiative called Blue Collar Computing. He has designed and provided numerous training courses for DoD User Groups on all aspects of the MATLAB programming language. Caterina Gallippi, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor in the Joint UNC Chapel Hill, NSCU Department of Biomedical Engineering. Her laboratory's research focuses on medical ultrasound technology development, with particular interest in developing noninvasive methods for assessing the viscoelastic properties of tissue for diagnostic purposes. Dr. Gallippi conducts research with funding from the NIH and in collaboration with industry partners including Siemens Medical Systems and Novo Nordisk, Inc. Andrew Murphy, Ph.D., is Director of Bioseparation Technology, ProteoVec, Modular Protein Production. He specializes in drug delivery technologies, particle fabrication, small molecule and polymer synthesis, catalyst discovery and characterization, materials and particle characterization, vaccine delivery, and nucleotide delivery.

In today’s data revolution, opportunities are continually growing for leveraging preclinical data, even during the clinical trials process. Further, by understanding more about the clinical data process, researchers can help anticipate challenges as the landscape matures.

Best Practices in Outsourcing VI: Preclinical and Clinical (BPVI) will build upon the conversations and connections that have been built since 2009. Launched by the BRC and Chaired by George Karam of Pfizer, this series has stimulated collaborations that continually ripen.

Through precompetitive discussion, the BPVI executive retreat will help cultivate strategic partnerships that will accelerate medical breakthroughs.

For more information, Register for Updates at www.biopharmaresearchcouncil.org

 

Licensing Perspectives for Agricultural Sciences Some of the most complex yet productive partnerships are built through the process of licensing discoveries, methods, and products. This panel will share insights and experiences that are relevant across the agbio community. Allan Wenck, Ph.D., JD, (Moderator) is Head of Trait Validation US, Bayer CropScience. Dr. Wenck is responsible for developing internal and external scientific collaborations in the field of Agricultural Biotechnology, and for delivering plants with novel traits to downstream development cooperators. In addition, he is a critical reviewer for journals such as In Vitro Plant with a focus on intellectual property, patents and potential licensing opportunities. Kelly Sexton, Ph.D., is Director of the Office of Tech Transfer, NC State University. Dr. Sexton directs all aspects of the Office of Technology Transfer, including administration of the $2.5M Chancellor’s Innovation Fund. She has served as an Executive in Residence in NC State’s Poole College of Management HiTEC startup creation program and currently serves on the Blackstone Entrepreneurs Network steering committee. Al Kriz, Ph.D., is the Global Strategic Alliance Manager, Traits & Genomics at- Bayer CropScience. He has over 25 years of experience in the agbiotech sector, where he has primarily been involved with technical project management and development of R&D collaborations. He has worked in Monsanto companies, and BASF Plant Science. Andy Renz, Ph.D., is Vice President Business Development - Benson Hill Biosystems. He is an experienced leader in technology evaluation and business development in the agricultural biotechnology area. Dr. Renz has more than a decade of international experience in business development and is responsible for numerous license, service, collaboration and international consortium agreements in Europe, Asia, North America and South America. His technology evaluation expertise covers the most innovative technologies in the agricultural solutions field, including approaches for increased crop productivity and stress tolerance. Dr. Renz has an excellent scientific and industrial network across all continents and serves as an industrial advisory board member for several organizations, such as Agri Innovation Forum and Ag Innovation Showcase. Dan Tomso, Ph.D., is Chief Science Officer at Agbiome, where he is working to build a new industry-leading discovery and development platform. He is an inventor on over 40 granted and pending patents in the fields of agricultural biotechnology and computational biology, an author of numerous peer-reviewed publications, and has served on advisory committees for the US government as well as several public and private institutions. Martha Dunn, Ph.D., is Senior Licensing Manager at Syngenta, specializing in drafting, negotiating and managing biotechnology agreements including technology transfer, intellectual property licenses, research collaborations, product development, and strategic partnerships. As licensing Representative of the Agribusiness Legal and Intellectual Property core team for Syngenta's Global Corn Business Unit, she has extensive experience negotiating agreements with universities/institutes, start up companies and also major competitors in the biotechnology, biofuels and agriculture industries ensuring alignment across corporate functions in support of the R&D organization.

 

Thank You to Our Committee Members:

Rodolphe Barrangou, Ph.D. Associate Professor NC State University Alice Bonnen, Ph.D., JD Patent Attorney Myers Bigel Sibley and Sajovec, P.A. Rosalina Bray Science Policy, Planning and Evaluation Branch Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH Allan Wenck, Ph.D., JD Head of Trait Validation - US Bayer CropSciences Royston Carter, Ph.D. Senior Director - Development Marine Bio-Technologies Center of Innovation Jaymie DeWitt Director - Business Development Biomedical Systems Frances Ligler, D. Phil., D. Sc. Lampe Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Engineering UNC - Chapel Hill & NC State University

Ashok Krishnamurthy, Ph.D. Deputy Director Renaissance Computing Institute Joe Magno Executive Director The North Carolina Center of Innovation Network Cheryl Meliones Strategic Organizational Development Consultant Office of Research Informatics Implementation Project Manager Consultant CoreResearch@Duke Enterprise Solution Duke Translational Research Institute Duke University School of Medicine Wanona Satcher Founder/Creative Director Durham Urban Innovation Center City of Durham, NC Michael Todd, Ph.D. Executive Director NC Research Campus University of NC Jacob Traverse, M.B.A. Enterprise and Technology Development Director Agricultural Biotechnology • North Carolina Biotechnology Center Joanne Gere Executive Director BioPharma Research Council

To Get Involved, Contact Us! info@biopharmaresearchcouncil.org