Posted by John McCulloch @ MaRS, February 12th, 2010
Human embryo photo: Dr David Becker, Wellcome Images
Fate Therapeutics Inc. – a start-up biotech that develops pharmaceuticals to stimulate stem cells – has staged a major coup for iPS cells, the adult-derived stem cells that have the all characteristics of embryonic stem cells without the controversy (see “Major breakthrough in stem cell science”).
Fate Therapeutics holds an exclusive license from Rudi Jaenisch’s group at the Whitehead Institute to their patent application governing iPS cell technology (“Methods for Reprogramming Somatic Cells“) which has a priority date of November 26, 2003. According to a February 4 press release from Fate Therapeutics, the US Patent and Trademark Office has now allowed the claims.
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Posted by John McCulloch @ MaRS, December 4th, 2009
Minato Mirai, Yokohama, BIO Japan 2009
In October I was in Yokohama to attend BIO Japan 2009 – a major Japanese life sciences partnering event. This was my second visit to BIO Japan.
The event attracted 15,000 visitors over three days, drawn mostly from major Japanese pharma companies and biotechs and also a sizeable contingent from Western and Asian small-to-medium sized companies and institutions.
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Posted by Geraldine @ MaRS, October 20th, 2009
Social entrepreneurs: Not doing enough?
It takes some guts to stand up in front of 500+ social entrepreneurs and enablers and tell them that they aren’t doing enough to help the world’s poor. Especially if you’re an invited speaker at the Social Enterprise World Forum, which just wrapped up last Thursday, October 8 in Melbourne, Australia. However, it could well prove the most constructive advice as people head back to their enterprises and continue on their good work.
At his annual event, the Clinton Global Initiative this September, former U.S. President Bill Clinton announced Andy Kuper to the audience as the next Muhammad Yunus. Yunus was the founder of the Grameen Bank and winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize for his micro-credit system, helping break the cycle of poverty. That’s some big shoes to fill and Kuper knows it. At the Social Enterprise World Forum, Kuper spoke to the delegates about his new initiative, Leapfrog – a micro-insurance company similar in spirit to micro-credit, offering coverage to low-income people in developing nations. He aims to reach 25 million people in Leapfrog’s first phase of development. This guy thinks big.
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