

		Issue 4 Volume 2 \| Send to a Friend

Upcoming Events

January 20, 2011
Event at HCAR On-Camera, On-Message: A Media Training & Marketing Workshop RSVP

“Congrats to HCAR tenant @BetterBowls for launching its Sugar-Free, Heart Healthy Instant Pudding & Gelatin Mix Pouches”

@hcar_pa

1214 Research Blvd., Ste. 1000
Hummelstown, PA 17036
(717) 566-8900

From the Desk of Laura J. Butcher, Executive Director

2010 Year in Review: Adding Value While Reducing Cost = Success

It’s that time of year when we pause to reflect on the past and set new goals for the next 12 months. The Hershey Center for Applied Research is proud of all that we accomplished in 2010, and there is plenty to be optimistic about as we enter the new year.

The lynchpin of our success this year was that we were able to adapt to the changing environment by ramping up our value-added services while reducing costs. Our combined strategy of making our strategic business service offerings more robust while attracting public investment dollars to reduce costs made this a winning year for HCAR.

In 2010 we welcomed several new tenants into the HCAR fold, including ide+, Keystone Nano and ClawNor. In this issue, we talk to George Sidis, Director for the Aussie design and engineering company. We are excited to be selected as the firm’s U.S. soft landing location.

We would like to again thank our many supporters who helped us secure $4 million in non-dilutive capital for new tenant companies, a $1 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration Public Works program for our Technology Suites II project and a $2 million grant from State Senator Jeffrey Piccola to support the construction of new, customized facilities at HCAR.

We wrapped up a successful inaugural season for the Farmers Market in Hershey (FMIH). Located on the HCAR campus, FMIH was a collaborative endeavor of Penn State Hershey Medical Center and College of Medicine, Hershey Entertainment & Resorts and the Hershey Trust Company. Some stats from co-founder Dr. Danny George as we look forward to the 2011 season:

7,332 customers served
1,200+ visitors on the highest attendance day, during the Grand Opening in July
15 market volunteers contributed 458 hours of service

In addition to the FMIH, our events have been well-attended and purposeful, as I hope you have experienced first-hand. In this issue, we report on the latest event hosted by HCAR, a fascinating Lunch for Hungry Minds seminar on emerging trends in biopharmaceutical research. Dr. Albert Giovenella used 14 years of data to predict the future of drug discovery and development.

Another important session held recently at HCAR was a public hearing of the PA House Republican Policy Committee calling for State funding to close the gap many bioscience companies face prior to the venture-backed commercialization phase. We heard testimony from Dr. Lynn Maines of Apogee Biotechnology Corp. and Dr. Gregory Jackson of Apeliotus Vision Science, both tenants at HCAR who face funding challenges to sustain advancement of exciting innovations in development.

I hope you will keep an eye out for future events, including a media training seminar in January. If you have ideas for future event topics, I encourage you to share those with the HCAR team.

As you read through the newsletter, I think you will agree that these highlights and investments portend exciting growth both at HCAR and for the region we serve.

Happy holidays and best wishes for a spectacular 2011!

Laura J. Butcher

Executive Director
Hershey Center for Applied Research

HCAR Serves Up Lunch for Hungry Minds

A Special Seminar on Emerging Trends in Biopharmaceutical Research

Hershey Center for Applied Research welcomed notable scientists, stakeholders and business leaders for a special Lunch for Hungry Minds seminar on current and future trends in the biopharmaceutical industry. Leading the scientific discussion was Dr. Albert Giovenella, Ph.D., Adjunct Assistant Professor of Medicine and Drug Discovery Analyst at the University of Pennsylvania Department of Medicine, Division of Geriatric Medicine.

Using his mechanism of action studies, Dr. Giovenella is developing a risk model for drug development based on his own comprehensive database that tracks more than 2,300 potential drugs in the pipelines of more than 1,220 companies worldwide. The database organizes up-to-the-minute published facts into usable data that serves as inspiration for Dr. Giovenella’s lectures at the University of Pennsylvania.

“The database is a teaching tool for engaging students in real world drug development scenarios,” Dr. Giovenella said. “It tells a compelling story of the past 14 years of research and development and depicts the historical shifts in biopharmaceutical trends like geography, company sizes, molecule types and drug success factors.”

The database is also a powerful tool for identifying current trends and forecasting the future. According to Dr. Giovenella, pharmaceutical companies are moving toward new types of individualized medicine that will reach smaller target populations. Rather than rely on blockbuster drugs with large target populations, the ecosystem will evolve into clusters of very specialized, niche markets. Careers in drug discoveries in the second decade of the century will follow this trend — with more opportunities in smaller biopharmaceutical companies and universities than with large conglomerates.

During the seminar, Dr. Giovenella discussed the evolution of the industries in terms of drug trials, approval times, R&D costs and the types of approved drugs since 2007. Citing his database, Dr. Giovenella presented a scientific analysis of worldwide drug discovery and development activities involving Pennsylvania companies.

“Dr. Giovenella’s analysis of biopharmaceutical business plans and partnering ideas provided great insights for our attendees,” HCAR Executive Director Laura Butcher said. “His research is extremely relevant to our work at HCAR as we can utilize his data to anticipate trends in industry and adapt accordingly.”

Lunch for Hungry Minds is a series of scientific discussions hosted by HCAR. The third event this year, the presentation followed successful discussions on federal research funding and best practices in SBIR and STTR grant writing.

ide+ Establishes its North American Base at HCAR

A Spotlight on the International Product Development Company and its First Year at HCAR

HCAR prides itself on fostering innovation that directly impacts the lives of those in the local, regional and global community. HCAR tenant ide+ shares the very same ideal and plays a major role in helping its customers bring new products to market.

ide+ provides design and engineering services to companies wishing to develop new products for mass production. Their customers are deeply rooted in a number of industries, including medical devices and industrial product development. ide+ believes that successful products and project outcomes are created by following an idea through the initial stages of concept planning, technical design and engineering to marketing and manufacturing.

ide+ established its North American base in Hershey nearly one year ago, becoming the first international company to open an office at HCAR. Richard Sokolov, one of the founders, learned about HCAR when Jack Atchason, Director of Business Development, attended a conference in Australia. The Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development supported the international outreach trip through the Regional Investment Marketing grant program.

“Adding a tenant like ide+ demonstrates HCAR’s commitment to helping foreign companies break into the U.S. market,” said Atchason. “Proximity to major clients was a huge advantage that HCAR had to offer, and that’s a real credit to the growth of the region.”

ide+ chose Central Pennsylvania as its North American base thanks in part to its close proximity to both existing ide+ clients and to a thriving local industry, particularly in the key areas of life sciences and advanced manufacturing. ide+ has worked closely with Angela Foley, the international investment representative in Australia for the PA Department of Community and Economic Development Office of International Business Development, to establish the office and reach out to the growing biomedical sector in the region.

The company plans to use its office at HCAR as a basis for growing business in the U.S. They are a relatively small organization now, with a staff of 15 people. The directors are still hands-on, but they have begun the recruitment process to find a full-time operations manager for their new outpost in Hershey.

HCAR Tenants Testify for Public Funding

To Help Move Technologies from Lab Bench to Marketplace

Behind the laboratory doors of the Hershey Center for Applied Research (HCAR), start-up companies are creating new, family-sustaining jobs while working to treat and prevent life-changing diseases. From early detection for adult blindness to treatment of advance-stage cancers and therapies for severe joint pain associated with arthritis, researchers have set their sights on finding the next great medical discovery in Pennsylvania.

Without funding to support their endeavors, these developments may never make it to market for public use and benefit.

Bioscience companies at HCAR discussed this funding gap during a special public hearing with honorary members of the House Republican Policy Committee. Chairman Stan Saylor of the 94th Legislative District, York County and Representative John Payne of the 106th Legislative District, Dauphin County were among the legislators in attendance.

Testifying on behalf of their respective organizations were HCAR Executive Director Laura Butcher, Dr. Daniel Notterman of Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and College of Medicine, Dr. Lynn Maines of Apogee Biotechnology Corporation and Dr. Gregory R. Jackson of Apeliotus Vision Science. The common thread throughout each presentation was current funding challenges faced by early-stage bioscience companies in Pennsylvania.

“HCAR has the opportunity to interact with many early-stage bioscience companies from across the United States and around the world,” Butcher said. “It is clear that the most common and significant hurdle that these companies face is the emergence of the funding gap.”

HCAR tenant Apogee Biotechnology Corporation is one early-stage bioscience company undergoing great achievements despite fiscal restraints. The drug discovery company is poised to begin Phase I clinical trials of ABC294640, Apogee’s first-in-class sphingosine kinase inhibitor, following Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of its Investigational New Drug (IND) application. Sphingosine kinase controls the growth of tumors by promoting cancer cell proliferation, inflammation and new blood vessel formation.

“Our preclinical studies with ABC294640 indicate that it may be active in the fight against several types of tumors, including breast, colon, lung, liver, kidney and pancreatic cancers,” Lynn W. Maines, Ph.D., M.B.A., Vice President of Research and Business Affairs for Apogee said. “We have been conducting research on these compounds for more than six years using the traditional research funding avenues, mainly $8 million in Small Business Innovative Research grants from the National Institute of Health. Now that we’ve reached the development phase, we need an additional $2 million to reach our next milestone. We must identify a funding source to close the gap.”

A second bioscience company based at HCAR testified on the challenges of fiscal restraints. Apeliotus Vision Science is a medical device company currently seeking funding to commercialize a diagnostic test to detect age-related macular degeneration (AMD), an eye disease that affects an estimated 30 million people worldwide, including approximately 13 million Americans.

“The key is to diagnose the disease early so that patients with visual symptoms can be directed to an ophthalmologist for immediate treatment,” Dr. Gregory R. Jackson, Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Apeliotus Vision Science. “Too many patients discover they have the disease too late, losing vision in one eye before they know to seek care.”

“We have made substantial progress over the past four years despite one of the worst funding environments in memory for a start-up company,” Jackson said. “To move forward, we need to complete the last stages of product development. Only then can Apeliotus Vision Science attract venture capital for final commercialization.”