Relay Technology Management Blog

Interview with RelayTM CEO David Greenwald at BioPharmAmerica 2011

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Video is courtesy of SNN Wire and was shot at the BioPharmAmerica Conference in Boston, Massachusetts. 

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For all other inquiries please contact RelayTM EVP, Erik Poje at epoje@RelayTm.com. 

3 Reasons Why Basic Science Research is Vital to Scientific Discovery and Clinical innovation

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Basic science research is conducted to understand complex biological processes that occur in nature without having a specific goal towards a commercial product.  Scientists study biological processes including cell-signaling pathways, cell growth, proliferation and the dysfunction of these pathways that lead to a disease state.  Basic science research is done in the laboratory using beakers, test tubes, immortalized cells, and model organisms such as mice.  While the implications for discoveries in basic science research are sometimes not immediately clear, discoveries by basic science researchers become the foundation for important breakthroughs in medical treatments and diagnostic technologies.  Lately, funding sources are pushing for a more translational or concerted effort on the part of the researchers to go ‘from the bench to bedside’.  Does this mean that funding for translational research should be prioritized and that funding for basic science research be sacrificed?  From my perspective as a geneticist, I firmly believe that only by continuing basic science research will we develop the cures for disease.

Three innovations in basic science that have lead to important clinical applications

1. Genomic Sequencing

The sequencing of the human genome has generated an astronomical amount of information pertinent to combating disease.  Only by employing constant basic research along side translational research can we hope to obtain a clear understanding of basic biological and aberrant processes of disease.  Sequencing of the human genome fostered a staggering number of private companies working to optimize DNA sequencing.  This prompted basic science researchers to use newer sequencing technology such as whole genome sequencing to examine individual genomes of organisms with a smaller genome than humans in order to examine genetic variation between individuals.  This idea is taking off and will eventually manifest itself in a clinical setting as personalized medicine.  So despite the fact that researchers initially used this technology on laboratory strains of bacteria and yeast, we now see the potential for use in a clinical setting. 

2. Microarrays

Basic science research aimed at examining the regulation of genes has fostered the development of new technologies such as microarrays.  Microarrays were initially developed and used in basic science laboratories but are now commonly utilized in the clinic for diagnostics in diseases such as cancer.  As microarray technology matures, its acceptance as a clinical diagnostic will grow due to the continual development of the platform in basic science fields. 

3. Mechanisms of Action

Another area of clinical science that relies heavily on basic research is a drug’s mechanism of action (MoA).  Large-scale drug screens have been an important method of discovering drugs that might one day treat disease.  One of the earliest drug screens uncovered monastral, a compound that inhibits cell division by acting upon motor protein in human cell lines.  One of the hallmarks of cancer is the cells ability to continually divide, and the discovery of this inhibitor has lead to other institutions and companies to pursuit of drugs that might act as therapies for cancer.  Basic science research laboratories that study the disease affected by the drug are ideally situated to uncover the drugs mechanism of action. 

The above are clear examples of how a question initially asked in basic science can revolutionize the way scientists conduct experiments and translate bench research into vital clinical tools.  Funding of basic science research has been a vehicle of clinical innovation in a way that supports continuous funding even while we make strides to do research that can directly translate to the clinic.

Business Plan Competition Overview for Entrepreneurs

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