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News in Brief
Partnership with nine Leibniz Institutes continued
Following 3 years of collaboration, all the partner institutions of the Leibniz Association decided to continue their cooperation with Ascenion as exclusive marketing partner. Corresponding agreements were renewed end of last year for a further 3 years plus 3 months. Over this period, the institutes’ investments into the identification, patenting and marketing of commercially attractive research results will be co-funded by the BMBF with a total of about EUR 2 million.
New partner from the Leibniz Association: IfN
Ascenion has also closed a partnership contract with the Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology (IfN) in Magdeburg. Under the terms of the agreement, Ascenion will support the IfN in all aspects of IP asset management, from the identification of promising inventions to their legal protection and commercialization. Expenses will also partly be covered by the BMBF. “We are most impressed by the work that is done at the IfN”, Peter Ruile, COO of Ascenion comments. “An improved understanding of the biological mechanisms of memory and learning will significantly impact our day-to-day life. Questions of preserving or restoring mental health provide just one example. We very much look forward to working with the scientists and management at the IfN.”
Alliance with TWINCORE
Ascenion and TWINCORE - Centre for Experimental and Clinical Infection Research, Hanover, have signed an exclusive collaboration agreement for comprehensive IP asset management support. TWINCORE was jointly established by the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) and Hanover Medical School (MHH) as a new approach to foster translational research in the field of infectious diseases. “IP issues are an integral part of successful translation. It is important to have a competent partner in this complex field”, Prof. Ulrich Kalinke, Director of TWINCORE, says. Ralf Cordes, Technology Manager with Ascenion in Hanover, adds: “We are very glad to be involved right from the beginning. It is a unique opportunity to build a solid IP basis from scratch, which will facilitate the translation of the TWINCORE’s work into medical application.”
New assistant for Ascenion’s team
Since January this year, Christiane Schwarz has been assisting Ascenion’s management and co-ordinates travel for all her colleagues. She is a travel agent by training and brings several years of industry experience to the team. She also holds a trainer certificate and has taken over responsibility for the education of Ascenion’s three apprentices.
Rights to new ALL-test licensed to Medac
Ascenion has initiated and negotiated a licence agreement on behalf of Hanover Medical School (MHH) providing Medac with exclusive worldwide rights to a diagnostic test that can help guide the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). ALL is the most common type of cancer in children. “The new MHH method allows a more precise assessment of central nervous system (CNS) involvement in ALL patients,” inventor Martin Stanulla comments. “Based on this, physicians will for the first time be able to adapt the intensity of CNS-targeted therapy to the risk profiles of individual patients.”
Fast diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases: Licence agreement with Roche Diagnostics
Researchers at the MHH Hospital for Cardiology and Angiology around Prof. Dr Kai C. Wollert have identified growth-differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) as a marker in the blood of cardiac patients that indicates whether a catheter examination is required or not. Under the terms of a licence agreement mediated by Ascenion, Roche Diagnostics obtained the exclusive right to use this marker for the diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases. In addition, the company received global marketing rights to a corresponding cardiovascular test enabling the rapid identification of high-risk patients.
Novel antibiotic against tuberculosis licensed to Inverness Medical
Ascenion has negotiated the agreement on behalf of an international consortium of patent owners including a Russian inventor, the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology Hans Knöll Institute (HKI) and the Institut Pasteur. Tuberculosis is a major cause of illness and death, with 9.2 million new cases and 1.7 million deaths in 2006 worldwide. A serious, increasing challenge is posed by bacteria that are resistant to available drugs. “The new compound has strong potential to overcome resistance. This, together with its favourable properties and advanced stage of development, has triggered strong interest from the pharmaceutical industry,” Peter Ruile, COO of Ascenion comments. “In choosing a commercialization partner, it was most important to us and to the inventors that the project would attain top priority within the partner’s development portfolio. Inverness provides an ideal match.”
FZB closes four collaboration contracts
The FZB - Research Center Borstel - Leibniz Center for Medicine and Biosciences has entered into four alliances with industry:
a) Analysing DNA while preserving cell morphology
FZB scientists will apply a proprietary method for the analysis of DNA in human tissue samples in the context of preclinical studies. They will be reimbursed on a fee-for-service basis.
b) Developing LPS-free strains of E. coli
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is usually part of the outer membrane of E. coli. It has strong immunogenicity and can contribute to the development of sepsis in humans. Whenever E. coli is used as production vehicle, it is therefore necessary to apply time- and cost-intensive downstream processes for the removal of LPS. LPS-free strains of E. coli would make this obsolete.
c) Porcine whipworm as model systems for immunological studies
The working hypothesis for the collaboration is that human exposure to parasites such as whipworms can help prevent or treat autoimmune diseases.
d) Validating a novel method for the diagnosis of latent tuberculosis
A third of the world population is thought to be infected with latent tuberculosis, i.e. a form of the disease when the pathogen is present in the body, yet in an inactive state but capable of reactivation. Within the collaboration, the FZB will bring in its specific expertise in the field and deliver corresponding services, while the industry partner will provide equipment and cover partial research costs.
DIfE becomes member of the Life Science Foundation
Ascenion’s parent holding, the Life Science Foundation for the Promotion of Science and Research has a new member: the Institute of Human Nutrition (DIfE). It is the second Leibniz institute to join the four founding institutions of the Helmholtz Association. From now on, the DIfE will be represented by its director in the foundation’s council and can therefore participate in major decisions, e.g. on the use of funds. Moreover, it will receive a certain portion of Ascenion’s payouts to the foundation.
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