Innovation event of the year

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1 Innovation event of the year There was a record-breaking amount of interest in Park Annual 13! A mix of almost 400 life science stakeholders all got together at Konferenscentrum Wallenberg to join in this year's innovation event. The programme spanned a wide range of topics, and the enthusiastic networking and exchanges of experiences are still ongoing Maria Forss, Vice President of Business Development and Global Marketing at Vitrolife, guided us through the afternoon. She has participated in Park Annual previously, as a presenter, exhibitor and onlooker. This time, she introduced all the lecturers with inspiring teasers and can add well prepared moderator to her list of Park Annual accolades. The content is of very high quality and covers an interesting range of fields, in respect of both therapies and types of company said Maria Forss. The concept, which involves inspiring lecturers and a varied exhibition in the foyer, is very popular. All the lecturers are participants in projects and companies which maintain contact with Sahlgrenska Science Park, in order to promote a broad exchange of experiences. Representatives from most of the life science companies in the region took part in the day, and there were quite a lot of British stakeholders in the crowd as well. It was wonderful to see how entrepreneurs and researchers were making new contacts during Park Annual and continuing their communication later on at Sahlgrenska Science Park. The ideas just keep flowing! We have received a positive response and are very pleased with Park Annual 13, says Erik Bengtson of Sahlgrenska Science Park. If you missed the innovation event of the year, this newsletter will give you a small insight into it. Mobile platform with gigantic market in sight The market for smartphone development linked to health is now growing at a tremendous pace. Daralabs will soon be launching a mobile health platform, and a first product in the field of fertility is at the final stage of development. A highly intensive development period pays off. We have created a mobile health platform that is made up of three parts. The first is a peripheral, a medical device connected to a smartphone or tablet, the second is a cloud service, and the third part is the interface with consumers, medical institutions and research facilities, explains Christian Saleki, Operations Manager for Daralabs, which is an incubator company at Sahlgrenska Science Park. Daralabs has now laid the strategically vital foundation which paves the way for development of different types of P A R K N E W S o c t o b e r Sida 1 av 5

2 medical products. The software will be created as required. The first product relates to fertility and is now in its final stage of development. Business and good deeds can certainly go hand in hand, there is no doubt about that. Our low development costs and high quality allow us to present efficient solutions in order to enhance options for the care of tomorrow in both the Western world and the Third World, says Peiman Khorramshahi, CEO of Daralabs. When ageing is definitely not normal Alzheimer's disease poses an enormous challenge for society. Björn Larsson of GU Holding, who is also Chairman of Alzinova, gave us an insight into this insidious disease, which can develop silently for ten or twenty years before any symptoms become apparent. Alzinova is focusing on developing a vaccine which is specifically oligomer-oriented, which researchers believe may be the key to being able to halt the development of the disease. Maybe a startup company from Gothenburg could achieve a breakthrough in research into Alzheimer's?! What is known as a proof-of-concept study is currently taking place and preclinical development will continue. Compliance via drug packaging Intelligent drug packaging makes it easier to monitor treatments and reduces the risk of important medicines being forgotten. Patients can receive text message reminders, and the care provider or a relative can remotely monitor the pack to see when a tablet is removed from it. The recyclable blister pack with its associated GSM module, which can be transferred to the next pack, also improves compliance in clinical trials to the benefit of patients. Jesper Hassel from Mevia told us that a pilot study will start in the United Kingdom in the autumn and that the project is based at the Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship. Just the right amount of air with new innovation Sweden is at the cutting edge of neonatal care. At the same time, the specialists of today agree that there is a need for better understanding of what volume of air should be given to newborns to get their breathing started. Too much air at once can damage the baby's lungs, while too little results in the baby not getting enough oxygen, explains Maria Gustafsson from the project Monivent. Linking up new medical technology may provide the solution. Monivent (from Encubator) has developed a monitor which fits with current standard equipment, measures the air volume and stores all data for later analysis and follow-up. The next step will be to test the prototype. A safer procedure would result in greater security with regard to the treatment of the ten per cent or so of newborns who need help to start breathing. P A R K N E W S o c t o b e r Sida 2 av 5

3 Insights into research investments During Park Annual 13, Magnus Björsne from Astra Zeneca shared important insights into risk assessment of research projects and potential cooperations with the pharmaceutical industry. The main message involved starting interaction as early as possible and ideally starting a dialogue, with no obligations, which can then continue throughout the development process. Being able to translate research results into patient benefits and commercial potential is important, as well as safety data. The chances of reaching an agreement, how this would fit in and whether cooperation could provide synergy effects are also assessed. Magnus Björsne, unexpectedly, also compared risk taking with fashion, as taking a certain type of risk is sometimes in. He encouraged active networking and to ask who should I talk to? Breathable, useful X-ray aprons Ergonomic X-ray protective clothing is attracting a lot of interest. Ten Medical Design was one of Vinnova's selected innovative companies for finance via the VINN Nu programme, and founders Petra Apell and Fredrik Gellerstedt have established important research partnerships for the incubator company. X-ray protective clothing is a necessity in healthcare. For instance, medical staff may need to wear protective clothing for a number of hours during operations. These are hot, uncomfortable and heavy! Ten Medical Design, alias 10MD, is developing an ergonomic alternative using a breathable material. We have received a lot of positive feedback on our breathable, comfortable materials, and we are looking forward to developing the design further and make this protective apron as user-friendly as possible, says Petra Apell. 10MD has managed to develop a prototype and test its function at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Swerea Sicomp and Chalmers University of Technology. An initial patent application has also been submitted. Even pressure with PressCise Wrapping bandages to prevent subcutaneous bleeding is a tricky task. It will soon be possible to minimise the current problems, which involve substantial bruising, and protracted healing after surgery on varicose veins, for example, with an innovation. What appears to be a simple solution is based on advanced mathematical calculations. We have worked in cooperation with the Swedish School of Textiles and Smart Textiles in Borås to develop a comfortable bandage made of a new, elastic material. PressCise demonstrated by far the most consistent pressure in a study which used pressure gauges, irrespective of who wrapped the bandage and where it was placed on the leg, says Professor Torbjörn Lundh, who works at Chalmers and Gothenburg University and is one of the founders of GraftCraft. Being able to rely on the pressure being even is a major step forward, for both patients and care staff. A more extensive study will be P A R K N E W S o c t o b e r Sida 3 av 5

4 taking place in the autumn, in which Vinnova wants to see verification results prior to the next planned stage of finance in VINN Verifiering. The project also involves process support via BIO-X in the Region Västra Götaland. Interdisciplinary research results in gentle flow A small number of mechanical parts, two chambers and a completely new pump mechanism, where gravity is used to create a flow. An invention, which was originally devised for the modern ink industry turned out to have strong similarities with handling and requirements in respect of blood in the healthcare sector. As I had no previous experience of life science I got in touch with Sahlgrenska Science Park. The patent application has just been submitted, and we are really starting to hope that we will be able to develop a blood pump which makes a difference, says Ulf Johansson, from Hestia Medtech. If the blood can be processed more gently than current pump technologies permit, it would be kinder to the body and hopefully reduce the risk of blood clots and inflammatory reactions following surgery. Book medical appointments online at a time that suits you When Amir Mofidi started by asking the audience how many people would like to be able to book medical appointments online, lots of hands shot up. The new Bokavård.se website lists everything from doctors and dentists to masseurs and naprapaths. It is possible to search for possible treatments, see what appointments are free and book and make payments directly online in just a few simple steps. Most people nowadays prefer not to have to phone at set times. The challenge is to persuade more healthcare companies to understand this customer requirement, reckons Amir Mofidi, who now wants to extend the Bokavård sales team at Sahlgrenska Science Park and is looking for driven staff. World-class transplant research Professor Suchitra Holgersson provided an inspiring insight into Transplantation & Regenerative Medicine Laboratories research and was sharing new experiences which provide revolutionary opportunities. Tissue Engineering using people's own stem cells means, for example, that rejection can be avoided and patients do not have to undergo lifelong treatment with immunosuppressive drugs. We got to see the enthusiasm of the team filmed when they first tried and managed to demonstrate that the method based on a donated blood vessel also works on veins with valves. A unique method, and a potential success story. A verification study of the new technology with the support of BIO-X in the Region Västra Götaland is currently taking place, and clinical trials will be taking place. Suchitra Holgersson is perceiving a new breakthrough in the donation and transplantation sector, and ended the Park Annual seminar with a surprise! P A R K N E W S o c t o b e r Sida 4 av 5

5 Cooperation with the United Kingdom Ravi Chana, NIHR Office for Clinical Research Infrastructure (NOCRI), was one of the speakers at the Drug Development and R&D Collaborations with the UK meeting, which was arranged in cooperation between Sahlgrenska Science Park, Business Region Göteborg and UK Trade & Investment on the morning of 12 September. NOCRI works with method development for the healthcare sector and is part of the National Institute for Health Research, the biggest public research financing body in the United Kingdom. Ravi Chana stressed that we are a long way out in front in the field of medical technology in Sweden, and encouraged communication and cooperation with British companies. During the later matchmaking session, he personally took the opportunity to meet Lavivo, an incubator company which is focusing on counteracting bacterial infections. New chances of reaching out into the world Sahlgrenska Science Park, together with Lund Life Science Incubator and Uppsala Innovation Centre, has been granted finance via the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth. The aim of this is to prepare various suppliers for the life science industry so that they can get out into the world market. Of course, this partnership is significant when it comes to our work with internationalisation, and it could make a major difference for smaller companies, says Erik Bengtson. A total of 15 companies can take part in the project, which will be taking place over a period of 18 months. The offer involves four meetings, with different topics and invited lecturers, plus one-on-one advice up to 20 hours from a business coach with documented experience of the international market. Please apply by 1 October if you would like to take part! Questions? Please contact Sofia Ström by at [email protected] New to the Park iliod therapeutics is developing a new treatment, an injection to strengthen the immune system, for bacterial infections which are slow to heal. For more information, see or contact Julia Fransson on +46 (0) , [email protected] Stayble Therapeutics, which comes from Encubator, is developing a solution to combat chronic lower back pain. For more information, contact Josefin Karlgrund on +46 (0) , [email protected] P A R K N E W S o c t o b e r Sida 5 av 5