PharmaTelevision - New Pharma Partner for Eskitis Institute

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Video title: New Pharma Partner for Eskitis Institute

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On the 28th October 2008 Pfizer announced its new anti-infective partnership with the Eskitis Institute at Griffith University. In this interview Fintan Walton talks with Stuart Newman, the institute’s Business Manager, about what this collaboration means for them. Dr Newman explains why the Eskitis Institute has succeeded in the world of natural products where so many have struggled and how they are using their capabilities from 14 years of experience within this field to drive products forward into pharmaceutical pipelines.

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The natural product competences within Eskitis Institute

Fintan Walton:

Hello and welcome to Pharma Ventures business review here in Melbourne Australia. On this show I have Stewart Newman who is business manager at Eskitis Institute which is part of Griffith University in Queensland, Australia. Welcome to the show.

Stewart Newman:

Thank you very much.

Fintan Walton:

We are here to Ausbiotech 2008 in Melbourne, Australia in October and yesterday you just announced a collaboration with Pfizer, a very important collaboration with the Eskitis Institute and particularly in the area of natural products which the Eskitis Institute has been successful in developing over the last few years. Could you just tell us first of all about the natural products competences within the Eskitis Institute?

Stewart Newman:

Certainly well the collaboration with AstraZeneca began in 1993. I 0.01.17 with about 50 people from the university started a collaboration with AstraZeneca effectively working as part of the company and the role was to undertake all of that AstraZeneca'snatural product drug discovery screening using high throughput screening robotics. Over 14 years we built up a fantastic capability in this area in terms of assay technology, extraction techniques, biotic collection, compound management, data management and that's we have developed that over this 14 year period to become a very formidable capability in natural product drug discovery.

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Stewart Newman

Business Manager

Dr Stewart Newman gained his PhD in Antarctic Marine Biology from the University of Tasmania in 2001 and has worked in mining remediation, environmental science, oceanography, food science policy and now drug discovery. He is currently Business Manager at Griffith University'sEskitis Institute.

Eskitis Institute

The Eskitis Institute for Cell and Molecular Therapies, based at the Brisbane Innovation Park, investigates novel drug- and cell-based therapies for human diseases in the thematic areas of cancer, infection and immunity, neglected diseases, neurodegenerative diseases and stem cell biology. These themes were chosen on the basis of the Eskitis Institute existing expertise and facilities, the importance of the therapeutic area and the potential for future discoveries. The Institute works towards the development of new strategies to prevent and treat diseases, with an emphasis on multi-disciplinary research and collaboration within the Institute and with national and international partners, current partners are Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Innate Pharma, Medicines for Malaria and Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative