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InsIde >FOcUs ON FLORida >NasdaQ OpEN >REsEaRch UpdatE From Research,The Power to Cure VOLUME 5 NUMBER 2
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VOLUME 5 NUMBER 2
From Research, The Power to Cure
Focus on Florida
InsIde >FOcUs ON FLORida >NasdaQ OpEN >REsEaRch UpdatE
B U r n h a m R E p O R t
JOhN REEd, M.d. , ph.d. President and CEOProfessor and Donald Bren Presidential Chair
KRisti iNa VUORi, M.d., ph.dExecutive Vice President for Scientific AffairsDirector, Cancer Center
KaRiN EasthaMExecutive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
BL aiR BLUMSenior Vice President External Relations
EdgaR giLLENwatERsVice PresidentExternal Relations
ELizaBEth giaNiNiVice PresidentExternal Relations
chRis LEEVice PresidentExternal Relations
aNdREa MOsERVice President Communications
Please address inquiries to:
Burnham Institute for Medical Research10901 North Torrey Pines Road La Jolla, CA 92037 858.646.3100
Burnham Institute for Medical Research at Lake Nona8669 Commodity Circle, 4th Floor Orlando, FL 32819 407.745.2000
www.burnham.org
iN this issUE
pREsidENt’s MEssagE 1
FOcUs ON FLORida
Building A Life Science Community 2
New Facility with the Environment in Mind 4
Burnham Partnerships in Orlando Take Root 5
Burnham Research Briefings 5
Florida Faculty Grows 6
Message from Blair Blum 8
Letter from Elizabeth Gianini 9
Burnham Angels 9
Burnham Trustee Bob Mandel 10
BURNhaM NEws
NASDAQ Open 11
Research Update 12
Run For Discovery with Team Burnham! 13
S av e t h e D at e !
the annual Burnham Institute for Medical Research Gala will be held November 15, 2008 at the opulent Grand Del Mar Resort. this year’s event is co-chaired by Robin Nordhoff and Sue Raffee. the theme, Discovery Without Boundaries, will highlight the voyage that Burnham scientists make daily toward breakthrough therapies. Seating is limited and we anticipate a sold-out event. For sponsorship or ticket information, please contact Jocelyn Wyndham at 858.795.5216, [email protected].
P r e s I d e n t ’ s M E s s a g E
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 1
I recently participated in our annual faculty retreat. I say “participated” because
each year a different faculty member acts as chair of the retreat. We present to each
other as peers, organized around themes of basic discovery and medically-relevant translational
research. We use the time spent together to cement the bonds of collaboration and brainstorm
about new directions. We also invite our newest faculty members to tell us about their research
progress.
After the retreat, a recently-appointed adjunct professor wrote to me and said, “I was
impressed by the quality of the science, but I was equally impressed by the cohesiveness and
support of the faculty. … I have not seen this kind of closeness in the 16 years [of my career].
I am very excited about continuing and expanding my collaborations with several of the prin-
cipal investigators at Burnham.”
It was the first retreat for most of our Florida-based faculty-level scientists. Right now,
everything that happens in Florida is a milestone: the groundbreaking; the “topping off” event;
our first community outreach programs. Perhaps the most important milestone for the future
of Burnham research in Florida will be the arrival of Dr. Daniel Kelly on July 1. When Dr. Kelly
officially starts as the scientific director for Burnham at Lake Nona in Orlando, the real work
will begin. Dr. Kelly has an ambitious agenda to recruit world-class scientists. He will also
inaugurate the collaboration with Florida Hospital as part of our new clinical research partner-
ship. More partnerships will form as the Medical City at Lake Nona continues to grow.
This issue of the Burnham Report describes our progress to date. It has been almost two years
since we made the decision to locate our East Coast operations in Orlando. Since then, we have
continued to receive enormous support from the Orlando, Orange County, and Central Florida
communities, as they have done everything in their power to help make us successful. We are
grateful for the wonderful partnership we have enjoyed with the community, and look forward to
the successful completion of the next phase of Burnham’s East Coast expansion.
These are exhilarating times as we construct our Florida facility and build our scientific and
administrative teams there. By this time next year, we will be in our new laboratory facility – a
state-of-the-art, 175,000 square foot “green” structure that will support more than 300 people
and house some of the most advanced medical research technologies in the world. We plan
to commemorate that momentous milestone with a celebration that will include the entire
Central Florida region.
As always, I thank you, our trusted supporters and stakeholders, for making it possible
for us at Burnham Institute for Medical Research to pursue our medical research mission as
we strive to reveal the fundamental causes of disease and devise the innovative therapies of
tomorrow.
John C. Reed, MD, Ph.D.
President and CEO
Professor and Donald Bren Presidential Chair
At the end of 2005, then-
Governor Jeb Bush presented
Florida as a viable option
to the Burnham Board of
Trustees. He made a strong
pitch for why Florida was the
right place for Burnham to
locate an East Coast facility.
The Governor put $200
million on the table and set the
process in motion.
Today, Bush says “Burnham
will be a godsend for Orlando
and Central Florida. We are
already beginning to see the
benefits of the convergence
of talented scientists, good
infrastructure and abundant
capital. My hope and expec-
tation is that Orlando will
be a markedly better place
to live with the presence of
Burnham.”
As economic development
goes, the plan and its execu-
tion were textbook. State
Representative Dean Cannon
of Winter Park enthusiastically
supported the recruitment of
Burnham. “The day Burnham
announced it was calling
Orlando home was one of the
most personally exciting
moments I’ve had since being
elected,” says Cannon. “The
development of the new
Medical City in east Orange
County with Burnham as a key
anchor changed the economic
and educational landscape of
Central Florida forever.”
Orange County Mayor
Rich Crotty and Orlando
Mayor Buddy Dyer, the prin-
cipal local officials involved,
recognized the importance of
diversifying and expanding the
region’s economic base.
“Much of the prosperity
we enjoy today is the result of
the visionary decisions made
by the community leaders
who preceded us,” says Crotty.
“I believe years from now,
when our Medical City is
firmly established and world-
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
2 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
Building A Life Science Community
When the Burnham Institute for Medical Research made its deci-sion to locate a research facility in Central Florida, local officials cheered the move as the first step in making the area a prominent life sciences hub. The unbridled exuber-ance that reverberated from Tallahassee to Orlando that August day in 2006 continues to fuel the development of the “Medical City” at Lake Nona in Orlando.
Left to right: Rasesh Thakkar, Tavistock Group; Dr. John Reed, Burnham Institute for Medical Research; Vivienne Lewis, Tavistock Foundation; Mayor Richard
Crotty, Orange County; Dr. Deborah German, UCF College of Medicine; Mayor Buddy Dyer, City of Orlando; Dr. John Hitt, University of Central Florida.
Former Governor Jeb Bush
renowned, people will look
back at our resolve to bring the
Burnham Institute to Central
Florida as a pivotal moment in
our history.”
Mayor Dyer agrees. “The
reality of Burnham is yet
another testament to our
community’s hard work and
collaboration. As a result of
strong partnerships we have
begun to shape the future of
Central Florida.”
State and local govern-
ment along with the Tavistock
Group, owners of Lake
Nona, assembled a $350
million incentive package that
included land, buildings and
money for research. Ten years
from now, when Burnham
has grown to an organization
of 300 people at the Orlando
facility, the Central Florida
community will be able to
look back and know that they
helped change the trajectory of
the Florida economy.
“Prior to Burnham’s
commitment, we had five or
six inquiries from biomedical
companies,” says John
Fremstad, Vice President of
Technology Development for
the Metro Orlando Economic
Development Commission
(EDC). “We’ve had more than
100 since.”
Scheduled for occupancy
by mid-2009, the Institute’s
new facility in Orlando will
be an integral part of the
region’s new “Medical City.”
Fremstad, though understand-
ably discreet about details,
reports half a dozen biomed-
ical companies seriously
scrutinizing the Lake Nona
landscape. Burnham’s Lake
Nona campus may attract
additional San Diego organiza-
tions as well as East Coast
firms and European biotech
companies.
“The entire Orlando
community was excited
about welcoming Burnham,”
says Rasesh Thakkar, senior
managing director of Tavistock
Group, which owns and is
developing Lake Nona. “They
are proving to be a wonderful
partner, and we know that
their innovative work at
Lake Nona will diversify the
economy of Central Florida as
well as improve lives around
the globe.”
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 3
“What has occurred in
Metro Orlando during the past
couple of years is really quite
extraordinary. It began with the
March 2006 announcement by
the Florida Board of Governors
that a College of Medicine
would be established at the
University of Central Florida. When that program opens its doors
in 2009, it will be the first research-based College of Medicine
established anywhere in the United States in the past 30 years.
“On the heels of that milestone, the August 2006 decision by
Burnham to establish their East Coast operation adjacent to the
College of Medicine in Lake Nona catapulted our community
overnight into the realm of ‘contender’ as a life science center.
“Our goal now is to leverage these extraordinary accomplish-
ments into enhanced economic opportunity for our region. From
the economic development perspective, we know that what’s
ahead is a marathon, not a sprint. In an effort to accelerate this
process, we have established bioOrlando, which is a coalition of
healthcare, scientific, academic, government and industry partners
with a shared goal – to build our biotech and life science cluster.
“Already the medical school and Burnham decisions of recent
years are compared in significance to the coming of Walt Disney
four decades ago. When I look in the crystal ball, I see a bright –
and biotech – future for Central Florida!”
Ray Gilley, President/CEO of
Orlando Economic Development Commission (EDC)
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 3
Left to right: John Reed, Burnham; Congressman Tom Feeney; Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer;
Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty at the Burnham announcement.
The View from Orlando
What do sod and drywall have in common? More than you might think. For the BE&K Building Group, Inc., the ability to turn drywall scraps left over from construction of the Burnham Institute for Medical Research facility into fertilizer for local sod farms will be just the ticket to achieve Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for the construction of the building.
BE&K and Burnham are
off to a great start for a LEED
certification with this innova-
tive idea for our environment.
Some of the other actions
pursued in the construction of
the Burnham facility for the
LEED certification include
the following: providing a high
ratio of open space to develop-
ment footprint to promote
biodiversity; maximizing
water efficiency within the
building to reduce the burden
on municipal water supply
and wastewater systems; and
facilitating the reduction of
waste generated by building
occupants that is hauled to and
disposed of in landfills.
Under the LEED
global rating system for
green building practices,
the Construction Waste
Management LEED credit
proposes that construc-
tion companies “divert
construction, demolition and
land-clearing debris from
disposal in landfills and incin-
erators, redirect recyclable
recovered resources back to
the manufacturing process and
redirect reusable materials to
appropriate sites.”
Keeping this guidance in
mind, BE&K wanted to figure
out a way to reuse or recycle
the leftover drywall scraps
which otherwise go to landfills
after most construction pro-
jects. A.J. Murray, Assistant
Project Manager at BE&K,
met with Steve Brownley, Vice
President of the Landscape
Division at Concepts in
Greenery, and local sod farmer
Mike Kelley of Palm City Sod.
Together they came up with
a cutting-edge solution – to
grind all the leftover drywall
scraps that had no water or
fireproofing into fertilizer for
future sod farming.
The proposed method to
divert the drywall scraps from
the landfill and recycle them
into fertilizer is a relatively
new idea that has not been
attempted in Central Florida
until this project. The drywall
is ground into half-inch pellets
and spread by the ton for each
acre across the sod farms.
The goal is to gather 100 tons
of drywall scrap at a time for
the grinder; in a matter of
weeks, they are nearly halfway
there. You might be asking
how drywall can possibly be
beneficial to soil. The primary
ingredient in drywall is a
derivative of limestone, which
is a key fertilizer ingredient.
“The idea is that the
gypsum in the drywall will
actually help to hold moisture
in the soil to allow the fertilizer
to hold longer and therefore
require less watering,” said
Kelley of Palm City Sod.
Burnham Institute for
Medical Research has a firm
commitment to protecting
the environment. The La Jolla
campus has implemented
award-winning programs for
water conservation, energy
conservation and recycling.
Earlier this year, City of San
Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders
held a press conference at
Burnham’s La Jolla campus to
tout the savings the Institute
has realized through innovative
conservation programs.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
4 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
Burnham and BE&K Construct
New Facility with the Environment in Mind
Lake Nona is a 7,000-acre master planned community located in Southeast Orlando, one of Central Florida’s fastest growing regions. It is a Development of Regional
Impact located close to Orlando International Airport that at
build-out will have more than 9,000 residences and 6.5 million
square feet of retail, life science and commercial space. The
State of Florida defines a Development of Regional Impact as
any development which, because of its character, magnitude, or
location would have a substantial effect upon the health, safety,
or welfare of citizens of more than one county.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 5
BurnhamPartnerships
in OrlandoTake Root
When Burnham Institute for Medical Research selected
Orlando as the site of its East Coast campus, the Institute envisioned establishing a number of important research partnerships with medical insti-tutions in Central Florida and beyond. That vision has already become a reality.
On March 26, a year before the new campus is officially due to open at Lake Nona, Burnham and Florida Hospital signed an agreement creating the Florida Hospital-Burnham
Clinical Research Institute (CRI). The CRI is designed to take the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diabetes and obesity to the next level.
The CRI will begin opera-tions in a temporary facility in fall 2008 and will be fully operational in 2009. Space for the CRI’s permanent location will break ground this summer. The CRI will be led by Dr. Daniel Kelly, Scientific Director of Burnham at Lake Nona. The Florida Hospital-Burnham CRI, along with Burnham’s facility at Lake Nona, will be Burnham’s hub for diabetes and obesity research.
“What most people don’t know is that diabetes not only affects your blood sugar, but also significantly impacts your heart,” Kelly said. “At the Florida Hospital-Burnham CRI, we will study this phenomenon we are calling the ‘diabetic
heart’ to learn more about this condition and hopefully pioneer new treatments” said Dr. Kelly.
“Our working relationship with Burnham has acceler-ated Florida Hospital’s vision of advancing research and teaching, says Lars Houmann, President/CEO of Florida Hospital. “We are enjoying a new level of scientific and strategic collaboration, working with Dr. John Reed and the entire Burnham team of researchers and administrators.”
“The agreement with Florida Hospital allows us to work together to take our research directly to the patient and explore lifestyle medicine issues that will hopefully allow us to better prevent disease in the future,” said Reed at the signing ceremony at the Orlando Regional Chamber of Commerce.
Burnham Research Briefings
The Burnham Research Briefings were designed with the desire to educate the greater Orlando community about the medical research conducted at Burnham.
UpcOMiNg BURNhaM REsEaRch BRiEFiNgsWednesday, September 10 at 6 p.m. Sorosis of Orlando, 501 E Livingston St, Orlando 32803Free and Open to the Public
The next Burnham Research Briefing will discuss neurodegen-erative disease research, as Stuart Lipton, M.D., Ph.D., shares with Orlando what the Del E. Webb Center for Neuroscience, Aging and Stem Cell Research at Burnham is currently researching. Areas of research include: development of cell replacement therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, stroke, heart attack, diabetes, and other ailments where cells are irrevo-cably lost. Burnham researchers also study how to produce new drugs to protect the brain, heart, and pancreas, and to develop regenerative brain, heart, and diabetes therapies using stem cells.
The last Burnham Research Briefing of 2008 will focus on cancer research. A member of Burnham’s NCI-designated Cancer Center will be the speaker. The date, time and location will be announced soon for this briefing.
For more information, please call Eshma Harry at 407.745.2061 or visit www.burnham.org.
March 5 briefing with Pamela Itkin-Ansari
Left to right: Dr. David Moorhead, Florida Hospital; Dr. John Reed, Burnham;
Dr. Daniel Kelly, Burnham; Dr. Samuel Crockett, Florida Hospital
Florida Faculty
GrowsWhen daniel Kelly, m.d.
officially takes the reins as
scientific director of Burnham
at Lake nona on July 1, he
will bring six people with him
from Washington University in
st. Louis to work on two sepa-
rate grants.
That will bring the total scien-
tific staff at Burnham Institute
for Medical Research at
Lake Nona to 25: five faculty
members and 20 research
staff including scientists,
postdoctoral fellows, research
associates and techs.
In addition to setting up his
research laboratory, Dr. Kelly’s
early goals include recruiting
additional faculty and building
an animal phenotyping core. He
will also begin a dialogue with
nearby hospitals to establish
translational programs. He’s got
an early start with the launch of
the Florida Hospital – Burnham
Clinical Research Institute that
was announced in March.
Kelly hopes to recruit two
to three new faculty in the
first six to 12 months. He
also plans to get to know his
colleagues in California. “As
the Florida organization grows,
it will be important to start
developing meaningful ties
to our La Jolla campus,” says
Kelly. “At the recent faculty
retreat, it was clear that there
is great opportunity for scien-
tific collaboration between the
faculties of the two facilities.”
In addition to Dr. Kelly,
“founding” Burnham Florida
faculty members Dr. Greg
Roth and Dr. Bjorn Tyrberg
have recently been joined
by Dr. Layton Smith and Dr.
Masanobu Komatsu.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
6 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
MeetMasanobu
Komatsu, Ph.D.
masanobu Komatsu
studies blood vessels and the
abnormal blood vessel growth
that is associated with many
medical conditions, ranging
from heart disease and
cancer, to metabolic prob-
lems such as diabetes and
age-related conditions like
macular degeneration.
Komatsu is looking for a
way to reverse the process of
abnormal vessel regeneration and
restore normal function to these
vessels. If vessel functionality
can be improved, it will lead
to enhanced drug delivery and
increased efficacy of radiation
during cancer treatment.
Komatsu’s current research
focuses on the role an intracel-
lular signaling protein called
R-Ras plays in inhibiting
abnormal vessel growth. “Our
recent studies indicate that R-
Ras is one of the key promoters
of blood vessel maturation. This
suggests that R-Ras may be
useful in tissue engineering and
therapeutic angiogenesis,” says
Komatsu.
Therapeutic angiogenesis is
the clinically induced growth of
new blood vessels in ischemic
tissues, where blood supply
has been decreased due to
constriction or obstruction of
the vessels.
Komatsu earned his under-
graduate degree as well as
his Ph.D. at the University of
Miami. He was a postdoctoral
fellow at Burnham, in the lab of
Dr. Erkki Ruoslahti, Burnham’s
president from 1989-2002.
While at Burnham, Komatsu
learned to appreciate its scien-
tific environment and culture.
Although he left in 2005 to
become an assistant professor
at the University of Alabama
at Birmingham, Komatsu
maintained his affiliation with
Burnham as an adjunct faculty
member of the Cancer Center
and has an ongoing collaboration
with Ruoslahti. He also collabo-
rates with Burnham faculty
members Dr. Pilar Ruiz-Lozano
and Dr. Mark Mercola, studying
ischemia/reperfusion injury and
coronary artery development.
Their expertise is important
to Komatsu’s expansion of his
research into cardiovascular
sciences. Likewise, Komatsu is
looking forward to working with
Dan Kelly because of his exper-
tise in heart disease.
“Burnham’s plans to work
with major health care providers
in Florida is a key advantage,”
says Komatsu. “It will enable
us to bridge our findings on the
importance of R-Ras in inhibiting
abnormal blood vessel growth
with clinical evidence.”
Komatsu has been awarded
a $2.4 million grant by the
National Cancer Institute of the
NIH to study tumor vascular
normalization. The five-year
grant period will start upon his
relocation to Burnham at
Lake Nona.
MeetLayton
Smith, Ph.D.
Layton smith’s research
focuses on the molecular
mechanisms of obesity
and how they are related
to cardiovascular disease.
Smith is looking for ways to
identify the proteins that are
produced by expanding fat
tissue that have deleterious
effects on vascular function. He
studies a molecule known as
apelin. “Apelin is over-produced
by fat in obese people and may
affect the ability of the heart
to pump blood and the arteries
to relax,” says Smith. “We use
molecular biology, cells, and
animal models of cardiovascular
disease to test the effects of
obesity on apelin production
and function.”
As a new faculty member,
Smith is looking forward to
building a laboratory of his own.
He has a grant from the State
of Florida to explore the role of
apelin in vascular fibrosis.
Burnham’s advanced
technologies are also an
important factor for Smith. He
has an NIH award to screen
Burnham’s molecular library
to look for compounds that
disrupt the apelin system.
Smith was also attracted to
Burnham because of the existing
collaborative networks within
the Institute. Current collabora-
tors within the Burnham faculty
include Dr. Mark Mercola and
Dr. Pilar Ruiz-Lozano. Smith’s
research also complements
the work done by Dr. Kelly. He
anticipates collaborating with
Dr. Kelly and expanding his area
of research into diabetic heart
failure.
Smith is a Florida native.
Prior to joining Burnham, he
was an assistant professor of
biochemistry at The Scripps
Research Institute in Jupiter,
Florida. He received a Ph.D.
in Pharmacology and an M.Sc.
in Clinical Investigation from
Vanderbilt University, where
he also did his postdoctoral
training.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 7
Gregory P.
Roth, Ph.D. Gregory P. roth, director
of medicinal chemistry and
Pharmacology and a professor
at Burnham Institute for
medical research at Lake
nona, has more than 20 years
of post-graduate leadership experience within the pharma-
ceutical industry. During that time, he has contributed to a variety
of research programs in Process Research, Combinatorial Chemistry,
and Medicinal Chemistry at Bristol-Myers Squibb, Boehringer
Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals and the Abbott Bioresearch Center.
Roth’s current research interests center on chemical biology
and medicinal chemistry in the areas of inflammatory disease and
cancer. His team is also involved in advancing novel synthetic
methods and technologies for the generation of compound screening
libraries based on natural product motifs. Dr. Roth holds 14 patents
and he has authored more than 40 research papers.
Roth earned a Doctorate of Philosophy in Chemistry at Colorado
State University in 1988 and a Master of Science in Chemistry at
State University of New York at Fredonia in 1984.
Björn Tyrberg, Ph.D.
dr. Björn tyrberg, an assis-
tant professor focused
on diabetes and obesity
research at Burnham, was
appointed a member of the
faculty of Burnham’s diabetes and obesity research center
in 2007. Tyrberg earned his Ph.D. in medical sciences from
Uppsala University in Sweden. In California, he pursued postdoc-
toral training and was an Assistant Project Scientist with Dr. Fred
Levine, the recently appointed Center Director of the Sanford
Children’s Health Research Center. He also trained at Burnham
with Dr. Barbara Ranscht.
Tyrberg was one of the first recipients of a research training grant
provided by the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. He
was co-leader of research that resulted in the discovery of adult stem
cells in the human pancreas that are capable of transforming into
insulin-producing cells, a finding of considerable importance for
devising new approaches to treating diabetes.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
8 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
My first trip to Orlando
was in August 2006. What a
pleasure it was to be greeted
by a community that embraces
the power and promise of
medical research and has a
shared vision for economic
development in the region.
The energy during the press
conference, when we
announced that Burnham had
selected Orlando to be our
East Coast location, was both
contagious and off the charts!
Since that historic
moment, I have had the plea-
sure of meeting people who
represent the best of Orlando.
Each and every individual is a
first class professional in a
community that has jumped in
to assist us every step of the
way and connected us with
others who want to help.
Central Florida is also a
very generous region. Dr. John
Hitt, President of UCF and
Ray Gilley, President/CEO
Metro Orlando Economic
Development Commission,
co-chaired the initial fund-
raising campaign to raise
philanthropic support for
Burnham. This effort
produced $5 million from a
group of interested citizens
that we have identified as the
“Burnham Angels.” The
Burnham Angels are one of the
first groups to realize not only
the economic impact of
Burnham but also to have a
passion for our mission…to
conduct world-class, collabora-
tive medical research to cure
human disease, improve quality
of life, and thus create a legacy
for our employees, partners,
donors, and community.
I am convinced that
Central Florida will continue
to increase its support of
medical research. Looking
forward, I know that our part-
nership will be a springboard
for economic growth in the
region. Burnham arrived in
Florida with a great vote of
confidence from the State, the
City of Orlando and Orange
County, and Mayor Dyer,
Mayor Crotty, and the vision
of former Governor Jeb Bush.
It has been an opportunity of a
lifetime to play a role in
Tavistock’s dream to create a
“Medical City.”
In San Diego, Burnham is
a part of the research corridor
on the Torrey Pines Mesa,
which was the model for the
concept in Lake Nona,
Orlando. In California, we
owe our success to our scien-
tists and the community that
has supported us. I believe we
will be saying the same about
our Florida partners very soon.
Many of you know
Elizabeth Gianini, Vice
President for External
Relations in Orlando.
Elizabeth’s energy and passion
for Burnham are endless. She’s
going to introduce her great
team to you on the next page.
We are grateful for our bi-
coastal supporters and friends.
With you all as cheerleaders,
we can keep our promise of
great science and live up to
our motto…From Research,
the Power to Cure!
Blair Blum
Senior Vice President
External Relations
A Message from Blair Blum
8 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
What a pleasure it was to be greeted by a community that embraces the
power and promise of medical research.
Blair Blum and Elizabeth Gianini
One year ago, I had
the opportunity to join the
Burnham Institute for Medical
Research at Lake Nona. My
first day on the job, Dr. Reed,
Dr. Kelly and Blair Blum
visited Orlando; the whirlwind
has yet to slow down. Since
then, I have been on a crash
course, learning all that I can
about the science of Burnham
Institute for Medical Research.
The External Relations (ER)
team has four members.
Eshma Harry is the ER
Coordinator. She came to
Burnham from Mayor Richard
Crotty’s office and is the glue
that holds our department
together in Orlando. Lynn
Lipsey is our new Event
Coordinator. She has event
planning experience with
Fortune 500 companies and a
personal passion for Burnham’s
scientific mission. Stacy Nale
will be creating and managing
our database. She recently
earned a master’s degree at
University of Central Florida.
I want to thank the
Burnham Angels for their
generosity, not only for their
philanthropy but for their sage
advice. Their guidance has
been invaluable. We are also
grateful to the new donors who
are sponsoring events, like the
Burnham Research Briefings
and Team Burnham, and those
who have hosted our scientific
recruits, like Representative
Dean Cannon, Burnham
Trustee Bob Mandell, Randy
Fields and the Anheuser-Busch
Corporation. Central Florida’s
enthusiasm is contagious and
the External Relations team is
excited to be here and working
with each one of you in our
community.
I have been on a fast track
of learning basic cellular
biology. Everyday, I discover a
new inspiration that drives me
even harder toward success.
I am thrilled and honored to
be working with such a stellar
group of individuals in the
External Relations office, the
Institute as a whole, and in the
community at large.
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 9
I want to thank the Burnham Angels for their generosity, not only for
their philanthropy but for their sage advice. Their guidance has
been invaluable.
BurnhamAngelsDavid and Judy Albertson
Kevin Azzouz
Bank of America
CNL Charitable Foundation
Florida Hospital
Alan Ginsberg Family
Foundation
Tamia and Grant Hill
Foundation
Joe Lee
Joe Lewis
Harvey and Carol Massey
Dick and Mary Nunis
Orlando Magic
Orlando Health/M.D.
Anderson Cancer Center
Orlando
Rasesh and Rupal Thakkar
Wachovia Bank
Walt Disney World
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 9
Letter from Elizabeth Gianini Vice President, External Relations
Burnham Institute for Medical Research at Lake Nona
Left to right: Stacy Nale, Lynn Lipsey, Elizabeth Gianini and Eshma Harry
Burnham Trustee Bob Mandell
F o c U s o n F L O R i d a
10 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
Karin Eastham, Brent Jacobs, John Reed, and Malin Burnham enjoying Bob Mandell’s hospitality
Bob Mandell has a passion for his community and its future. That is why he is excited about being on the Burnham board and helping to build Central Florida’s innovation economy.
“Burnham is at the fore-
front of research into what
constitutes real quality of life,”
he says. “It’s not how long you
live, it’s how well you’re able
to live for whatever time you
have. Burnham researchers are
helping extend life in terms
of both quantity of years and
quality of life in those years.”
Bob Mandell retired from
homebuilding in 2007 after
24 years with his family’s busi-
ness, Greater Homes (now
Meritage Homes).
He was recommended by
both Mayor Crotty and Mayor
Dyer as a community leader
and as someone who would be
a true asset to Burnham. As an
Orlando native, they believed
he would be helpful to
Burnham as the organization
grows in Central Florida.
“What’s most impressive
about Burnham,” Mandell
says, “is the totally collabora-
tive nature of their research.
There’s no hierarchy in terms
of the research happening by
the different teams of scien-
tists. Everything is equal and
everything is important.”
Mandell serves on both the
Executive Committee and on
the Finance Committee for
the Institute.
Community service is
part of Bob Mandell’s DNA.
He served on government,
business, non-profit health
and human service, arts and
culture, and educational
boards over his career in
Central Florida. He sees his
service on the Institute’s Board
of Trustees as a continua-
tion of his family’s record of
community service.
“Burnham will, I believe,
prove to be the catalyst for
expanding the economic base
of our community and will
help to establish a biomedical
cluster of businesses, bringing
good paying jobs and increased
positive visibility to Central
Florida,” he says. “And while I
don’t want to speak publicly at
this time about any specifics,
recent discussions we’ve had
with businesses in Europe and
elsewhere in the world should
begin to bear fruit in the not-
too-distant future. And it’s all
because the Burnham Institute
for Medical Research chose to
locate in our community.”
B U r n h a m N E w s
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 11
NASDAQ Open
Burnham Institute for Medical Research rang the opening bell for NASDAQ on Thursday, March 20. The event was a celebration in recognition of the estab-lishment of Burnham’s bicoastal operations.
Joining Burnham President
and CEO John Reed was
a delegation of twenty-one
representatives, including
Burnham Board of Trustees
vice chairman Greg Lucier,
who is chairman and CEO
of Invitrogen; and Burnham
supporters with a collective
representation on the boards
of directors of 11 NASDAQ-
listed companies.
Burnham’s Florida orga-
nization was represented by
Orange County Mayor Richard
Crotty; Burnham Board of
Trustees member Robert
Mandell; Anne Chinoda, CEO
of Florida’s Blood Centers;
Jim Zboril of Lake Nona; and
other community supporters.
The full delegation included:
Ted BonannoAttorney, Heller Ehrman LLP, Governor Bush’s staff during transaction
Kay ChandlerPartner, Cooley Godward Kronish, Counsel to Burnham for Florida transaction
Anne ChinodaPresident and CEO, Florida’s Blood Centers, Home of Burnham’s temporary facility
Howard CohenBurnham Trustee
Mayor Richard CrottyOrange County, Florida
Nicole DeBerg-NelsonCFO & Vice President, Finance Burnham Institute for Medical Research
Karin EasthamExecutive Vice President & COO Burnham Institute for Medical Research, Burnham Trustee
M. Wainwright FishburnPartner, Cooley Godward Kronish Former Burnham Trustee
Elizabeth GianiniVice President, External Relations Burnham at Lake Nona, Orlando
Alan GleicherGleicher Capital, LLC Burnham Trustee
Michael GrindstaffPartner, Shutts & Bowen Represented Burnham on Florida transaction
David HaleChairman, Hale BioPharma Ventures, Burnham Trustee
Brent JacobsSenior Vice President Cushman & Wakefield Burnham Trustee
Greg LucierChairman & CEO, Invitrogen Burnham Trustee
Robert MandellBurnham Trustee
Andrea MoserVice President, Communications, Burnham Institute for Medical Research
Douglas ObenshainPartner, Ernst & Young LLP, San Diego, Burnham Trustee
John C. Reed, M.D., Ph.D. President & CEO, Burnham Institute for Medical Research, Burnham Trustee
Jennifer TobinPartner, Shutts & Bowen Represented Burnham on Florida transaction
Jan Tuttleman, Ph.D., MBAVice President, Marketing, HUYA Bioscience International in San Diego, Burnham Trustee
Kenneth WoolcottPrincipal, Six Degrees Capital Consulting, Burnham Trustee
James ZborilPresident, Lake Nona, Site of Burnham’s permanent home in Orlando
Anne Chinoda, Florida’s Blood Centers (right)
with Toby Cohen and Mayor Richard Crotty
B U r n h a m R E s E a R c h U p d a t E
12 the BUrnham rePort | www.burnham.org
Progress toward new therapies
Coronary artery disease is a leading cause of mortality in Western countries. It cannot be cured. Recent research, led by Burnham faculty member Pilar Ruiz-Lozano, Ph.D., may lead to new therapies for coronary artery disease. The research demon-strated that stimulation of the Wnt signaling pathway is essential
for the formation of the coronary vasculature. The Wnt pathways of secreted factors has been known previously to play a role in embryogenesis and development, and it also functions as a regulator of some stem cell populations.
Previous research by the team demonstrated that vitamin A signaling is necessary to the coro-nary progenitors and suggested that the action of vitamin A may be mediated, at least in part, by means of the activation of Wnt
in the coronary progenitor cells. The recent study provides hope for the millions of people affected by coronary disease. The group demonstrated that the mutation of the gene - ßcatenin (effector of the Wnt –signaling pathway), in a subset of cells destined to form the coronary vasculature, disrupts the formation of the vasculature of the heart in mammalian embryos. The mutation impairs differentiation of the vascular media, composed of smooth
muscle cells. In turn, activation of these cells with Wnt ligands results in increased vasculature and formation of smooth muscle cells. The work was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences and provides the groundwork for alternative approaches to the cure of coro-nary artery disease. This research is supported by the National Institutes of Health.
T-Cadherin Affects Blood Vessel Growth; Hormone from Fat Cells May Play a Role
Researchers at Burnham may have found a new option for targeted
breast cancer therapy by showing the link between a certain protein and the
formation and development of blood vessels that feed breast tumors. Like
mortar between bricks in a wall, T-cadherin is a protein that helps cells stick
together and collectively form tissues. Cancer cells that loosen their adhesive
tissue bonds stop producing T-cadherin. In tumors, only the blood vessels
that supply oxygen and nutrients express this protein. Burnham faculty
members Barbara Ranscht, Ph.D., and Robert Oshima, Ph.D., have led a
team that developed the first living model to study this protein’s effect on
tumor angiogenesis by creating a strain of mice that develops spontaneous
mammary gland tumors in the absence of T-cadherin. Their results appeared
March 1 in Cancer Research.
“Evidence of T-cadherin’s role in vascularization has been somewhat
controversial,” explains Dr. Ranscht, senior author of the study, which
includes Drs. Lionel Hebbard and Michèle Garlatti from Burnham as equally
contributing first authors and Drs. Robert Cardiff and Lawrence Young as
collaborators from the University of California, Davis. “But our knockout
model clearly shows that T-cadherin plays a role in promoting tumor vascular-
ization, with implications for tumor growth and animal survival.”
This study also showed for the first time in a living model that T-cadherin
is essential for binding adiponectin, a hormone produced by fatty tissue that
is released in inversely proportional amounts to body fat. Adiponectin has
a protective effect against metabolic diseases including diabetes, hyperten-
sion, heart disease, and stroke; now for the first time it is linked in a tumor
model with vascular function, a relationship that the Burnham team is still
exploring. “While the link between obesity and breast cancer is complex,
this study shows that in the mouse, T-cadherin sequesters much of the
adiponectin and thus provides a conceptual link between obesity and breast
cancer,” notes Dr. Oshima.
This research is supported by grants from the National Institutes of
Health and the Department of Defense.
Gene Found to Play a Suppressor Role
Researchers at Burnham have
provided genetic evidence that
Activating Transcription Factor 2
(ATF2) plays a suppressor role in
skin cancer development. ATF2 is
a protein that regulates gene tran-
scription, which is the first step in
the translation of genetic code, in
response to extracellular stresses
such as ultraviolet light and ionizing
radiation. This function of ATF2 in
stress and DNA damage response
suggests that it may also play a role in
the formation of tumors.
Previous studies led by Burnham
faculty member Ze’ev Ronai, Ph.D.,
have suggested an important role of
ATF2 in melanoma development
and progression. In this new study,
published in an issue of Proceedings
of the National Academy of Sciences,
the Ronai laboratory, in collabora-
tion with Nic Jones, Ph.D. from the
University of Manchester UK, used
a mouse model that expresses a tran-
scriptionally inactive form of ATF2
in skin cells (keratinocytes). When
the mice were subjected to chemi-
cally mediated skin carcinogenesis,
tumors appeared faster and more
frequently. These findings reveal that
loss of ATF2 transcriptional activity
in skin exposed to carcinogens
enhances skin tumor formation,
suggesting a tumor suppressor role
for ATF2 in keratinocytes.
“Important support for the
finding comes from the analysis
of tumor samples from human
patients with non-malignant skin
cancer,” states Dr. Ronai. “Unlike
the strong nuclear expression of
ATF2 in normal skin, squamous
cell carcinoma (SCC) and basal cell
carcinoma (BCC) samples exhibit a
significantly reduced nuclear staining
for ATF2.”
The group also identified
ATF2 as an upstream regulator of
genes including Presenilin1 (PS1),
Notch1, and ß catenin, all of which
have previously been reported to
be involved in skin tumor develop-
ment; thus providing an example of
a mechanism by which ATF2 func-
tions as a tumor suppressor.
This research is supported by
a grant from the National Cancer
Institute of the National Institutes
of Health.
cORONaRy aRtERy disEasE
BREast caNcER
sKiN caNcER
B U r n h a m N E w s
www.burnham.org | the BUrnham rePort 13
Run For Discovery with Team Burnham!
RUN FOR DISCOVERY! Join Team Burnham TODAY!
FLORida KicK OFFtUEsday, JULy 15 6 p.M.
Baker & Hostetler LLP
SunTrust Center, Suite 2300, 200 South Orange Avenue
Orlando, Florida 32801
caLiFORNia KicK OFFthURsday, JUNE 26 & wEdNEsday, JULy 9 5 p.M.
Burnham Institute for Medical Research
Ruoslahti Way, 10901 North Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037
waLt disNEy wORLd MaRathON wEEKENdORL aNdO, FLORidaJaNUaRy 9-11, 2009
What is Team Burnham for Medical Research?
Team Burnham is a group of
friendly people who are willing
to come together to make an
extraordinary commitment.
The Team will run for discovery
while raising money and aware-
ness for the research at the
Burnham Institute for Medical
Research. Anyone interested is
welcome to participate as part
of Team Burnham.
Join Team Burnham for Medical Research!
Your teammates, Dr. John
Reed, President and CEO of
Burnham and Dr. Dan Kelly,
Scientific Director of Burnham
Florida, and a number of
Burnham’s key scientists and
staff invite you to join us in this
amazing race.
The Team Burnham
training program is geared for
both beginners and experienced
runners.
The full marathon program
starts with three miles of
running and walking, and then
gradually increases in distance.
The half marathon program
starts with just one mile.
Whether you have never run
a step, or you are a seasoned
marathoner who wants to
improve your personal best, this
program will help you succeed.
It’s a great way to get fit, have
fun, and make a tremendous
difference in disease research.
Team Burnham members enjoy:tRaiNiNg
• A five month training plan
by a professional marathon
coach
• Organized training runs with
the team
• Nutrition tips
• Team Burnham training
shirts
RacE sUppORt/tRaVEL
• Race entry fee
• Roundtrip air and hotel
accommodations in Florida
• Hospitality suite and meals
provided
• Team Burnham shirts for
race day
thE OppORtUNit y tO MaKE aN iMpact iN cONQUERiNg disEasE
• Personal fundraising tips
and support website through
Active.com (www.active.com)
• Incentive rewards for meeting
fundraising and training
milestones
The money raised will
provide vital support for estab-
lished major medical research
programs in cancer, neurode-
generation, diabetes, infectious
and inflammatory and child-
hood diseases.
www.BURNhaM.ORg/tEaMBURNhaM
Burnham Officers and
Board of Trustees
OFFicERs
Malin Burnham
Chairman
Gregory T. Lucier
Vice Chairman
John C. Reed, M.D., Ph.D.
President and Chief
Executive Officer
Professor and Donald Bren
Presidential Chair
Kristiina Vuori, M.D., Ph.D.
Executive Vice President for
Scientific Affairs
Karin Eastham
Executive Vice President and
Chief Operating Officer
Eric Lofgren
Vice President
Chief Financial Officer
and Treasurer
Margaret Dunbar
Secretary
BOaRd OF tRUstEEs
Linden S. Blue
Mary F. Bradley
Brigitte M. Bren
Arthur Brody
Terrence J. Bruggeman
Malin Burnham
Howard I. Cohen
Karin Eastham
Carl Eibl
Jeannie Fontana, M.D., Ph.D.
Alan A. Gleicher
W.D. Grant
David F. Hale
Brent Jacobs
Robert C. Kyle
Robert J. Lauer
Sheila B. Lipinsky
Stuart Lipton, M.D., Ph.D.
Gregory T. Lucier
Douglas F. Manchester
Robert A. Mandell
Nico Nierenberg
Douglas H. Obenshain
Mark A. Pulido
John C. Reed, M.D., Ph.D.
Scott South
Stuart Tanz
Jan Tuttleman, Ph.D.
Andrew J. Viterbi, Ph.D.
Kristiina Vuori, M.D., Ph.D.
Barbara “Bobbi” Warren
Judy White
Gayle E. Wilson
Diane Winokur
Kenneth J. Woolcott
Ex-OFFiciO
Ernest Beutler, M.D.
Nonprofit OrganizationU.s. postage
paidthe Burnham institute
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10901 North Torrey Pines Road
La Jolla, CA 92037