CDC ready to partner at BioPharm America™
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are sending out a team of four scientists and licensing officers to BioPharm America which takes place on its home turf here in Atlanta September 9 and 10, 2008.
A panelist on the Tuesday morning discussion of “Rediscovering Anti-Infectives” will be Dr. Ed Ades Associate Director for Laboratory Science; Division of Bacterial Diseases, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases.
“Ed Ades is one of our more prolific inventors,” said Thomas O’Toole, Chief Licensing Officer, who is leading a delegation of four scientists seeking partnering opportunities at BioPharm America.
O’Toole said Dr. Ades is on the front edge of a force of 1,000 scientists on CDC’s staff conducting close to USD 2 billion in research “that results in hundreds of new technologies being cranked out each year.”
“I have heard it said that CDC’s research output in one year is greater than the entire university system of the state of California,” said O’Toole.
The CDC’s strengths are in vaccines and diagnostic technology, “plus a very large third category called ‘miscellaneous’ that is a result of the robust and diverse research work,” he added.
“There are so many opportunities for partnering with CDC I would hate to single out one category,” said the head of CDC licensing.
“What usually happens in our partnering process is that someone brings a proposal forward and we see where we can help,” he said.
As an example he cited the licensing of a Streptococcus pneumonia to the Austrian company Intercell (Vienna) which is developing a protein based sub-unit vaccine comprising recombinant pneumococcal proteins that are highly conserved among all the different serotypes, and that protect infants and elderly from infection.
S. pneumonia is the leading bacterial cause of infection worldwide, ranging from common infections such as otitis media to life threatening invasive diseases including sepsis, meningitis and pneumonia.
“The story here,” he said, “is that the Gates Foundation came forward with money to accelerate this vaccine into clinical development stages. It is a very good example of the advantages of partnering with CDC.”
The CDC has a dedicated Technology Transfer Office (TTO). TTO focuses on translating CDC’s research findings into practical applications that benefit the health and safety of the American public and people around the world.
TTO evaluates, protects, monitors, and manages the wide range of CDC’s intellectual property and provides leadership and expertise to promote the transfer of knowledge and technology for development of products and services that improve public health.
For more about TTO and the CDC please visit Technology Transfer Office Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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