At Windhover's Jumpstart to Products Conference, a number of speakers, including Merck's head of basic research, argued--at least by implication--that Big Pharma needs to do more of the kinds of reformulations and re-indications of existing compounds that net them products faster and with less risk--that allow them to "jumpstart" R&D. For biotechs pursuing a similar strategy, getting starter material--in the form of compounds Pharma has abandoned--is crucial, though few Pharmas are willing to out-license. Lilly is the great exception to this rule: the company's Joe Zakrzewski argues why outlicensing is critical to his firm's success.
We just can't afford to be who we were. This was the fundamental subtext behind everything Anthony Ford-Hutchinson, PhD, EVP and head of basic research for Merck & Co. Inc. told the audience at Windhover's Jumpstart to Products Conference in San Francisco, March 3-4.
In slide after slide, Ford-Hutchinson detailed the kinds of reformulations, re-indications and out-partnering that Merck has done little of in...
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In Vivo spoke with Edward Ahn, CEO of Medipost, a Korean company that has developed stem cell therapies from cord blood, on how they are working across regulatory markets to provide a novel treatment for degenerative diseases.
Leading industry experts have spoken to In Vivo about how investment, a change in mindset and a fresh approach to policy may allow Italy to kick-start its biotech ecosystem.
