November 2013
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A Note from Jennifer
Dear WIPO Re:Search Members and Friends, 

  

This past month, all of us at BVGH have been busy preparing for the 2nd Annual WIPO Re:Search Workshop, which will be held immediately prior to this year's ASTMH Annual Meeting. We are delighted that a number of individuals from Member and perspective Member institutions will be attending. For any of you attending the ASTMH Annual Meeting but unable to attend our Workshop, be sure to stop by our poster to meet Roopa and Katy.

 

I'm pleased to share with you that we now have 44 agreements in place between Members. Our three newest agreements are highlighted in this issue of the Snapshot.

 

Last week I had the opportunity to present at the 2013 Milken Institute Partnering for Cures conference in New York. It was a great opportunity to publicize WIPO Re:Search, as well as meet with Members and other global health innovators.

 

I am extremely pleased to welcome our two newest Members, the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research and the University of British Columbia to WIPO Re:Search.

As always, please forward this Snapshot to your colleagues and reach out to us with any partnering requests or ideas.
 


Sincerely,

 Jennifer Dent

President, BVGH 

 

workshopSpecial Reminder - 2013 WIPO Re:Search Member Workshop 

This Wednesday, November 13th, BVGH will be hosting the 2nd Annual WIPO Re:Search Member Workshop in Washington, DC. This event, which will be held immediately prior to the beginning of the 2013 ASTMH Annual Meeting, will feature a roundtable discussion about WIPO Re:Search "Best Practices" and two parallel breakout sessions to discuss and share experiences of Animal Models for NTDs and Obtaining Funding. Please email Katy for more information.

If you happen to be in Washington DC on November 13th, please feel free to join!
 
What: 2nd Annual WIPO Re:Search Member Workshop 
When: Wednesday, November 13, 2013, 11am - 4pm 
Where: Palomar Hotel, 2121 P Street, NW, Phillips Room 
Transportation: Hotel Palomar is located less than 2 miles from the location of the ASTMH meeting (Marriott Wardman Park Hotel). Both hotels are located within walking distance of the Washington DC Metro subway Red Line.
 
If you are unable to attend the Workshop, but will be at the ASTMH meeting, Katy Graef and Roopa Ramamoorthi will be presenting a poster entitled, "Advancing Neglected Tropical Disease Research Through Global Industry/Nonprofit Collaborations" during Poster Session A. Please stop by! 
 
What: WIPO Re:Search poster (Poster #: LB-2019) 
When: Poster Session A, Thursday, November 14, 2013, 12pm - 1:45pm
Where: ASTMH Annual Meeting, Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, 2660 Woodley Road, NW, Exhibit Hall B/C 
 
eprintaSpecial Announcement

WIPO purchased ePrint publications of the recent WIPO Re:Search article published in the Pharmaceutical Patent Analyst journal, entitled, "WIPO Re:Search: a consortium catalyzing research and product development for neglected tropical diseases". Click here to download a copy of the ePrint.
  
Three new collaborations were finalized last month. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) agreed to provide Vinay Nandicoori, Scientist, National Institute of Immunology in New Delhi, India, with a set of kinase inhibitors. Vinay will use these inhibitors to study tuberculosis metabolic pathways. 

 

  

 

GSK also signed two agreements to provide Conor Caffrey, Schistosomiasis and Hookworm Core Director, Center for Discovery and Innovation in Parasitic Diseases, at the University of California, San Francisco, with kinase inhibitor sets to screen against schistosomes.  

  

 

ManPrakash, Assistant Professor of Bioengineering, Stanford University, visited Wellington Oyibo, Associate Professor, College of Medicine, at the University of Lagos in Nigeria to field test his paper microscope. While at the University of Lagos, Manu and his graduate student attended a one-day microscopy training course in order to learn about the challenges and needs of performing field diagnoses.

  

 
This month we are pleased to announce that the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) and the University of British Columbia (UBC) have joined WIPO Re:Search.
 
NIMR, located in Yaba, Nigeria, is the oldest organization for health research in Nigeria. Established in 1977 by the Nigerian Federal Government to conduct public health research, NIMR has five research divisions that focus on malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, NTDs, vaccinology, and immunology, among others. 
 
"Many times the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) does not have enough funds to invest in cutting-edge research due to high cost and/or lack of knowledge resources. Therefore, becoming a member of the WIPO Re:Search consortium will enable NIMR to network with advanced member organizations around the world and actively participate in state-of-the-art research to bring solutions to some of the most crucial public health challenges facing Nigeria," - Olaoluwa Pheabian Akinwale, Director of Research, Neglected Tropical Diseases, NIMR 
              
       
Established in 1908, the University of British Columbia is one of Canada's leading research universities. Research groups in its Faculties of Science and Medicine focus on various infectious diseases, including HIV/AIDS, M. tuberculosis, and Leishmania, as well as the development of antimicrobials.
PHCPartnership Hub Central

  

Last week, Jennifer Dent gave a presentation describing WIPO Re:Search at the 2013 Partnering for Cures conference, hosted by the Faster Cures Center of the Milken Institute. During the meeting, Jennifer met with BVGH board member, Jim Greenwood, CEO and President of the Biotechnology Industry Organization, as well as Members, Sharon Reiche, Corporate Counsel, Pfizer, and Mike Strange, Head of Operations, Tres Cantos Medicines Development Campus, GSK. 
Sharon Reiche, Pfizer, and Jennifer at the 2013 Partnering for Cures meeting
 
 
Tom Bombelles, Head, Global Health, WIPO, participated in the EDCTP High-level meeting in Dakar on October 21st, during which he shared WIPO Re:Search accomplishments with key stakeholders, including the EU Director General for Research and Innovation. Tom recruited potential new Members from among the many developing country scientists in attendance, such as the Medical School, University of Health Sciences, Gabon, and the Institut Pasteur de Dakar. Both institutions are deeply engaged in NTD, malaria, and tuberculosis research, and expressed strong interest in WIPO Re:Search.
 
Tom also took the opportunity of being in Senegal to meet with 14 different media organizations representing, TV, radio, and print to raise general awareness of WIPO Re:Search, among specialized audiences and the general public. One of the interviews, with SudFM, which has a national audience, was captured during its prime time public affairs program.  
 
 
HCHighlighted Contributions 

  

Featured this month are two contributions submitted by Aberystwyth University to the WIPO Re:Search Database. 
 
 
Professor Karl Hoffmann's laboratory has the infrastructure to perform high-throughput, high content, whole organism screening assays for schistosomes and liver flukes, as well as to perform vaccine/drug experiments in murine models of schistosomiasis. 
 
Professor Karl Hoffmann's laboratory has a well-supported infrastructure in next generation sequencing, high performance computing, phenomics, biosafety level 2 laboratories for parasitological work (helminths), and small animal husbandry. 

 

  

For more information or to discuss potential collaborations regarding this technology, please contact Roopa Ramamoorthi.  

EventsTableUpcoming Global Health Events

Dates
Event Title
Location
Web Link
Nov. 13-17
62nd ASTMH Annual Meeting
Washington, DC
Dec. 8-11
5th Annual mHealth Summit
Washington, DC

Are you attending a global health event?
Do you have a Research Request to highlight in the Snapshot?

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WIPO Re:Search Founding Supporters
 
 
 *known as Merck in the US and Canada

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