No. 2, February 2008 

Editorial

Keep an Eye on Indian Biotech

When MVA visited India last week together with the Danish Prime Minister, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, we were able to see clear differences between India and Medicon Valley in terms of the origins and growth of new biotech companies. The Indian biotech sector has many strong competitive advantages, but also offers great business opportunities for Medicon Valley companies and research organisations. If one finds the right partners, there is a huge potential for new collaborations and knowledge creation. Read more

 

 

MVA Project News

Innovative Medicines Initiative:
Update on Information Day and Continuation

A hundred people gathered for the IMI Information Day held by MVA at Ørestad on 25 January. Universities from Copenhagen, Lund, Gothenburg, Stockholm, Uppsala and Umeå were represented. Furthermore, 10 SMEs were present plus the Medicon Valley pharma companies participating in IMI. As a result of the Information Day, MVA is now supporting the formation of several public/SME consortia.

Visit www.mva.org/imi for information on upcoming meetings (areas not covered on 25 January), expected IMI deadlines and lectures on IMI (by AstraZeneca), Education & Training, IPR rules, SME definitions and Danish/Swedish support programmes.

Drug Development Day – a 24 Hour CRO Workshop

On 23-24 January, 15 participants from the CRO industry in Medicon Valley, representing non-clinical, pre-clinical and clinical companies as well as project management consultants, gathered for a 24 hour workshop in Ystad. The objective was to discuss how to attract more business to the region by uniting the competencies of all the smaller and, in some cases, more specialised CROs. The workshop proved a high interest in cooperating. The outcome was a SWOT analysis on a regional CRO collaboration and a list of key issues regarding how to start the project of uniting forces in the CRO industry. Furthermore, a working group was defined.

If MVA members want to join this project, or if you have ideas you want to share, please contact Cathrine Due, Senior Project Manager, at cd@mva.org or on +45 28 75 41 56. Read more

Join Reference Group in Nordic Project on User Driven Innovation

MVA is partner and coordinator of the project User Driven Innovation in the Health Care Sector together with the regions of Skåne, Mid Jutland and Bergen. The objective of the project is to focus on new methods to liberate and explore ideas and innovations based on the needs of personnel and patients. Via a new tool called Crowd Sourcing, ideas will be found, fine-tuned and further developed into new products and services. The tool will be adjusted to regional innovation strategies, and experiences and best practices will be shared between project partners and the surrounding health care industry.

A reference group will be formed with interested industrial partners. If MVA members want to join or if you would like more information, please contact Project Manager Anna-Karin Alm at aka@mva.org or +45 35 32 41 50.

The project is sponsored by Nordic Innovation Centre.

 

News from Medicon Valley

Clinical Trials Update

Read the updates on clinical trials performed by Medicon Valley companies from week 4  and week 6.

Nordic-Baltic Alliance to bring ESS to Lund

The competition for bringing the world's most powerful neutron research facility, ESS (European Spalliation Source), to Lund intensifies. To compete against Bilbao og Budapest, a Nordic-Baltic alliance between all of the Nordic and Baltic countries is planned. Sweden and Denmark will be the primary host countries in this extended corporation. Read more (in Danish)

Revolutionary Results from Lund University regarding Asthma

The translational research by the Lund University Respiratory Network LURN shows revolutionary results in asthma. Read more (in Swedish)

Nordic Biotech Mergers on the Way

As a consequence of the unstable stock market, a wave of mergers among the Nordic biotech companies might be on the way, evaluates experts. Read more (in Danish) 

University Hospitals in Skåne: Two Profiles, One Unit

Southern Sweden has a good opportunity for becoming an international power centre in medical research and healthcare. Strengthened profiling and coordination between the two university hospitals in Skåne constitute the foundation for this possible development. These are the words of the Director of Region Skåne, Sören Olofsson, the Directors of UMAS and USIL, Ann-Sofi Bennheden and Bent Christensen, together with the Dean of the Medical Faculty at Lund University, Bo Ahrén. Read more (in Swedish)

Medicon Valley: Scandinavia's Life Science Growth Engine

Medicon Valley is a striking example of how collaboration across borders can pay off, science wise as well as business wise. In ten years, the region has established itself as Scandinavia's strongest life science cluster. Read more

Action Pharma Raises EUR 15 Million from International Investors

Action Pharma A/S has signed a financing agreement with new and existing investors, raising a total of EUR 15 million. The raised capital allow Action Pharma to further develop its pipeline of drug candidates, currently comprising 7 projects. Read more

The First Pre-seed Grant from Novo Seeds Awarded

CytoGuide, a new Danish biotech company, is the first to receive a pre-seed grant from the life science fund Novo Seeds. Read more

 

For more from about Medicon Valley, visit the MVA News section.

 

Other News

Funding Opportunities for an Industry PhD or Industry Researcher (IFA)

Companies with research in Sweden can apply for an Industry PhD or Industry Researcher (IFA) from the Swedish Science Council. Deadline is 15 April. Read more in the leaflet (in Swedish) from the Swedish Science Council with comments i.a. from the granted IFA from MVA-member, MIP Technologies.

Partnering Opportunities in the CBS MBA Strategy Project

Companies with international orientation now have the chance to become a partner in the Copenhagen Business School MBA Strategy Project. The project is an integral part of CBS' MBA programme and offers a unique opportunity to bring value to both partner companies and MBA participants. Read more

SMEs go Health: Free Information and Training Workshop on EU 7th Framework Programme

The European network SMEs go Health, is organising a training workshop on 10 March 2008 in Berlin, Germany, for potential applicants. The main focus is financial aspects and calculation examples for cost planning. Read more

Small Business Act: The European Commission's Commitment to SMEs

On 31 January, the European Commission launched a public consultation on the content of a European "Small Business Act". Its objective is to put SMEs at the forefront of decision-making in the EU and to introduce concrete measures to unlock SMEs’ growth potential. Read more

 

New Members

Pluzek Consult

Pluzek Consult provides support to biotech, diagnostics, and medico companies regarding the transfer of research to development through marketing, project management and organisational development. Support also includes project proposals for the 7th EU Framework Programme. Pluzek Consult has many years of experience with corporate management, strategy development and implementation, project portfolio management, R&D, diagnostics, pathology and quality systems.

Contact: karl-johan@pluzek.dk - phone +45 44 65 35 51

Alexander Hughes Nordic & Baltic     

Alexander Hughes is an Executive Search company dedicated to helping you acquire and retain the vital human capital you need to achieve your strategic business goals. We have a comprehensive European network of 40 subsidiaries located in 29 countries, offering local expertise combined with international capabilities. Nordic & Baltic offices are located in Stockholm, Copenhagen, Helsinki and Oslo. Life science expertise is one of our sectors of excellence.

Contact: www.alexanderhughes.com – info@alexanderhughes.com - phone +46 (0)8 501 103 70

 

The MVA Newsletter is a monthly newsletter service, which provides you with news on MVA projects, members and the Medicon Valley region. As a MVA member, please feel free to send us your press releases. When possible, we will run your news in the MVA Newsletter or in our website news section.