Bio Screening Industry News

Conference Returns to Location of its Inaugural Event on March 16-19, 2009

Carlsbad, USA and Madrid, Spain, April 9, 2008 – Coming on the heels of BIO-Europe Spring 2008 in Madrid where delegates engaged in an incredible 5800 one-to-one meetings, EBD Group today announced that the third annual BIO-Europe Spring 2009 partnering conference will be returning to Milan, Italy, the site of its highly successful inaugural event. BIO-Europe Spring 2009 will open its doors at the Milano Convention Center (MIC), March 16-18, 2009

BIO-Europe Spring in only its second year has become the second largest dedicated partnering event in the biotechnology industry.  Biotechnology companies from around the world participate in BIO-Europe Spring to identify and meet with companies across the life science value-chain, from large biotech and pharma companies to financiers and innovative start-ups.

Commenting on the return of BIO-Europe Spring to Milan, Professor Rossi Bernardi, Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Human Capital, The City of Milan, stated: “The City of Milan, which has been recently chosen by BIE as host of the world exhibition EXPO 2015, is looking forward to host the 2009 edition of BIO-Europe Spring.”

“We are excited that BIO-Europe Spring is returning to Italy. The conference is a unique opportunity for leaders of the global biotech and pharma community to meet in a setting conducive to doing business,” said  Edoardo Richter, Director International Division, Angelini Group. “As an Italian pharmaceutical company, the BIO-Europe Spring event helps to shine more light on the rapid progress of our industry, the exceptional quality of our scientific programs and the great potential for partnering with Italian firms.

“We look forward to bringing BIO-Europe Spring back to the city of Milan and another highly productive and dynamic conference,” said Carola Schropp, President of EBD Group. “Partnering has become the life blood of our industry. This is a phenomenon readily apparent to anyone attending the currently in-session BIO-Europe Spring 2008 in Madrid, where 1400 delegates from 838 companies are engaging in over 5800 partnering meetings.

About EBD Group:

EBD Group is the leading partnering firm for the global biotechnology industry. Since 1993, firms in the life sciences have leveraged EBD Group’s partnering conferences, technology and services to identify opportunities and to develop strategic relationships that drive their business.

EBD Group’s conferences (run in collaboration with leading industry partners and international trade associations) include BIO-Europe, the world’s largest stand-alone life science partnering conference (organized with the support of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, BIO); BIO-Europe Spring(R); BioPharm America(TM) (EBD’s new North American partnering event); and BioEquity Europe (co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO).

EBD’s sophisticated web-based partnering service, partneringONE(TM), is also used at numerous third-party events around the world. Outside of the conference format, EBD’s consultants can provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies. EBD Group has offices in the USA and Europe.

For more information visit www.ebdgroup.com

Select Biosciences is proud to announce their first conference devoted to Advances in Synthetic Chemistry. The meeting will focus primarily on Flow Chemistry and Microwave-Assisted Organic Synthesis.

Alongside an exhibition of selected scientific posters and service providers, Select Biosciences is organizing a two day conference gathering some of the most influential researchers in the field including :

• Oliver Kappe, Associate Professor of Chemistry, University of Graz
• Ferenc Darvas, President, Thales Nanotechnology
• Fredrik Almqvist, Research Director, Biological Chemistry, Umeå University
• Mark Bagley, Senior Lecturer, University of Cardiff
• Ian Baxendale, Research Fellow, University of Cambridge
• Carsten Bolm, Professor, RWTH Aachen
• Maurizio Botta, Professor, University of Siena
• Marcus Koppitz, Senior Scientist, Bayer Schering Pharma
• Fernando Langa, Professor, University Castilla-La Mancha
• Vincenzo Santagada, Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Naples
• Peter Seeberger, Professor, ETH Zurich
• Brian Warrington, Director, BB Consultants Ltd
• Catherine Smith, University of Cambridge
• Mark Bagley, Senior Lecturer, University of Cardiff
• Sven Schroeder, Professor, University of Manchester
• And many more…

To guarantee a high attendance Select Biosciences will maintain their traditional low registration fees and group booking discounts. Furthermore, to encourage educational development, special priced passes are available to students as are one-day passes for the busy researcher who can’t spare time for the full two days.

About Select Conferences http://www.selectconferences.com

The conferences division of Select Biosciences Ltd. is focused on organizing specialist biomedical meetings each year. Experts from both academia and commerce are invited to present timely information from current research through to commercial implementation of new technologies. These events also provide a unique networking facility and the opportunity to reach a highly targeted scientific audience.

The essence of synthetic biology is that techniques used to build non-biological systems in the engineering and computational sciences could potentially be used to build novel synthetic biosystems. The sessions will develop the following topics:

• Regulatory, IP, Ethical and Business Issues
• Protein, Metabolic & Therapeutic Engineering
• Design & Fabrication of Parts: Devices and Systems
• Cell & Tissue Engineering

Advances in Synthetic Biology, will be held on 6-7 March, at the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, home to the Sanger and European Bioinformatics Institutes in Cambridge suburb. Both historically and today, the beautiful city of Cambridge is positioned at the forefront of scientific advancement and appears to be an ideal venue for such a meeting.

Alongside an exhibition of selected scientific posters and service providers, Select Biosciences is organising a two day event gathering world players in the field.

• Peter Ghazal, Director of Division of Pathway Medicine, Edinburgh University, UK
• Andreas Herrmann, Professor for Polymer Chemistry and Bioengineering, University of Groningen, NL
• Alfonso Jaramillo, Assistant Professor, Ecole Polytechnique, FR
• Juan Poyatos, Associate Professor, Spanish National Research Council, ES
• Laurie Zoloth, Professor, Northwestern University, US
• And many more…

To guarantee a high attendance at Europe’s largest conference dedicated to synthetic biology, Select Biosciences will maintain their traditional low registration fees and group booking discounts. Students will also benefit from special rates.

All conference passes include entrance to the sessions, the exhibition, as well as conference documentation, lunch and refreshments

To further increase the value of their trip, delegates can opt to attend a free guided tour of the Sanger Institute, the largest sequencing facilities in Europe! Early booking is necessary as numbers are strictly limited.

SyntheticBiologyAdvances.com

About Select Conferences http://www.selectconferences.com

The conferences division of Select Biosciences Ltd. is focused on organising specialist biomedical meetings each year. Experts from both academia and commerce are invited to present timely information from current research through to commercial implementation of new technologies. These events also provide a unique networking facility and the opportunity to reach a highly targeted scientific audience.

German AIDS researchers have discovered a protein common in semen that boosts the infectious potential of HIV 100,000-fold - a remarkable finding that may show how the virus can spread through sexual contact and also suggests new strategies to stop the epidemic.

If scientists can find a drug or chemical that blocks these infection-promoting proteins, it would go a long way toward development of a microbicide, a vaginal cream or gel that could protect sex partners against AIDS.

What is catching scientists’ attention is the 100,000-fold increase. “I was so surprised that I did not believe the numbers,” said Dr. Frank Kirchhoff, leader of the University of Ulm laboratory that found the protein. “But we did the experiment multiple times, and the results were always the same.”

The discovery was made possible by advanced techniques in laboratory screening for tiny proteins. There are more than 900 different kinds in human semen, and these proteins in turn break down into smaller molecular chains that also may carry out important biological tasks.

In this case, researchers at the University of Ulm were screening hundreds of different molecules from semen samples in the hope of finding some that naturally blocked HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

Instead, they stumbled upon protein fragments that do the opposite. The fragments dramatically boost HIV infection by clustering into microscopic rafts that ferry crowds of virus particles to cell surfaces, like landing craft disgorging invaders on a beach.

Their findings were released today in advance of Friday’s publication of the journal Cell.

Although HIV has been understood to be a sexually transmitted disease for a quarter century, relatively little work has been done in analyzing what role semen may play in its transmission. And, it seems, few scientists have spent much time analyzing what Kirchhoff calls “pools” of donated semen. “People haven’t dissected the individual components of semen,” he said.

The latest work is the product of an emerging field in biotechnology called proteomics, the study of the molecular structure and function of proteins.

The new study suggests that scientists may have been missing something very important. “This is one of the most interesting new perspectives on HIV transmission to emerge in years,” said Dr. Warner Greene, director of the Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology in San Francisco.

Greene said the work may solve a mystery that has puzzled AIDS researchers - why a virus that appears weakly infectious in laboratory dishes can spread explosively through sexual contact.

When researchers try to infect human cells under a microscope with HIV, it takes between 1,000 and 100,000 particles of the virus to cause a successful infection. That’s weak, as viral infectivity goes. But when the proteins found by Kirchhoff are added to the mix, it is possible to start a successful infection with as few as three particles of virus.

If such a weak virus can be turned into a monster by a molecule present in semen, it raises the possibility that knocking that molecule out - or even hobbling it - could make HIV suddenly much more difficult to spread.

Greene is so enthusiastic about this discovery that he has started a project to find ways of blocking the protein. But he concedes that this search will not be quick or easy.

Dr. Tony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said the science behind the German study is impressive, but the laboratory dish findings are a long way from producing a practical solution for people. “It is a surprising finding, but I would be cautious about how important this is going to be,” he said.

Fauci also noted that sexual transmission is only one route of HIV infection. Women can pass the virus to their newborns with breast milk, where presumably no similar HIV-promoting proteins exist. It is also clear that other factors, such as genital ulcers caused by diseases including herpes and syphilis, have a well-documented role in enhancing transmission of the virus.

University of Pittsburgh researcher Dr. Ian McGowan, a principal investigator with the Microbicide Trials Network - which coordinates National Institutes of Health studies in that field - was skeptical that the results would lead to any immediate advances in HIV prevention. He noted that a new generation of microbicide made from AIDS drugs has already blocked the virus in test tube studies and is headed for clinical trials, so there may be no advantage to a new approach targeting the infection-promoting proteins.

What happens in the laboratory, he said, may have little bearing on what works in people. “New compounds may block HIV in the test tube or in blood cells, but in reality these (microbicide) products need to be used intra-vaginally or intra-rectally,” he said.

The latest findings, however, are almost certain to prompt a closer look at the role these proteins play in HIV transmission. UCSF virologist Dr. Jay Levy, one of the first to isolate the AIDS virus in the early years of the epidemic, said studies may now be conducted to see how prevalent the protein is among at-risk populations. One example could be among HIV-positive men who have sex with unprotected partners, who nevertheless remain uninfected. Semen from the infected men could be tested to see if the protein is there, or is somehow naturally blocked.

The German researchers acknowledge that they do not know precisely how or why the protein they found has such a marked effect on HIV infectivity. The tiny rafts of protein fragments are called fibrils. They are created when sections of a large and common protein in semen, known as PAP, break off and cluster.

Fibrils are thought to resemble a loose collection of sticks, and numerous virus particles hitch a ride on them. It is possible that the sticky fibrils themselves attach to cell surfaces and make it easier for their HIV passengers to gain entry.

One of the more curious twists about the findings is a link between the HIV-enhancing fibrils and Alzheimer’s disease. These fibrils are structurally very similar to biological debris that clutters up the brain tissue of Alzheimer’s patients. It was a totally unrelated finding, that the amyloid fibrils in the brain disease seemed to promote HIV, that led researchers to suspect it when screens found similar fibrils in semen.

Kirchhoff named the structures Semen-Derived Enhancer of Virus Infection, or SEVI.

The discovery is the second major finding of note in HIV research by Kirchhoff’s laboratory. In April, researchers there used a somewhat similar screening process to find in the waste products from kidney dialysis a human protein that appears to naturally block many strains of HIV.

Vienna, Austria, August 31 - September 4, 2008
The EFMC-ISMC 2008 Symposium is organized by the Austrian Chemical Society on behalf of the European Federation for Medicinal Chemistry (EFMC).

This symposium is recognized worldwide as one of the leading Medicinal Chemistry meetings, as proven by its large international attendance, which varies between 1200 and 1500 participants from all over Europe, but also from the United States and Asia.

The Symposium will focus on important new scientific and technological developments in the drug discovery process; particularly those relevant to medicinal chemistry. The meeting will create an environment for in-depth, informed discussions highlighting the importance of medicinal chemistry in the pharmaceutical industry, academia and drug research. It will also provide opportunities to re-emphasise the crucial position of medicinal chemistry in the drug discovery process and its pivotal role in linking and exploiting the associated biological sciences. Therefore, ISMC-2008 intends to create a forum for all scientists interested in medicinal chemistry and related fields.

Programme

Plenary Lectures

Dr. Magid ABOU-GHARBIA
(WYETH RESEARCH, Princeton, United States)

Prof. Chris DOBSON
(UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, Cambridge, United Kingdom)

Prof. Paul HERRLING
(NOVARTIS INTERNATIONAL, Basel, Switzerland)

Prof. Barbara IMPERIALI
(MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, Cambridge, United States)

Prof. Steven V. LEY
(UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, Cambridge, United Kingdom)

GlaxoSmithKline Award forOutstanding Achievement in the Field of Chemical Biology
EFFMC Award Lectures

The Nauta Award for Pharmacochemistry

The UCB-Ehrlich Award for Excellence in Medicinal Chemistry

The Prous Institute-Overton and Meyer Award for Technologies in Drug Discovery
1. Novel Lead Finding Approaches 2. Chemistry Strategies to Reduce Attrition in Drug Discovery 3. Emerging Drugs

Session Chair
Dr. Hans-Ulrich STILZ
(SANOFI-AVENTIS, Frankfurt/Main, Germany)
Title to be determined
Dr. Jeff BLANEY
(STRUCTURAL GENOMIX, San Diego, United States)
Title to be determined
Prof. Roderick E. HUBBARD
(UNIVERSITY OF YORK, York, United Kingdom)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Geoffrey STEMP
(GLAXOSMITHKLINE, Harlow, United Kingdom)
From Fragment to Clinic
Dr. David REES
(ASTEX THERAPEUTICS, Cambridge, United Kingdom)
Chemical Strategies for Successful Clinical Development
Dr. Christopher N. JOHNSON
(GLAXOSMITHKLINE, Harlow, United Kingdom)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Bernd RIEDL
(BAYER HEALTHCARE, Wuppertal, Germany)
The Discovery and Development of Rivaroxaban
Dr. Susanne ROEHRIG
(BAYER HEALTHCARE, Wuppertal, Germany)
The Discovery and Development of a Selective PI3K-Alpha Inhibitor
Dr. Carlos GARCIA-ECHEVERRIA
(NOVARTIS PHARMA, Basel, Switzerland)
Discovery of TMC278: a Next Generation NNRTI Drug, Highly Active against Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type-1
Dr. Jérôme GUILLEMONT
(JOHNSON & JOHNSON PRD, Val de Reuil, France)

4. Kinase Selectivity-Is it Necessary? (ACS) 5. Predictive ADME/Tox Methods: What to Apply When? 6. Macromolecular and Polymeric Drugs

Session Chair
Prof. David ROTELLA
(WYETH RESEARCH, Princeton, United States)
Title to be determined
Dr. Dennis POWELL
(WYETH RESEARCH, Pearl River, United States)
Title to be determined
Dr. Louis LOMBARDO
(BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB, , United States)
Title to be determined
Dr. Andrew THOMAS
(ASTRAZENECA R&D, Macclesfield, United Kingdom)

Session Chair
Dr. Scott BOYER
(ASTRAZENECA, Mölndal, Sweden)
Predictive ADME: Examples from the Real World
Dr. Andrew Mark DAVIS
(ASTRAZENECA R&D, Loughborough, United Kingdom)
Virtual Methods for Predicting Off-Target Pharmacology
Dr. Jordi MESTRES
(IMIM AND UNIVERSITAT POMPEU FABRA, Barcelona, Spain)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Prof. Abraham J. DOMB
(HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM, Jerusalem, Israel)
Keynote
to be selected
Title to be determined
Dr. Ronit SATCHI-FAIRANO
(TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY, Tel Aviv, Israel)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

7. Fragment-Based Drug Discovery (ACS)  8. Imaging Ligands and Biomarkers (EUFEPS) 9. Natural Products as Starting Points in Drug Discovery

Session Chair
Dr. Jeffrey ALBERT
(ASTRAZENECA, Wilmington, United States)
Building the Perfect Beast: Designing a Fragment-Based Drug Discovery Paradigm
Dr. Edward ZARTLER
(MERCK RESEARCH LABORATORIES, Rahway, United States)
Fragment-Based Discovery: What Has it Achieved so far?
Dr. Alexander ALEX
(PFIZER, Sandwich, United Kingdom)
Fragment-Based Methods and the Discovery of BACE-1 Inhibitors for Alzheimer’s
Dr. Jeffrey ALBERT
(ASTRAZENECA, Wilmington, United States)

Session Chair
Prof. Pia VUORELA
(ÅBO AKADEMI UNIVERSITY, Turku, Finland)
Fluorometry and FRET in Measuring Biomarkers and Monitoring Cell Signaling Cascade
Dr. Ilkka HEMMILA
(PERKINELMER LIFE SCIENCES, Turku, Finland)
Mass Sensitive Ligands Useful for Biomarker Discovery and Validation
Dr. Peter SCHULZ-KNAPPE
(PROTEOME SCIENCES, Cobham, United Kingdom)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Erden BANOGLU
(GAZI UNIVERSITY, Ankara, Turkey)
Natural Products as Tools to Identify Novel Drug Targets and Novel Therapeutic Interventions
Dr. Gunda I. GEORG
(UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, Minneapolis, United States)
How to Use The Structural Diversity of Natural Products for Drug Discovery
Dr. Philipp KRASTEL
(NOVARTIS INSTITUTES FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH, Basel, Switzerland)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

10. Novel Approaches for Treatment of Neurodegenerative Diseases 11. Type 2 Diabetes: The Incretin System 12. Progress in COPD and Asthma Therapy

Session Chair
Dr. Magid ABOU-GHARBIA
(WYETH RESEARCH, Princeton, United States)
Title to be determined
Prof. Hilal A. LASHUEL
(EPFL - ECUBLENS, Lausanne, Switzerland)
Title to be determined
Dr. Steve JACOBSEN
(WYETH RESEARCH, Princeton, United States)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Prof. Koen AUGUSTYNS
(UNIVERSITY OF ANTWERP, Antwerp, Belgium)
Discovery of Sitagliptin and Rational Design of Other Novel DPP-4 Inhibitors
Dr. Tesfaye BIFTU
(MERCK & CO., Rahway, United States)
Peptidic and Nonpeptidic Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonists
Dr. Jesper LAU
(NOVO NORDISK, Maaloev, Denmark)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Matthias GRAUERT
(BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM, Biberach, Germany)
Recent Developments in CCR3 Antagonists
Dr. George V. DE LUCCA
(BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB, Princeton, United States)
Discovery of Potent and Highly Isoform Selective PI3Kg Inhibitors
Dr. Thomas RÜCKLE
(MERCK SERONO, Geneva, Switzerland)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

13. Allosteric Modulation and GPCR Drug Discovery 14. Oncology 15. Immunology & Immunomodulation

Session Chair
Prof. Rob LEURS
(VU UNIVERSITY AMSTERDAM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
The Potential of Allosteric Modulation for GPCR Drug Discovery
Prof. Arthur CHRISTOPOULOS
(MONASH UNIVERSITY, Clayton, Australia)
Therapeutic Opportunities for Small Molecule Modulators of Chemokine Receptors
Dr. Thomas J. SCHALL
(CHEMOCENTRYX, Mountain View, United States)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Graham WARRELLOW
(UCB SA, Cambridge, United Kingdom)
Eg5 Inhibitors
Dr. Christopher COX
(MERCK RESEARCH LABORATORIES, West Point, United States)
Allosteric Akt Inhibitors
Dr. George HARTMANN
(MERCK RESEARCH LABORATORIES, West-Point, United States)
PLK1 Inhibitor (BI-2536)
Dr. Matthias HOFFMANN
(BOEHRINGER INGELHEIM, Biberach, Germany)

Session Chair
Dr. Katerina LEFTHERIS
(BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB, Princeton, NJ, United States)
Current Aspects and Future Trends in Immunomodulation
Dr. Murray MCKINNON
(BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB, Princeton, United States)
Advances in Targeting Glucocorticoids
Dr. Hartmut REHWINKEL
(SCHERING, Berlin, Germany)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

16. Antispsychotic Targets 17. Antivirals 18. Pain

Session Chair
Prof. Klaus P. BOGESO
(H. LUNDBECK, Valby, Denmark)
NK3 Receptors
Prof. Klaus SIMONSEN
(H. LUNDBECK, Valby, Denmark)
PDE10 Inhibitors
Dr. Patrick Robert VERHOEST
(PFIZER GLOBAL RESEARCH, Groton, United States)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Maria Jose CAMARASA
(SEQT, Madrid, Spain)
Title to be determined
Dr. Jan BALZARINI
(REGA INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL RESEARCH, Leuven, Belgium)
Lethal Mutagenesis as a New Antiviral Strategy
Prof. Esteban DOMINGO
(UNIVERSIDAD AUTONOMA DE MADRID, Madrid, Spain)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Dr. Mark DUGGAN
(AMGEN, Cambridge, United States)
Title to be determined
Dr. Stefan MCDONOUGH
(AMGEN, Cambridge, United States)
Nav1.7 Inhibitors – Discovery and Development
Dr. Joseph L. DUFFY
(MERCK RESEARCH LABORATORIES, Rahway, United States)
Oral communication
Dr. Graham N. MAW
(PFIZER, Sandwich, United Kingdom)

19. Exploring the Chemical Space 20. Chemokines 21. Systems Level Research Informs Drug Target Identification and Therapy Design

Session Chair
Profs. Herbert WALDMANN & STEFAN WETZEL
(MAX PLANCK INSTITUTE OF MOLECULAR PHYSIOLOGY, Dortmund, Germany)
Title to be determined
Prof. Gisbert SCHNEIDER
(JOHANN WOLFGANG GOETHE UNIVERSITY, Frankfurt, Germany)
Title to be determined
Dr. Antonio MACCHIARULO
(UNIVERSITY OF PERUGIA, Perugia, Italy)
Title to be determined
Prof. Jean-Louis REYMOND
(UNIVERSITÄT BERN, Bern, Switzerland)
Title to be determined
Dr. Stefan WETZEL
(MAX PLANCK INSTITUTE OF MOLECULAR PHYSIOLOGY, Dortmund, Germany)

Session Chair
Prof. Gerhard ECKER
(UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA & EFMC, Vienna, Austria)
Title to be determined
Prof. Nobutaka FUJII
(KYOTO UNIVERSITY, Kyoto, Japan)
Selective Dual CCR2/5 Antagonists
Dr. Wolfgang MILTZ
(NOVARTIS PHARMA, Basel, Switzerland)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Prof. Harel WEINSTEIN
(CORNELL UNIVERSITY, New York, United States)
Drug Discovery, Drug Delivery and Therapeutic Monitoring by Molecular, Cellular and Functional Imaging of Atherothrombosis
Dr. Zahi A. FAYAD
(MOUNT SINAI SCHOOL OF MEDICINE, New York, United States)
Understanding Drug Mechanisms and Designing Therapy at the Systems Level of the Functional Human Interactome
Prof. Gianni CESARENI
(UNIVERSITY OF ROME ‘TOR VERGATA’, Rome, Italy)
Special Structural, Dynamic and Functional Characteristics of Membrane Proteins and their Signaling Partners that Determine the Mode and Putative Success of Therapy Design Targeting Cellular Signaling Systems.
Prof. Harel WEINSTEIN
(CORNELL UNIVERSITY, New York, United States)

22. New Computational Approaches Supporting Drug Design 23. Druggability of Protein-Protein Interactions 24. Systems Biology and Medicinal Chemistry

Session Chair
Dr. Jordi MESTRES
(IMIM AND UNIVERSITAT POMPEU FABRA, Barcelona, Spain)
Overview on New Computational Tools Supporting Drug Design
Prof. Tudor I. OPREA
(UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO, Albuquerque, United States)
Novel Tools for Data Gathering
Dr. Muthukumarasamy KARTHIKEYAN
(NATIONAL CHEMICAL LABORATORY, Pune, India)
Novel Tools for Data Classification
Dr. Ansgar SCHUFFENHAUER
(NOVARTIS INSTITUTES FOR BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH, Basel, Switzerland)
Novel Tools for Data Exploitation
Dr. Elisabet GREGORI-PUIGJANE
(CHEMOTARGETS, Barcelona, Spain)

Session Chair
Dr. Peter NUSSBAUMER
(NOVARTIS, Vienna, Austria)
Title to be determined
Dr. Leonard J. PAGLIARO
(BIOIMAGE, Soeborg, Denmark)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Prof. Christian NOE
(UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA, Vienna, Austria)
Network Based Drug Discovery
Prof. Hans WESTERHOFF
(VU UNIVERSITY AMSTERDAM, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Title to be determined
Prof. Christian NOE
(UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA, Vienna, Austria)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

25. Structure Based Drug Design (AFMC) 26. Modulators of Adenosine and P2Y Receptors 27. Addressing Therapeutic Complexity in Oncology with Med. Chem.

Session Chair
Prof. Esin AKI-SENER
(ANKARA UNIVERSITY, Ankara, Turkey)
Quantum Chemical Calculation of Protein-Ligand Interaction
Prof. Isao NAKANISHI
(KYOTO UNIVERSITY, Kyoto, Japan)
Title to be determined
Dr. Jose VARGHESE
(CSIRO, Parkville, Australia)
Oral communication
to be selected from submitted abstracts

Session Chair
Prof. Kenneth A. JACOBSON
(NIDDK, Bethesda, United States)
Engineering of Purine Receptors and Their Ligands
Prof. Kenneth A. JACOBSON
(NIDDK, Bethesda, United States)
Title to be determined
Prof. Pier Giovanni BARALDI
(UNIVERSITY OF FERRARA, Ferrara, Italy)
Allosteric Modulation of Purine Receptors
Prof. Ad P. IJZERMAN
(LEIDEN/AMSTERDAM CENTER FOR DRUG RESEARCH, Leiden, The Netherlands)

Session Chair
Dr. Graeme ROBERTSON
(SIENA BIOTECH, Siena, Italy)
Alternatives to Kinase Inhibitors for Cancer Therapies
Prof. Giovanni GAVIRAGHI
(SIENA BIOTECH, Siena, Italy)
Endothelin Converting Enzyme Inhibitors as Anticancer Agents for Human Glioblastoma. A Comparison with Endothelin Receptor Antagonists
Dr. Lucienne JUILLERAT
(CENTRE HOSPITALIER UNIVERSITAIRE VAUDOIS, Lausanne, Switzerland)
Novel Kinase Inhibitors
Dr. Dirk HEERDING
(GLAXOSMITHKLINE, Collegeville, United States)

The conference included 19 interactive workshops, panel discussions, international seminars and company presentations. The Opening Plenary focused on the anticipated convergence between biotech and the pharmaceutical industry. Panelists discussed the opportunity for biologics to enable pharmaceutical companies to achieve greater market share, as well as overlaps and convergence between biotech and Big Pharma.

“This year’s BIO-Europe was the largest held to date with over 2200 delegates.  This highly successful event brought together biotech and pharmaceutical industry leaders from around the globe to develop partnerships, share insights on business trends, and discuss policy issues and other factors that impact the biotech industry,” said Jim Greenwood, President and Chief Executive Officer of BIO.

Attendees came from around the world to participate in over 8500 partnering meetings geared toward exploring mutually beneficial deals. A Plenary Session entitled, “A Day in the Life of Experienced Dealmakers,” [http://www.ebdgroup.com/bioeurope/] featured leading dealmakers highlighting recent case studies and discussing the externalization of research and development, trends within mergers and acquisitions and licensing opportunities.

BIO-Europe 2007 has exceeded expectations with over 2,200 delegates. The priority for all conference delegates is sitting down with potential partners to discuss projects for licensing, molecules, financing and other collaborative programs. “This is the key to the success we are seeing today,” said Carola Schropp, Managing Partner, EBD Group. “The success of BIO-Europe sets the stage for an exciting and productive BIO-Europe Spring® partnering conference in Madrid, Spain, April 7-9, 2008”.

About EBD Group

EBD Group International, LLC is the leading partnering firm for the global biotechnology industry. Since 1993, firms in the life sciences have leveraged EBD Group’s partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships that drive their business. EBD Group’s conferences (run in collaboration with leading industry partners and international trade associations such as the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) include BIO-Europe (co-organized with BIO), the preeminent stand-alone or ex-U.S. partnering conference for the biotechnology industry; BIO-Europe Spring; the investor conference, BioEquity Europe (co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO); and the convergent medical technology partnering conference, BioDevice Partnering. EBD’s novel, web-based, partnering software system is also used at numerous third-party events around the world. Outside of the conference format, EBD Group’s consultants can provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies. EBD Group has offices in San Diego, Munich and London. For more information visit www.ebdgroup.com.

About BIO

BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the annual BIO International Convention, the global event for biotechnology. www.bio.org.

ACI’s Clinical Drug Safety Conference will address the challenges in monitoring and maintaining drug safety strategies throughout clinical trials. Understand how to apply innovative strategic approaches to effectively manage clinical safety; discover key developments in the handling, analysis and reporting of adverse events during trials and understand the regulators requirements with the aim of speeding drugs to market whilst mitigating the risk of recall.
The programme will focus on key topics including:
· Implementing a progressive pharmacovigilance strategy

· Key technological advances to support effective management of clinical safety issues during development

· Effective handling and analysis of adverse event data – best practices for capturing and reporting safety data

· Reducing risk earlier to mitigate the threat of post-marketing recall

· Meeting the regulator’s safety requirements

The expert panel of speakers comprises principal decision-makers and researchers from leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies, giving you an insight into the latest developments in drug safety strategy and research within clinical trials, through key industry case study presentations.

Among the speakers:
· Dr. Lisbeth Tofte Hemmingsen, Group Director, International Clinical Quality Assurance, Nycomed Group

· Dr. Hans Mosberg, Director Medical Safety Strategy, Nycomed GmbH

· Dr. Bledar Haderi, Drug Safety & Epidemiology Manager, AstraZeneca

· Dr. Jill Robinson, Vice President, Global Pharmacovigilance Operations , Wyeth

· Dr. Thomas Stoehr, Scientific Leader, Pharmacology, Schwarz BioSciences

· Dr. Nilima Justice, Senior Director, Product Safety Surveillance, Novo Nordisk

· Dr. Valerie Shaw, Director and Product Safety Risk Management Lead, Pfizer

· Dr. William Maier, Director of Epidemiology, Elan Pharmaceuticals Ltd

Who will attend?

Attendees will be drawn primarily from pharmaceutical, biotechnology and contract research organisations and include VPs, Directors and Managers/Scientists working in Drug Safety, Toxicology, Pharmacology, Pharmacovigilance, Epidemiology, Clinical Research and Development, Clinical Trial Management, Regulatory Affairs and Compliance, Strategy and Business Development.

Information & Registration

The program is written by end-users for end-users. That means that you will be attending with only 80 to 100 of your peers from the Global Pharmaceutical and Biotech Industry and will not be surrounded by suppliers trying to sell their products. The success of our conferences is based on a limited number of delegate spaces and a very restricted group of targeted vendors.

To book or to get additional information on the conference, please contact Melanie Mulazzi of ACI on +44 20 7981 2504 or email her at mmulazzi@acius.net.

www.acius.net

Innovating kinase inhibitor development is the key to successful clinical development. At Informa Life Sciences 7th Annual Protein Kinases Congress hear the latest thinking and strategies towards creating a selective inhibitor. Learn about new targets, industry trends in structure-based drug design, clinical case-studies and discuss the issue of cardiotoxicity.

For more information visit: http://www.iir-events.com/IIR-Conf/page.aspx?id=9547

Conference partnering system already features an astounding 1600-plus licensing opportunities

Carlsbad, CA and Washington D.C., Oct. 22, 2007 – EBD Group and the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today announced the addition of more compelling highlights to the conference program.

BIO-Europe 2007 stands to be the most important and exciting stand-alone life sciences partnering event of the year.  With four weeks to go until the start of the conference, attending biotech companies have already listed over 1,600 partnering projects in the BIO-Europe conference partnering system.

The new content highlights include:

•     Global Drug Pricing – A Way Out of The Dilemma?

Moderated by Dr. Karen Bernstein, Chairman & Editor in Chief, BioCentury Publications Inc., this panel will feature speakers Dr. Christopher Earl, President and CEO, BIO Ventures for Global Health, Dr. Erik Tambuyzer, SVP, Corporate Affairs Europe & International, Genzyme, Boris Simkovich, President, Light Management Consulting, Wayne Critchley, Partner, Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP and David Sykes, Principal, PRMA Consulting. These business leaders will explore how the industry and individual companies should approach global drug pricing and figure out ways to maintain the profits necessary to spur R&D while being fair and equitable in the eyes of poor and middle income countries.

•     Beyond Antibodies: Building on Protein Scaffolds

Antibodies represent a turning point in the biopharmaceutical dream of finding the perfect drug: an effective disease treatment with minor side effects and a patient friendly administration. Several biotechnology companies are now working on the next generation of potential medicines based on alternative protein scaffolds such as derivatives of natural proteins or engineered proteins and are progressing in clinical trials. The pharma industry has now recognized the potential for these novel scaffolds, as illustrated by recent acquisitions and high value deals.  Led by Mike Ward, Senior Editor, BioCentury Publications Inc., this panel will include Dr. Edwin Moses, CEO, Ablynx NV, Evert J.J. Kueppers, CEO, Pieris AG, Dr. Olivier Litzka, Partner Life Sciences, Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners, Dr. Christian Zahnd, CEO, Molecular Partners AG.  They will explore opportunities and difficulties in implementing next generation antibody technologies towards fostering a better understanding of the benefits of these new techniques and how to capitalize on this emerging trend.

•     An Experts’ View on the State of the Industry

A distinguished panel of industry leaders will discuss the state of the biotech industry in the face of the state of the general healthcare industry.  Dr. Ken Noonan, Senior Partner, LEK Consulting will moderate a panel featuring Dr. Hubert Birner, General Partner, TVM Capital GmbH, Ian Nicholson, CEO, Chroma Therapeutics Ltd, James C. Greenwood, President & CEO, BIO, Dr. Siegfried Bialojan, Industry Leader Health Sciences, E&Y Germany.  These leaders will look at past successes and failures and will give some perspectives on current market challenges, as they affect the biotech industry.  Topics will include the R&D productivity gap and the role of partnering in addressing that gap, the missing IPO window for biotechs with a focus on AIM and its changing dynamic, reimbursement for novel pharmaceuticals/biopharmaceuticals, and, emerging technology/business model trends among biotech companies, “biosimilars” in the EU and U.S. and surrogate markers.

•     Innovative Partnerships for Global Health Product Development

Moderated by Dr. Christopher D. Earl, President and CEO, BIO Ventures for Global Health, this session will discuss the formation of new industry partnerships to increase discovery research for neglected diseases. Despite increased partnering and industry collaborations, the real question remains: How should incentives be used as a vehicle to benefit global health?  From generating motivation for industry investment in R&D to addressing concerns of IP and access, there are many complex issues impeding the progress from A to B.  This session will highlight some of these pioneering partnerships as well as stress the difficult questions that need answers so that millions of lives can be saved.  Session panellist will feature Jörn Aldag, President and CEO, Evotec, Dr. Ted Bianco, Director, Technology Transfer, The Wellcome Trust, Dr. Chris Hentschel, CEO, Medicins for Malaria Venture, Kate Bingham, Managing Partner, SV Life Sciences.

•     David vs. Goliath - How Can Mid-Size Pharma Compete in an Environment Dominated by Big Pharma?

As mega-mergers have made Big Pharma bigger, the mid-size pharmaceutical company faces bigger than ever challenges in differentiating and justifying itself, not to mention competing for new products. With comparatively paltry R&D budgets, are these companies too reliant on corporate alliances? A panel featuring Dr. Don Lucas, Associate Director, Licensing & Alliances, Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals, Gunther Winkler, VP, Strategic Initiatives, Biogen Idec and Mr. Yoshio Tanabe, Operating Officer and Director, Corporate Planning, Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., will and answer this question by exploring how selected mid-size companies can address these issues, and why certain biotech companies might find them appealing as partner candidates. The lifeblood of this industry is innovation, and with both internal and external access squeezed, it is critical that alternative ways our found for mid-size companies to survive and thrive.

•     Pharma’s Franchise View on Novel Medicines for CNS Disease

Disease franchise planning for CNS disorders requires a balance of innovation and reduction of risk associated with developing diagnostics and therapies for the complex pathophysiology of CNS disease. This session will discuss new target validation technologies, such as RNAi, that are demonstrating value and are being incorporated into discovery operations and how it may possible to leverage market pressures for novel medicines to bring the R&D and commercial leadership into new alignment, generating stronger support for innovative therapeutic and diagnostic approaches on multi-factorial CNS disease. Led by Gardiner Smith, Partner, SHI Link, this session will feature Dr. Sarah Holland, Director Global Business Development, Hoffmann-La Roche, Dr. Patrick Burke, Director Business Development, Myriad Pharmaceuticals, Dr. Christine de los Reyes, Founder and Managing Director, Biotech Partnering Solutions, and Dr. David Nicholson, Executive VP Research & Development, Organon International.

A complete list of workshops, panels and abstracts can be accessed at:

http://www.ebdgroup.com/bioeurope/program.htm

Notes to Editors:

Entry to BIO-Europe 2007 is free to the media, including full access to the partnering system, sessions, press conferences, workshops, and pre-arranged partnering meetings. . Visit the BIO-Europe conference website at http://www.ebdgroup.com/bioeurope/press_reg.htm for detailed information on this year’s conference and online registration. When you register online, please indicate in the comment field that you are requesting a complimentary press registration. Please fax a copy of your press pass to complete your complimentary media registration to fax number +49 (89) 23 88 756 55.

About BIO-Europe 2007

BIO-Europe 2007 is the preeminent stand-alone partnering event for the biotechnology industry. Delegates from all parts of the biotechnology value-chain come to BIO-Europe to efficiently identify, engage and enter into the strategic relationships that drive their business successfully forward. It is anticipated that this year’s BIO-Europe partnering event will draw 2,200 industry attendees from over 40 countries, representing more than 1,100 companies for three days of high-level networking. BIO-Europe features the industry’s most advanced Web-based partnering system that delegates will use to generate in excess of 8,000 partnering meetings. BIO-Europe features an exceptional international exhibition where companies, organizations and biotech regions can showcase their offerings. Additional networking opportunities will abound at evening and special events. BIO-Europe is co-developed by EBD Group and the Biotechnology Industry Organization, in partnership with European Biopharmaceutical Enterprises.

About EBD Group

EBD Group International, LLC is the leading partnering firm for the global biotechnology industry. Since 1993, firms in the life sciences have leveraged EBD Group’s partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships that drive their business. EBD Group’s conferences (run in collaboration with leading industry partners and international trade associations such as the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)  include BIO-Europe (co-organized with BIO), the preeminent stand-alone or ex-U.S. partnering conference for the biotechnology industry; BIO-Europe Spring; the investor conference, BioEquity Europe (co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO); and the convergent medical technology partnering conference, BioDevice Partnering. EBD’s novel, web-based, partnering software system is also used at numerous third-party events around the world. Outside of the conference format, EBD Group’s consultants can provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies. EBD Group has offices in San Diego, Munich and London. For more information, visit www.ebdgroup.com

About BIO

BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the annual BIO International Convention, the global event for biotechnology. www.bio.org.

Carlsbad, CA, and Washington D.C., Sept. 27, 2007 – EBD Group and the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today announced a collaboration with DMS Data Systems, a provider of online life sciences industry data, to provide BIO-Europe 2007 attendees with access to the DMS Data Center, which contains information on specific diseases, technologies and other market-specific data. The DMS Data Center is now accessible at http://www.dmsdatacenters.com/beddc/

The BIO-Europe 2007 International Partnering Conference will be November 12-14, 2007 in Hamburg, Germany at the Congress Center Hamburg.

“We are pleased to further enhance the BIO-Europe partnering experience by offering delegates access to comprehensive, current and in-depth industry information. DMS Data Center provides yet another dimension of information to consider when evaluating specific partnering opportunities and developing successful partnering strategies,” said Carola Schropp, Managing Partner, EBD Group.

“DMS is a perfect complement to the partnering opportunities offered by the BIO-Europe conferences,” said Richard Franklin, chairman of DMS Data Systems. “DMS Data Center gives BIO-Europe delegates the in-depth and comprehensive industry data they need to make educated decisions about the deals they consider and pursue.”

About BIO-Europe 2007

BIO-Europe 2007 is the largest stand-alone partnering conference for the global biotech industry. Delegates from all parts of the biotechnology value-chain come to BIO-Europe to efficiently identify, engage and enter into the strategic relationships that drive their business successfully forward. It is anticipated that this year’s BIO-Europe partnering event will draw 2,000 industry attendees from almost 40 countries, representing more than 1,100 companies for three days of high-level networking. BIO-Europe features the industry’s most advanced web-based partnering system that delegates will use to generate in excess of 7,000 partnering meetings. BIO-Europe features an exceptional international exhibition where companies, organizations and biotech regions can showcase their offerings. Additional networking opportunities will abound at evening and special events. BIO-Europe is co-organized by EBD Group and Biotechnology Industry Organization, in partnership with European Biopharmaceutical Enterprises.

About DMS

DMS Data Systems designs, develops, and sells on-line, searchable, industry-specific databases, with a focus on the Biomedical industries, including the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, bioinformatics, diagnostics, medical device, equipment, drug delivery, and contract research and manufacturing sectors.

Its products, including the NewsAnalyzer, the IndustryAnalyzer, Clinical Trials Plus, and the DMS Data Center, are valuable tools for business development, clinical development, competitive intelligence, strategic planning, and due diligence.

These products are used by biomedical companies, licensing and competitive intelligence professionals, investment banks, venture capital companies, contract research organizations, and University technology transfer offices, as well as executive search firms, publishing companies, public relations and advertising companies, and consulting and law firms.

About EBD Group

EBD Group International, LLC is the leading partnering firm for the global biotechnology industry. Since 1993, firms in the life sciences have leveraged EBD Group’s partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships that drive their business. EBD Group’s conferences (run in collaboration with leading industry partners and international trade associations such as the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)  include BIO-Europe (co-organized with BIO), the preeminent stand-alone or ex-U.S. partnering conference for the biotechnology industry; BIO-Europe Spring; the investor conference, BioEquity Europe (co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO); and the convergent medical technology partnering conference, BioDevice Partnering. EBD’s novel, web-based, partnering software system is also used at numerous third-party events around the world. Outside of the conference format, EBD Group’s consultants can provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies. EBD Group has offices in San Diego, Munich and London. For more information visit www.ebdgroup.com.

About BIO

BIO represents more than 1,100 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and 31 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the annual BIO International Convention, the global event for biotechnology. www.bio.org