Conference on Biotechnology and Oncology 2005

Biotechnology and Oncology 2005, the first conference designed to bring together Russian and U.S. oncologists, scientists and the pharmaceutical industry was held in May 2005 in St. Petersburg . The conference was sponsored by the BioIndustry Initiative (BII) of the U.S. Department of State and organized with the efforts of the Center for Integration of Medicine and Innovative Technology (CIMIT) and the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. The focus of the meeting was on promoting Russian science and furthering the efforts of BII to create a commercialization pipeline for the products of Russian scientific research.

The conference included over 80 presentations from prominent Russian and American researchers on cutting edge developments in the fields of biotechnology and oncology. Dr. Jason Rao, the Director of BII, discussed the vision and goals of the BioIndustry Initiative and the U.S. Department of State. Dr. James Mongan, the CEO of Partners Healthcare, delivered the conference keynote address. Several BII partner institutions presented talks and posters focusing on the results of ongoing BII projects. The conference helped to forge new connections between Russian science and Western Academia, Biotechnology firms, Venture Capital and Pharmaceutical companies. Follow-up meetings related to licensing and commercialization activity are ongoing.

New BII Project Development Awards in Oncology : The Director of the BII, Dr. Jason E. Rao, announced that BII would fund four Oncology Project Development Grants (PDGs) of $20,000 each to promote new efforts in oncology resulting from the conference. Applications for the Oncology PDGs can be submitted through the Grant Submission process on the BII Website (www.biistate.net/docs/grant.php) – these PDGs are open to the participants of the conference.

MIS Roundtable – Development of New Anticancer Drugs: At the Biotechnology and Oncology Conference, BII and CIMIT hosted an MIS Roundtable, which gathered 17 scientists from the United States , Russia and Uzbekistan to review ongoing BII-funded research projects focusing on the development of Mullerian Inhibiting Substance (MIS) as an anticancer therapeutic. BII Partner Institutes represented at the Roundtable included: the State Research Institute for Highly Pure Biopreparations, the Institute of Chemistry of Plant Substances, Uzbek Academy of Sciences, Tashkent , Uzbekistan , RCMDT, GosNII Genetica, and the Massachusetts General Hospital . The discussion centered on the development of three new anti-cancer drug candidates, which represent potentially significant breakthroughs by Russian researchers.