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Programme
Contents
16:00: Registration with tea and coffee
About the Awards
2
16:30: Panel Discussion
Working together for impact
Welcome
3
Chair:
Jeremy Webb, Editor-in-Chief,
New Scientist
4 – 21
Professor Russell Foster
4
Speakers:
Dr Celia Caulcott, Director of Innovation and Skills, BBSRC
Professor Mark Hanson
6
Glyn
Edwards, Chief Executive, UK BioIndustry Association
Professor Richard Mithen
8
Professor Ottoline Leyser, Associate Director, The Sainsbury
Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Professor Duncan Graham
10
17:15: Networking session with drinks
and canapés
An opportunity to meet the innovators to discuss the routes
they have taken to translate their research into economic
growth and social good.
Professor Jim Murray
12
Professor Chris Schofield
14
Professor Anthony Hollander
16
18:15: Awards Presentation:
Rt Hon Dr Vince Cable MP
Professor George Lomonossoff
18
18:45: Further networking with drinks
and canapés
Professor Polly Roy
20
19:30: Close
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Meet the Innovators
Floorplan
Back Page
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About the Innovator of the Year Awards 2012
The nine finalists have been shortlist by an independent panel. Yesterday
(27 March 2012) a judging panel met with each of the finalists and have
selected winners in three categories:
The overall Innovator of the Year receives a further £5,000 and their
department will be awarded £15,000. All grants will be spent on helping
to improve the impact of bioscience.
• Social Innovator
• Commercial Innovator
• Most promising Innovator
This is the fourth year that BBSRC has run the Innovator of the Year
Awards.
The judges have also selected one overall Innovator of the Year.
Each category winner will receive an award of £10,000 and a trophy.
2
About the Awards
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Welcome to BBSRC’s Innovator of the Year 2012
Many of you will know about the strength in quality of UK bioscience.
We are the world-leading nation in bioscience research by almost
every measurement. But what does world-quality science mean
without considering how new discoveries and developments might
affect people’s lives for the better?
The Innovator of the Year competition is
BBSRC’s scheme to recognise and reward those
researchers who have seen this most clearly
and have taken the difficult steps to turn their
excellent science into real-life benefits.
At BBSRC we believe strongly that the world
is entering the ‘Age of Bioscience’. Driven by
new concepts and technologies, a biological
revolution is unfolding in the same way that
advances in physics shaped the early 20th
century and as great leaps in electronics and
computing transformed our lives over the past
40 years.
The European Bioeconomy is worth €1.5 Trillion
and underpins 22 million jobs. Bioscience
advances and a changing world will make the
bioeconomy not just an important part of the
UK’s prosperity and wellbeing but one of the
central driving forces. Industries that are on
the cusp of explosive development – such as
biorenewables – as well as those already well
established – such as agriculture – will fuel
the nation’s economy. Through a growing
bioeconomy, burgeoning industries will create
sustainable jobs; international competitiveness
will underpin economic growth; and policy advice
and support for lifelong health will
boost wellbeing.
The promise of the bioeconomy is already being
delivered by scientists like those featured in
this booklet – they are the foundation on which
the bioeconomy rests. Through their ambition,
insights and determination they are taking
knowledge from our world-class bioscience
research base and are taking the steps needed to
generate social and economic impacts.
We should thank each one of the finalists for
their efforts and praise them for their
achievements – I do not envy the judges in
having to pick winners.
Professor Douglas Kell
BBSRC Chief Executive
Welcome
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Meet:
Professor
Russell Foster
University of Oxford
Russell’s work has revolutionised
our understanding of the eye and
how it controls our sleep pattern.
Newly identified photosensitive
retinal ganglion cells (pRGCs)
regulate sleep, circadian rhythms,
and other physiological responses
to light.
4
Meet Professor Russell Foster
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Sleep abnormalities are prevalent in several common eye diseases.
New understanding of how the eye works will allow affected individuals
to receive treatment designed to help regulate sleep.
Russell and his team wanted to know how the eye regulates
the 24 hour body clock. Their research identified the existence
of another class of photoreceptor based upon a small number
of pRGCs.
These neurons detect the brightness of environmental
light and use this to regulate the body clock but also other
physiological and behavioural responses including sleep,
alertness, mood, and pupil size.
Contrary to long-held beliefs about the working of the eye
Russell’s research showed that profoundly blind subjects
possessing eyes, but not functioning rods and cones, can also
regulate hormone release, circadian rhythms, alertness, and
pupil size.
The findings are having a major impact across society from
clinical ophthalmology to the design of new lighting systems
and the use of natural light in buildings.
Russell and his team have redefined the meaning of blindness
and are now training a new generation of ophthalmologists
who are incorporating an understanding of pRGC biology to
deliver improved health.
Who’s benefited: Susan Downes – Oxford Eye Hospital
Collaborating with Russell has enabled Susan to investigate the impact
of eye diseases on sleep.
Susan is a consultant ophthalmic surgeon at the Oxford Eye Hospital and treats patients with
inherited retinal degeneration, age related macular degeneration and macular disease. She
believes that Russell’s research has fundamentally changed our understanding of the eye and
has important implications for clinical practice.
Meet Professor Russell Foster
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Meet:
Professor
Mark Hanson
University of Southampton
Co-applicants
Professor Keith Godfrey – University Hospital Southampton
Dr Kathryn Woods-Townsend – University of Southampton
Within a theme of “Me, My
Health and My Children’s Health”
LifeLab Southampton gives
students an authentic research
setting in which to learn science
principles and health messages.
6
Meet Professor Mark Hanson
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LifeLab has positively motivated students to consider how their lifestyle
impacts on their health and that of future generations.
Mark and his team investigated how environment before birth,
in childhood and adolescence affects fundamental biological
processes that control metabolism, fat deposition, and
cardiovascular function. They found that a mother’s diet, body
composition, and lifestyle influenced her child’s later risk of
obesity heart disease and other non-communicable diseases.
Their research led to the development of LifeLab – a
programme aimed at empowering adolescents to make
healthier lifestyle choices and engage with scientific issues in
ways not otherwise possible.
The team identified that education was important to enable
understanding of the science behind how lifestyle choices at an
early age can drastically affect a person’s health and that of
their future children.
LifeLab challenges convention by taking children from the
school setting into an authentic scientific environment.
Activities emphasise the excitement of scientific discovery and
include experiments and discussions with researchers.
Who’s benefited: Sharon Nineham and students – Bitterne Park School
LifeLab helped pupils at Bitterne Park School understand how science
really works.
Being involved with LifeLab brought learning to life. Pupils were able to meet and talk to
scientists as well as participate in investigations and gather their own data. They took away
some powerful messages about healthy lifestyles and the consequences, for their health and
their future children’s health, of habits formed when they are young.
Meet Professor Mark Hanson
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Meet:
Professor
Richard Mithen
Institute of Food Research
Beneforté broccoli is the first
fresh vegetable with elevated
nutritional components to reach
the market from UK research. It
delivers three times the level of
the phytonutrient glucoraphanin
than any other broccoli.
8
Meet Professor Richard Mithen
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Lots of evidence suggests that increasing the amount of glucoraphanin
in our diet may improve our health.
Beneforté delivers three times the level of glucoraphanin
than other types of broccoli. In our bodies, glucoraphanin
is converted into sulforaphane, which has been shown to
have many potential health benefits. Richard’s research
created Beneforté and is now directed to understanding how
sulforphane works, and how eating broccoli may reduce risk of
cardiovascular disease and prostate cancer.
In the early 1990s biomedical publications suggested a link
between glucoraphanin, sulforaphane and a range of health
benefits. This led Richard to use the wild brassica species to
develop new broccoli cultivars that would deliver enhanced
levels of sulforaphane, and to use the new cultivars in human
intervention studies. The new broccoli, known as Beneforté, is
now in supermarkets across the UK and USA.
The Beneforté story started in the 80s when Richard found
wild brassica species. He later discovered some of them had
high levels of compounds that were related to glucoraphanin.
Who’s benefited: Robert Mills – Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital
Robert and Richard work together to investigate how diets rich in broccoli
and Beneforté may reduce the risk of prostate cancer.
There is an urgent global need to find ways to reduce the incidence and progression of
prostate cancer in men. Sulforaphane, the bioactive compound that Beneforté delivers, has
become of worldwide interest in its potential to reduce prostate cancer.
As a surgeon, Robert treats those with prostate cancer and hopes that Richard’s research will
make a difference to the lives of the patients he treats.
Meet Professor Richard Mithen
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Meet:
Professor
Duncan Graham
University of Strathclyde
Co-applicants
Professor William Smith – University of Strathclyde
Dr Karen Faulds – University of Strathclyde
New and improved methods of disease
diagnosis are urgently needed to help
provide better healthcare. Duncan and
his team have developed a way to
identify up to 16 specific infections,
in one set of experiments, from the
same limited sample.
10
Meet Professor Duncan Graham
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This innovation allows detection of single molecules of DNA and
the ability to detect multiple DNA sequences at the same time
without separation.
Duncan and his team have identified a new way to understand
and control the chemistry involved in the detection of specific
DNA sequences. They have used an approach that allows
detection by using enhanced vibrational spectroscopy. The
benefit is that up to 16 specific infections can be identified
from one sample in one test.
The technique used, Surface Enhanced Raman Scattering
(SERS), provides a “fingerprint” of a molecule. This makes it
possible to identify many components, without separation
steps and relate these signals back to a specific disease.
The key breakthrough in using SERS for molecular diagnostics
was to invent surface chemistry for the silver nanoparticles.
This led to a series of patents, publications and, in 2007, a
spin-out company Renishaw Diagnostics was formed.
This innovative discovery has a significant advantage over
existing diagnostic methods and will provide notable social
and economic impact for the UK.
Who’s benefited: Dr Alastair Ricketts – Renishaw Diagnostics Ltd
After helping to develop this new technology, Alastair is now the Principal
Scientist at Renishaw Diagnostics Ltd.
Alastair has translated the vision for this research into a range of products that will benefit
patients who will be able to obtain faster, more precise diagnosis and hence have a better
chance of recovery from some very serious life threatening conditions.
Meet Professor Duncan Graham
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Meet:
Professor
Jim Murray
Cardiff University
Co-applicants
Dr Laurence Tisi – Lumora Ltd
This test system is now on the market in
products that dramatically improve food
safety. Even more exciting is its enormous
potential to improve healthcare for
patients in both the developing and
developed worlds.
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Meet Professor Jim Murray
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This innovative technology, called BART (Bioluminescent Assay in
Real-Time), enables cheap and highly sensitive testing for infectious
organisms almost anywhere.
Jim has worked on detection systems based on firefly
luciferase since 1993, which eventually led him and his team
to the invention of BART.
BART detects specific DNA sequences by producing a light
signal. If DNA from the test organism is present, light is
emitted and detected by solid-sate electronics. This invention
allows the power of molecular detection to be applied
for the first time, cheaply and simply, in a wide variety
of non-laboratory settings using easy-to-operate,
robust instruments.
This is a major break-through as until now molecular
diagnostics required complex and expensive hardware. It is the
simplest, most robust solution for real-time diagnostics ever
developed, with the potential to transform health diagnosis,
food safety and environmental monitoring.
This innovative technology is equally suited to sophisticated
laboratories or low resource settings anywhere.
Who’s benefited: Michael Wigglesworth – Lumora
Jim and Michael worked together to study the challenges facing food
producers and testing laboratories.
Lumora has been specifically set-up to exploit the BART technology. They use BART to
develop tests for food manufacturers, benefiting consumers through reduced food poisoning.
BART is poised for a new generation of medical products aimed to benefit HIV-AIDS patients
throughout the world.
Meet Professor Jim Murray
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Meet:
Professor
Chris Schofield
University of Oxford
Co-applicants
Professor Peter Ratcliffe – University of Oxford
The discovery of a role for
protein-hydroxylation in human
hypoxia sensing has opened up
a new field in cellular signalling.
This has attracted substantial
interest from both academic and
pharmaceutical sectors.
14
Meet Professor Chris Schofield
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This innovative research has enabled functional assignments of multiple
human oxygenases. The work has defined new links between important
diseases, such as obesity and cancer, with oxygenase catalysis.
Understanding the mechanisms by which humans sense
changes in oxygen availability, such as when travelling to
altitude, has been a long standing problem. The identification
of the points at which oxygen is sensed is of medicinal
importance because their manipulation might lead to new
treatments for diseases, including anemia, ischemia related
diseases and cancer. The work of Chris, Peter and their team
has led to the discovery of ‘oxygen sensing’ enzymes that are
now being widely pursued as therapeutic targets.
Overall, the Oxford team has identified the hypoxia inducible
factor (HIF) hydroxylases as viable therapeutic targets, but
has provided a framework of medicinal chemistry, in vitro and
in vivo assays, and structural studies that are enabling the
development of selective inhibitors for a range of
human oxygenases.
Who’s benefited: Dr Robin Carr – GlaxoSmithKline
Robin’s team at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) focuses on how cells regulate
their internal environment when faced with an external environmental
challenge.
The work of Chris, Peter and their team has had a major commercial impact by opening up an
entirely new set of targets for the pharmaceutical industry, including GSK. The work enabled
the GSK discovery program that led to the identification of GSK1278873, as selective PHD
inhibitor. This is now in clinical development for the treatment of anemia associated with
chronic liver disease.
Meet Professor Chris Schofield
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Meet:
Professor
Anthony Hollander
University of Bristol
After successfully using stem
cells to engineer a 6cm segment
of cartilaginous airway for a
patient in Spain, Anthony and his
team turned their attention to
developing a treatment for torn
knee cartilage.
16
Meet Professor Anthony Hollander
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The newly developed “Cell Bandage” treatment makes use of a patient’s
own stem cells and will be marketed as the first line treatment for torn
knee cartilage.
Anthony and his team have demonstrated the power of stem
cell therapies to transform lives. They focussed on studying the
stem cells found in bone marrow and working out how to use
them to repair different types of cartilage.
They realised that the most commercial potential of their
technology was in the treatment of damage to a specific type
of knee cartilage, the menisci. These are commonly torn as
a result of sporting injuries. Treatment had previously been
to remove the damaged cartilage which carried a high risk of
secondary osteoarthritis developing in the operated knee.
The team developed a “cell bandage” that combines
the patient’s own bone marrow stem cells with a special
membrane that delivers cells into the tear, healing the
meniscus. This treatment avoids surgical removal of the
damaged cartilage thus preventing secondary osteoarthritis.
Using a patient’s own stem cells ensures that the implant is
not rejected.
Who’s benefited: Hugh Osmond – Sun Cap
The outcome of Anthony’s research allows Hugh to combine his
entrepreneurial instincts with personal interest.
Anthony’s research appeals not only to Hugh’s business instincts as an outstandingly
innovative product, but also as a potential treatment for those who share his passion for
sport. He describes Anthony’s work as holding the potential for a significantly better future
for those who suffer knee injuries, especially those gained through descending mountains
at high speed!
Meet Professor Anthony Hollander
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Meet:
Professor George
Lomonossoff
John Innes Centre
Co-applicants
Dr Frank Sainsbury – Laval University, Canada
The fastest growing sector in the
pharmaceutical industry is the
development of protein based drugs.
George and his team have developed a
practical system for safe, efficient, and
high-yielding protein expression in plants
which can be used in drug development.
18
Meet Professor George Lomonossoff
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The CPMV-HT system represents a step change in protein production
capacity for pharmaceutical and other uses. This will help to make
plant-produced proteins a commercial reality.
Early plant based protein production systems had various
disadvantages including the use of infectious viral agents,
contamination issues, and insufficient protein yields. In
comparison, the major benefits of CPMV-HT technology are
its proven efficiency, safety, ease of use, and speed to product.
It has also proven to be robust and adaptable and has been
successfully used to produce a wide range of proteins.
The features of CPMV-HT make it suited to rapid response
situations including emergency vaccination programmes in
response to pandemics.
Using CPMV-HT in vaccine development means that vaccine
production can start within two weeks of identification of a
pathogen. This compares to the six months it can take when
using traditional systems.
Possible future developments include exploiting the system’s
ability to express multiple proteins simultaneously which will
allow the construction of entire biochemical pathways within
plants leading to the creation and production of hard to
synthesise, or even new, bioactives.
Who’s benefited: Dr Martin Stocks – Plant Biosciences Ltd
Plant Bioscience Ltd (PBL) is the John Innes Centre’s technology
transfer company.
PBL has licensed CPMV-HT to a number of potential partners in the commercial sector,
including Medicago Inc, in Canada. Medicago uses CPMV-HT as the principal protein
production platform for a number of vaccines and therapeutic protein products that are
in development.
Meet Professor George Lomonossoff
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Meet:
Professor
Polly Roy
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Since 1998 multiple strains of
Bluetongue Virus (BTV) have been
active on the continent every year.
This has caused high mortality
and morbidity in animals with
associated significant economic
losses to the agricultural economies
of Europe.
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Meet Professor Polly Roy
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Polly has developed a valuable tool which would allow the design of
safer and more effective vaccines against a range of viral diseases
including BTV.
Polly has contributed to the first complete molecular
understanding of BTV achieved through a combination of
multi-disciplinary techniques. This understanding has been
instrumental in paving the way to improved diagnostics
and vaccines.
The aim of Polly’s research is to understand the infection
course of BTV – an important livestock infection but also a
model to study virus structure and assembly.
For this innovation Polly is building a viable BTV particle in a
test tube. This will provide a useful tool which will enable the
design of safer and more effective vaccines.
Polly’s lab was the first to demonstrate that simultaneous
expression of several recombinant BTV proteins leads to the
assembly of VLPs without viral genes. This discovery has since
been applied to other viruses including papillomavirus and
influenza vaccine development.
Who’s benefited: Dr Konrad Stadler – Boehringer Ingelheim
Konrad has an ongoing collaboration with Polly on the development of
first generation virus-like particle vaccines for BTV.
Polly’s research attracted the interest of Boehringer Ingelheim for its potential to provide a
more rapid and cost effective vaccine product for BTV without the need to grow the
live virus.
Konrad believes that the approach taken to the research will allow a differentiation between
BTV infected and vaccinated animals. He believes that this will have a positive economic
impact on agriculture.
Meet Professor Polly Roy
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Floorplan
Key
Professor Russell Foster
Professor Mark Hanson
Professor Richard Mithen
Professor Duncan Graham Professor Jim Murray
Professor Chris Schofield
Professor Anthony Hollander
Professor George Lomonossoff
Professor Polly Roy
Main Entrance
Contact:
BBSRC, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon, SN2 1UH
t: 01793 413200 w: www.bbsrc.ac.uk
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