AusBiotech and Johnson & Johnson Innovation Industry Excellence Awards
24 Oct 2016
- Industry Leadership Award: Professor Andrew Wilks, Executive Chairman, SYNthesis
- Company of the Year: Protagonist Therapeutics
- Emerging Company of the Year: ResApp Health
The AusBiotech and Johnson & Johnson Innovation Industry Excellence Awards were announced today at the AusBiotech 2016 national conference, held as part of the International BioFest 2016. The Awards recognise innovative companies and individuals in Australia’s world-class biotechnology, medical technology and healthcare sectors.
Professor Andrew Wilks was recognised for his role in the development of the Australian biotechnology sector over the last 20 years.
Driven and enthusiastic about the commercial development of home-grown science, Professor Wilks has worked at the interface of the academic and business worlds to establish an impressive list of successful biotechnology companies. These include Synthesis Medchem, Qubist Molecular Design, Synthesis Research, Synkinase, Reagency and Cytopia Research, which developed a JAK1/2 inhibitor momelotinib that was purchased for US$510m.
Protagonist Therapeutics is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing peptide-based new chemical entities to address significant unmet medical need.
Compared to injectable antibody drugs, the oral peptides developed by Protagonist Therapeutics offer targeted delivery to the gastrointestinal tissue compartment, the potential for improved safety due to minimal exposure in the blood, improved convenience and compliance due to oral delivery, and the opportunity for earlier introduction of targeted therapy for inflammatory bowel disease.
Protagonist Therapeutics was founded by Mark Smythe, current Vice President of Technology & Alliances of Protagonist.
ResApp Health was recognised for its development of digital healthcare solutions, which have assisted doctors and empowered patients to diagnose and manage respiratory disease.
ResApp implemented a machine learning approach to develop highly-accurate algorithms to diagnose the disease from cough and respiratory sounds. Ultimately, this work developed into a powerful platform for respiratory disease diagnosis and management that used modern smartphones to integrate seamlessly into existing telehealth solutions. Last year, ResApp completed a $4m capital raising to list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
Glenn Cross, AusBiotech’s Chief Executive Officer, said:
“The AusBiotech and Johnson & Johnson Innovation Industry Excellence Awards represent the leading success stories of Australian biotechnology. The companies and individuals recognised by these Awards have made a valuable contribution to the sector over the years, driven by passion for innovation and technical excellence in biotechnology.”
The Awards were announced at the AusBiotech 2016 national conference on Monday 24 October. AusBiotech 2016 is currently being held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre as part of the International BioFest 2016, the largest-ever gathering in the Australian life sciences, running from the 24-27 October 2016.
More information about the Award recipients is included below.
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Media enquiries: Lorraine Chiroiu, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, AusBiotech, lchiroiu@ausbiotech.org, (03) 9828 1414.
Further information about Prof Wilks, Protagonist Therapeutics and ResApp Health
Professor Andrew Wilks, CEO, Executive Chairman, SYNthesis, Industry Leadership Award:
Prof Andrew F. Wilks PhD FTSE has played a significant role in the development of the Australian biotechnology sector over the last 20 years. Following a successful academic career at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Melbourne, Prof Wilks has founded successful biotechnology and contract research companies and has consulted widely to industry, venture capital and government.
In 1998, Prof Wilks founded Cytopia Research (ASX:CYT), a start-up company focused on inhibiting a group of kinase enzymes Andrew discovered at the Ludwig Institute. Cytopia employed over 40 people, became an ASX-listed company, entered into a multi-million dollar collaboration with Novartis and developed the JAK1/2 inhibitor momelotinib that was ultimately purchased by Gilead for US$510m. Other companies include:
- Synthesis Medchem, medicinal chemistry and contract research company;
- Qubist Molecular Design (with Dr Herbert Treutlein and Dr Jun Zeng), a molecular modeling and drug design company;
- Synthesis Research, which developed its own small molecule IP and is also an integral member of the CRC for Cancer Therapeutics and is a majority shareholder in Catalyst Therapeutics, a joint venture with the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research; and
- Synkinase and Reagency, both custom reagent companies.
Professor Wilks is a member of the board and/or scientific advisory board of a number of Australian and overseas biotech companies and holds an Adjunct Professorship in the Department of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences at Monash University. He was the inaugural winner of the Australian Biobusiness Award in 2007, and was elected to the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering in the same year. Andrew also served on the Victorian Biotechnology Advisory Council. He is currently Executive Chairman at SYNthesis.
Protagonist Therapeutics, Company of the Year
Protagonist Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PTGX) is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on discovering and developing peptide-based new chemical entities to address significant unmet medical need.
Protagonist Therapeutics’ initial lead product candidates, PTG-100 and PTG-200, are based on this approach, which is believed to have the potential to transform the existing treatment paradigm for inflammatory bowel disease, a gastrointestinal disease consisting primarily of ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD).
Protagonist Therapeutics was founded by internationally-respected researcher Mark Smythe, current Vice President of Technology & Alliances of Protagonist, who has repeatedly converted great science into great outcomes.
Visit their website to find out more.
ResApp Health, Emerging Company of the Year
ResApp (ASX:RAP) is developing digital healthcare solutions to assist doctors and empower patients to diagnose and manage respiratory disease. They create easy-to-use, affordable, clinically-validated and regulatory-approved diagnostic tools that only require a smartphone, which can be seamlessly integrated into existing telehealth solutions.
ResApp was founded in September 2014 to commercialise technology developed by Associate Professor Udantha Abeyratne that uses sound to diagnose respiratory disease. A/Prof Abeyratne’s team has been engaged in the research and development of this technology since 2009 and has been funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The University of Queensland and UniQuest.
ResApp was created to diagnose and measure the severity of a wide range of chronic and acute diseases such as pneumonia, asthma, bronchiolitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) using this insight. It employs an artificial intelligence technique called machine-learning, which is used to develop highly-accurate algorithms to diagnose disease from cough and respiratory sounds
The result is a powerful platform for respiratory disease diagnosis and management that is based on sound alone and does not require physical contact with the patient. With modern smartphones integrating high quality microphones, additional hardware is not necessary.