BioMed 2010: Merck-Serono reaches out to collaborate with Israeli companies and entrepreneurs

This is done through Inter-lab is the company’s R&D center in Israel • Inter-Lab CEO, Regine Shevach: “The Israeli science has a special zest to it, one which we are thrilled to encounter time and time again; Together with Merck Serono, this special zest can create the next blockbuster drug…”

Merck Serono, the largest biotechnology company in Europe, is calling on Israeli entrepreneurs and companies to collaborate, through the company’s R&D center in Israel – Inter-Lab.

Merck Serono is a division of the German giant pharmaceutical company Merck (Merck KGaA), traded in Germany (MRGG.DE). Merck Serono is the manufacturer of the drug Rebif® for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, developed by Inter-Lab in Israel (formerly known as InterPharm). Rebif® is one of the leading drugs in the world for the treatment of MS, with sales of EU 429 million during Q1 2010. In 2009, Rebif® sales were EU 1.537 billion. The Merck Group employs over 33,000 employees worldwide.

In the company’s call to collaborate to entrepreneurs, Merck Serono states that it is the ideal partner of choice for the development of new drugs and has a proven track record of developing blockbuster drugs:  Rebif® for the treatment of MS, Erbitux® for the treatment of oncological diseases and Gonal-F® for fertility treatments. All of these drugs have Israeli roots.

Inter-lab CEO, Ms Regine Shevach; “The Israeli science has a special zest to it, one which we are thrilled to encounter time and time again. Together with Merck Serono, this special zest can create the next blockbuster drug. We are reaching out and looking for unique collaborations, also from the very early stages of drug development. In our R&D center in Yavne, we offer the best team of scientists using the most advanced laboratories in Israel.”

The CEO of Inter-Lab also stated: “the biggest challenge today is developing a commercial drug from a molecule in its early stages of development. We are among the very few that posses the professional know-how in the development of biotechnological drugs, and part of a larger company that is a leader in all the stages of drug development. Merck Serono has a long standing commitment to Israel, which commenced over 30 years ago. We are very experienced in the biotechnology industry and are already receiving feedback to our call for collaborations at the Israeli BioMed 2010 convention.

Inter-Lab, managed by Ms Regine Shevach, was established in 1978 by Serono, which was purchased in 2006 by the German pharmaceutical giant Merck KGaA. Following the acquisition, Serono became the Merck Serono division within Merck. Inter-Lab is the company’s R&D center in Israel.

One of the big breakthroughs in the biotech industry in Israel is Inter-Labs’ development of the drug Rebif® – one of the leading drugs for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. The company performs research on cells and comprises a unique knowledge center which specializes in the development of genetically engineered cells, used in the development and production of new drugs.  Inter-lab’s scientists have accumulated decades of experience in the field. In addition, Inter-Lab is involved in scouting for new ventures in Israeli academia and industry for the Merck Group.

The Merck Group markets its drugs through its subsidiary, Merck Serono. Merck Serono Israel is managed by Ms Sherry Perlov. The Company offices are located in Herzliya. Merck Serono markets the following fertility drugs in the local market: GONAL-f®, Luveris®, Ovidrel/Ovitrelle®, Cetrotide® and Crinone®, as well as the Rebif® drug for MS treatment and drugs for oncology treatments, such as UFT® and Erbitux® (cetuximab).

Erbitux® (cetuximab) is approved in Israel for treating patients with metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC) in combination with irinotecan after failure of irinotecan-based therapy, and locally advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN) in combination with radiation therapy.

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Following the opening words of the event’s organizers, ILSI and Kenes, the president of Israel Shimon Peres came up to the stage and surveyed the future of Israel, which will be based on advanced technologies and serve as an example to the entire world. In his own words, “Israel should become an international lab.” Amen to that.

Neither did the following opening keynote lecture disappoint. Sanofi-Aventis, the multinational pharmaceutical company and the world’s fourth-largest by prescription sales, has presented its new view of developing new products. The lecturer divided the pharmaceutical market into two distinct sections: the small biotechnology companies, and the large business companies. The first kind is usually headed by innovative and creative scientists whose expertise is thinking outside the box. They have good ideas, but they lack the experience needed to break through in the market. That’s what the big pharma companies do exceptionally well: they have all the experience and knowledge needed to succeed in the market, but they lack the ground-breaking minds that can be found in the smaller companies.

The solution, according to Sanofi-Aventis, lies in collaboration. Well, that didn’t require a genius to figure out. Then again, such a collaboration is not easily brought about. On the one hand, the employees of the large companies view themselves as superior to those from the smaller companies. On the other hand, the scientists in the small companies treat their projects as their own personal babies, and refuse to accept criticism and ideas for change. All the same, Sanofi-Aventis is determined to bring about fruitful collaborations between the Davids and the Goliaths of the world. To that purpose, they have cut down their portfolio by 40%, and rewired all the human resources and money that became available into new projects, with a core of efficient and competent employees who collaborate with a variety of other companies.

The end result: since 2010, sixty percent of the compounds in Sanofi-Aventis’ portfolio are developed via collaborations. Such collaborations can also promote projects that integrate knowledge and expertise from different fields, such as glucose sensors connected directly to an insulin pump, or robotic hands that connect to the nervous system.

Let us all hope that this trend – collaboration in place of a take-over – will become more common, and will bring about the development of novel technologies and products more efficiently and in a shorter amount of time.

NanoVibronix will present the second generation of PainShield – for the treatment of pain and chronic wounds using ultrasound waves

Following the commercial success of the first generation PainShield device, for the treatment of (surprise, surprise) pain, especially one that stems from Trigeminal Neualgia, the Israeli company NanoVibronix now reveals the second generation of the device. This time, it has some extra capabilities to treat chronic wounds. NanoVibronix, based in Nesher, is developing and marketing medical devices based on ultrasound technology it has developed. The PainShield is a small, mobile device which produces low-powered waves at a supersonic frequency, and is used to treat and cure infections, injuries and pains in tendons, joints and those of neural origins.

The PainShield is composed of two parts: a device which supplies the electrical signal and a treatment patch which is attached directly to the skin at the site of treatment, or nearby. A rechargeable battery supplies the power for the device, which can be belted on the body for optimal mobility and comfort. The sound waves submit vibrations that can reach a depth of up to 4 centimeters below the skin, and to a range of 10 centimeters around the patch. The device is recommended for a prolonged treatment of up to seven hours each day.

“Ultrasound has been used for many years to cure soft tissues, accelerating fracture fusion and to treat pain,” says Amir Rippel, the company’s vice head of marketing. “PainShield’s uniqueness is in a mobile application which allows one to be treated independently of a physiotherapist, and thus the treatment can be performed in the patient’s house as well. A prolonged mobile use of ultrasound at low power and frequency improves the local blood flow, reduces local infectious response and accelerates the process of healing and pain reduction. The innovation that we’ll present for the first time to a Israeli audience in the BioMed 2010 Week, will demonstrate a new use for the device: introducing local antiobiotics, enrichment with oxygen or washing and locally cleaning chronic wounds via ultrasound waves.”

PainShield has an AMAR certificate in Israel, has been approved by the FDA and also has a CE Mark in Europe.

Source: DMC, Donitza Market Communication

Stem cells are often viewed as the ultimate solution for regenerative medicine, and for a good cause. Given the correct cues, they can regenerate whole parts of the body, and even re-create an entire embryo (although that would require QUITE some understanding of the cues involved in the process). It seems, however, that now a new use has been found for them, as seek-and-destroy missiles against cancer.

The reason this just might work is that stem cells are attracted towards cancer cells. Why? We don’t know. Some say that they respond to the same factors that cause a tumor to invade a healthy tissue. Be it as it may, a team of researchers from the Beckman Research Institute in California used genetically engineered stem cells to combat a form of cancer in the brain. The cells produced an enzyme called cytosine deaminase, which converted a drug called 5-fluorocytosine (5-FC) into its active, chemotherapeutic form.

The engineered stem cells were injected into the brains of mice with glioma – a deadly brain cancer. The mice also received 5-FC, which turned into the chemotherapeutic form mainly at the sites the stem cells were at. The tumors’ mass was reduced by a whopping 70% compared with the untreated animals.

As reported in New Scientist, the US FDA granted the researchers “approval to carry out a safety trial of the therapy in up to 20 patients with recurrent glioma, for whom life expectancy is just three to six months. The stem cells will be injected into the tumour cavity following surgery to reduce its mass, and then given four days to home in on any remaining cancer cells. Patients will then be treated with daily 5-FC for one week.”

The stem cells used in the research do not seem to differentiate, and stop proliferating after 48 hours, which should ensure they won’t create yet another cancer in the body. Hopefully, the clinical trials will end well and the researchers will head to phase II soon after. In the meantime, we’ll have to settle for hearing more about cancer and stem cells at the ILSI-BioMed week 2010, where a Technology Transfer Session will be held on the subject of Pharmaceuticals and Stem cells, moderated by Dr. Sylvie Lauria, the Technology Transfer Office of Sheba Medical Center.

Source: New Scientist

The Department for Multiple Sclerosis in Sheba Hopsital will present for the first time a novel kit for sensory training, that improves patients’ brain activity. The kit will be presented in the BioMed Israel Week 2010, which will be held on July 14th-16th in Tel Aviv.
The kit is based on cylinders that come in varied textures, and is designed for populations that suffer from a decline in feeling at the palms, including the healthy aging population that suffers from an age-related decrease in sensory feeling. The kit should also help patients who suffer from neuropathic diseases, which cause an advanced decrease of sensory feeling due to the peripheral neuronal injury. Other target populations include patients who suffer from diseases of small blood vessels, patients with cancer who receive chemotherapy that leads to similar injury, and patients after brain infraction, or multiple sclerosis patients, in which the sensory injury is due to a brain or spinal cord injury.
The kit includes 24 cylinders, a string for the parts, a DVD set with instructions and a bag to hold them all. The use of the kit is simple: the exercise is conducted with closed-shut eyes, while feeling and identifying the texture of each cylinder for 15 minutes a day.
The new kit, in which the difficulty level (as determined by the texture) can be as befitting the user, was developed by the Department for Multiple Sclerosis in Sheba Hospital. Among the participants in the project were Prof. Anat Achiron, neurologist and head of the Multiple Sclerosis Center, Simona Gelb, occupational therapist and Michal Grinberg Abrahami, industrial designer and product developer. According to the developer team, the novelty of the invention lies in the fact that the training method is based on the learning capability and plasticity of the brain. “Recent researches have proven that training can lead to an increase in the number of synaptic connections, which correlates with an improvement in function. In the research that we have conducted on multiple sclerosis patients with sensory injury… we have found that after practicing there was an improvement of 12.5% in a PDT2 sensory test and an improvement of 27% in an MFT sensory test – and that’s after home training for three weeks.”
According to the developers, the new, user-friendly therapeutic tool has special significance for the younger of age (children and teenagers) with sensory injuries, since it enables them to practice daily in an independent manner. The kit, the price of which to the consumer will be 350 NIS, will become available during June 2010.

ILSI-BioMed Israel 2010
‘ILSI-BioMed Israel 2010′ is the annual main event of the Israeli life sciences industry. The week includes a professional international conference with the participation of the best experts (CEOs and senior managers from companies in the fields of bio-pharma and medical devices, researchers and scientists, entrepreneurs, publicists, venture capital funds managers and private investors) from Israel and abroad, and a show that presents the newest innovations. ILSI-BioMed Israel 2010, which has won international acclaim and is considered the second largest conference in the world after the United States, will be held between the 14th and 16th of June at the David Intercontinental hotel in Tel Aviv.

As part of the BioMed Conference, a Cardiovascular Technology Workshop will be held on Monday, June 14, 12:00–18:30 at the Dan Panorama Hotel, Tel Aviv

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Cardiovascular Therapy in the 2020s An ILSI-BioMed Workshop Sponsored by As part of the BioMed Conference, a Cardiovascular Technology Workshop will be held on Monday, June 14, 12:00–18:30 at the Dan Panorama Hotel, Tel Aviv.The most acclaimed international speakers will address the field’s most relevant and pressing topics, as seen in the program below: 12:10 -12:20  Dr. Francesco Maisano, Dept. of Cardiovascular & Thoracic Medicine, Istituto Scientifico, San Raffaele, Italy and Panel of Moderators OPENING REMARKS 12:20 -12:40    Dr. Michael J. Mack, Director of Cardiovascular Surgery, Baylor Healthcare System, Director of Research, The Heart Hospital Baylor Plano, USA VALVE DISEASE: UNMET NEEDS AND OPTIONS FOR INNOVATION 12:40 -13:00  Prof. Friedrich Wilhelm Mohr, Herzzentrum Universitaet Leipzig, Germany CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE AND HEART FAILURE: UNMET NEEDS AND INNOVATIONS 13:00 -13:15  COFFEE BREAK 13:15 -13:35  Dr. David L. Brown, President and Chairman of the Medical Staff, Director of Interventional Cardiology, Co-Director Cardiovascular Research & Structural Heart Program, The Heart Hospital, Baylor Plano, USA WHAT’S MISSING FROM AN INTERVENTIONAL CARDIOLOGIST 21ST CENTURY ARMAMENTARIUM? 13:35 -14:10    Dr. Joseph M. Smith, Chief Medical and Science Officer, West Wireless Health Institute, USA THE COMING COLLISIONS IN CARDIOLOGY AND THE OBLIGATION FOR INNOVATION 14:10 -15:10   LUNCH 15:10 -15:45   Dr. Bryant M. Moore, Vice President, Research & Technology, Medtronic, New Therapies & Diagnostics, USA ADVANCES IN ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF FUTURE IMPLANTABLE SYSTEMS 15:45 -16:20  Dr. Assaf Govari, Biosense Webster Ltd., Israel EP LAB OF THE FUTURE 16:20 -16:40  Dr. Guy Ezekiel, CEO, Medtronic Ventor Technologies, Ltd, Israel VENTOR AS A STRATEGIC ACQUISTION TARGET: WHAT CAN BE LEARNED FROM THIS CASE? 16:40 -17:00   Dr. Bruce Kenknight, CEO, Valtechcardio Medical, Israel VALTECH’S BROAD BASE PRODUCT LINE STRATEGY 17:00 -17:20   COFFEE BREAK 17:20 -18:20   COMPANY PRESENTATIONS AND PRIVATE CONSULTATIONS with the experts 18:20 -18:30    CLOSING REMARKS To confirm a time for your presentation and consultation, please contact dikla@valtechcardio.com by Wednesday, June 9, 2010. For conference registration, please contact reg_biomed2010@kenes.com.       IN COOPERATION WITH ORGANIZED BY MEDIA PARTNERS   Conference website: www.kenes.com/biomed Conference Organizers   Kenes International P.O.Box 56, Ben-Gurion Airport 70100, Israel Tel: 972-3-9727500 Fax: 972-3-9727555 E-mail: biomed@kenes.com   SPONSORS   DIAMOND PLATINUM      GOLD                             SILVER         BRONZE

An artificial pancreas system that closely mimics the body’s blood sugar control mechanism was able to maintain near-normal glucose levels without causing hypoglycemia in a small group of patients. The system, combining a blood glucose monitor and insulin pump technology with software that directs administration of insulin and the blood-sugar-raising hormone glucagon, was developed at Boston University (BU). The first clinical trial of the system was conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and confirmed the feasibility of an approach utilizing doses of both hormones. The report appeared in Science Translational Medicine.

I think we can all agree that the system is quite impressive so far. However, there are a few problems to be considered. First and foremost – and also most interesting – is that the researchers also found unexpectedly large differences in insulin absorption rates between study participants. They were able to compensate for the differences by adjustments to the system, but this is another complication that must be taken under consideration even with normal insulin pumps. The second is the fact that the glucose sensor was located in the vein, as opposed to the usual under-the-skin sensor. In other words, this whole experiment took place in a hospital, with the system most probably being quite cumbersome. Hopefully, future versions of this device will be much smaller, and the sensor will not be placed intravenously.

On related note, in the soon-to-come ILSI-BioMed week 2010, there will be at least two seminars concerning potential therapeutics for diabetes, in the first Technology Transfer Session on Tuesday. The first is called ‘Peptides and Cell Therapy – Novel Therapeutics for Diabetes and CNS Related Diseases’, courtesy of Ramot at Tel Aviv University Ltd. The second will be concerned with the ‘Prevention of Human Insulin Resistance and Diabetes’, courtesy of Hadasit Medical Research Services & Development Ltd.  

ILSI-BioMed week 2010

 Source: Massachusetts General Hospital

When people look back on the beginning of the 21^st century, they might think this was the time of the antioxidants. Antioxidants supplements are being sold everywhere, usually without a doctor prescription, as a way to halt aging, heart diseases and whatever else is promised on the label. But current research, published online in the medical journal Stem Cells, reveals antioxidants also have their downside, possibly causing genetic abnormalities in cells.

The researchers attempted to counter the oxidation problem of cells growing in a Petri dish culture, by adding high doses of antioxidants directly to the cells. “That’s when we made the serendipitous discovery that there is a ‘danger zone’ for the cells exposed to antioxidants to develop genetic abnormalities that predispose to cancer.” Says Eduardo Marban, M.D., Ph.D., one of the authors of the study.

What does this actually mean for the healthcare industry (or perhaps the nutritional supplements one)? Not much… yet. The study was performed invitro, so the translation into clinical conclusions is by no means automatic. However, this study joins previous ones which showed evidence of harmful effect of antioxidants when taken in large doses. Most sane persons do not swallow more than one multivitamin pill a day, but this information might have benefit for the ’supplemental junkies’ or even athletes. Should antioxidants be monitored more carefully by the government? I’m not quite sure that’s necessary. After all, Acamol isn’t monitored in any way, and people are not prone to poisoning themselves with overdoses. All the same, if you want to learn more about the legislation of drugs (at least in Europe), there’s a seminar about the “Europe Legislation for Oncology Drugs: From Research to Market” given by Beatrice Janin Jacquat, Medican Director, Includeconsulting, Switzerland, in the ILSI-BioMed Week next month.

 Source: Eurekalert

The paper online

The program of ILSI-BioMed Week 2010

Let’s face it: we’re dealing with an aging population. There’s no way around this fact, and the obvious implication is that in the future we’re going to need better heart pacemakers and better systems for insulin injection. The future seems to be heading towards more sophisticated implantable machinery, be it pacemakers or sustainable drug-release devices inside the body. But the more sophisticated we want them to be, the faster their power supply – the battery – will run out. How do we deal with that?

One possible solution of many has been published recently in the Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems. The researchers developed a generator that can harvest energy from the body heat and convert it into electricity. While thermoelectric power generators came into existence long before this study, the new generator has increased energy efficiency. The device attaches to the body and can only generate a power output of 1.3 microwatts, but that might be enough to help the constant recharge of implanted medical devices, and prolong their battery lifetime.

In general, the study and development of novel implantable biomedical devices and the question of finding a suitable power source for them are some of the top challenges of nowadays biomedical engineering. In the soon to come ILSI-BioMed Week 2010, one of the very first seasons will include a lecture by Dr. Bryant D. Moore about ‘ADVANCES IN ENGINEERING AND SCIENCE AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF FUTURE IMPLANTABLE SYSTEMS’. Dr. Moore is currently the vice president of research and technology in the New Therapies and Diagnostics Division of Medtronic’s Cardiac Rhythm Disease Management Business. It will be very interesting to hear his view on the future of implantable devices, and where they are heading.

Source: PhysOrg

ILSI-BioMed Week: Meet the Speakers

ILSI-BioMed Week: The Program

One year ago, a group of researchers at Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center in Jerusalem reported a sharp rise in the diagnoses of a certain metabolic disorder. To those of us who live in Jerusalem, fear not. Other than the Holyland story, nothing really happened in the Israeli capital in the last year. The only change is that the lab at Hadassah changed the supplier of its pipette tips. No more, no less.

You might find it hard to believe that the mere changing of a plastic supplier can affect the diagnosis of a medical disorder. It turns out more and more, though, that plastics can seriously influence the outcome of biomedical experiments and tests.  The most recent example was published just two days ago in BioTechniques by Lewis et al, and caught attention from Nature’s news crew who began circulating the announcement to the scientific community around the globe. It’s might important, too, as the discovery relates to protein and DNA extraction and PCR reactions, which most of the biologists do at one point or another in the research.

To sum up the results briefly, Lewis et al bring evidence that chemicals can leach out of polypropylene tubes and into the solution inside. Those chemicals absorb at wavelengths between 220 and 260 nanometers, which means they’re highly likely to distort a spectrometer reading of the amount of DNA in the solution, perhaps by as much as 300%, according to the researchers.

How to get over the problem? Lewis et al report they are using only tubes which are low in additives. This is another potential problem, obviously, since some of the additives are there for a reason: to harden the plastic, make it more heat resistant or preserving it over time. But if your research is truly important to you, I’d say it’s the right choice.

In the BioMed-ILSI week (two months from now), Prof. Daniel Cohn from the Casali Institute of Applied Chemistry in the Hebrew University will give a lecture on June 15th about Novel Biomedical Polymers and Medical Devices. It might be interesting to learn his views about this problem, and what’s more, perhaps he has an insight on the additives in question – and whether they can be found in implantable polymers as well.

The Incident in Hadassah

BioTechniques Journal

A News Article in Nature on the Matter

The Program of ILSI-BioMed week