The commercialisation of research activities, often described as knowledge transfer, is one of the most effective ways we have of ensuring our work goes into the community to improve the lives of people living with, and at risk of, diabetes and heart disease. It is Baker IDI's mission to reduce death and disability from diabetes and heart disease. To do this successfully we are committed to supporting the translation of laboratory findings into good results for patients. Our commercialisation team is driven by a hierarchy of principles that inform the way Baker IDI enters into technology transfer initiatives and these are considered in every commercialisation venture.
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They include:
- The attraction of commercial funding to support basic R&D at Baker IDI
- Seeing the generation of new ideas applied and taken up in the commercial world in a way which ensures these ideas improve health
- The mitigation of risk associated with commercialisation pursuits
- Profit from the commercialisation of technology developed at Baker IDI directly returned to support future research
- The provision of an appropriate level of personal support, reward and incentive for individual researchers involved in the development of new technologies.
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Highlights in our commercialisation department in 2008 included the recruitment of Dr. Guy Krippner as a consultant. Guy has extensive experience in academic and commercial medicinal chemistry, with appointments at ChemGenex Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Starpharma Ltd, Prana Biotechnology Ltd and Biota Holdings Ltd. His role with Baker IDI is to support our efforts in the translation of bench research to patient outcomes - supporting our biologists to identify, source and optimise potential efficacious drugs for further development.
It has been an exciting year for an important Baker IDI spin off company, V-Kardia Pty Ltd, which has been focused on the development of the V-Vascular device. V-Vascular enables treatment of an affected limb in isolation of systemic blood flow. Key application areas for this device are chronic infection in the limb as a result of diabetic complications or trauma, with the aim to minimize the likelihood of limb amputation. Currently V-Kardia is completing all of the regulatory requirements before progressing to a first-in-man study, expected to be scheduled by late 2009. Other 2008 highlights include:
- Baker IDI commercialisation staff has assisted Bayside Health in a successful investment bid to the Medical Research Commercialisation Fund to develop an assay for detecting the specific class of HIV strain that a patient is infected with.
- We have entered into research contracts with a number of private health insurers for provision of member screening programs for cardiovascular disease and diabetes. In addition we have provided cardiovascular and diabetes risk assessment programs into several companies. These activities strengthen our disease prevention programs and support our ongoing commitment to
community health.
- Gross research contract and consultancy value for 2007 was $2,428,393.00.
- Currently we administer 18 patent families that have been filed to protect inventions arising from Baker IDI research.