BiotechClub 2020: results
The latest achievements of gene therapy, new solutions for the treatment of oncological and autoimmune diseases, monetization of scientific discoveries
The fourth BiotechClub 2020 Biotechnological conference was held on October 29 and 30. This year, the event was held for the first time in an online format, more than 50 speakers from 6 countries took part in it, and more than 3,500 people watched the broadcast during the days of the event. The recording of the conference can be viewed on the website.
The experts discussed innovative approaches to the treatment of socially significant diseases, which have become possible today thanks to the application of the latest scientific developments in practice. Well-known oncologist Mikhail Maschan presented the latest data on the successful use of CAR-T therapy for oncohematological diseases in Russia, which allows achieving complete remission in 85-90% of patients, neurologist Vladimir Krasnov spoke about how viruses will help treat autoimmune diseases, Pavel Yakovlev predicted a big breakthrough in the fight against multiple sclerosis in the near future, and Alexander Prokofiev, Deputy director of the BIOCAD Gene therapy Development Department, made a report on the use of the AAV platform, traditionally used in gene therapy, to create highly effective vaccines
"A significant step in the development of biotechnologies requires the concentration of a large number of competencies, and therefore is practically impossible without the active interaction of academic science and industry. BiotechClub 2020 has become a universal platform that brought together scientists, doctors, entrepreneurs and representatives of government agencies, where they were able to discuss and highlight the main achievements of the last year, new approaches to disease therapy and challenges shaping the region as a whole," he said Pavel Yakovlev, Deputy General Director of BIOCAD for Early Development and Research.
One of the central topics of the conference was the COVID-19 epidemic in Russia and the world. Experts provided data on methods of diagnosis and treatment, clinical manifestations of the disease, and also made a forecast of the development of the situation, according to which the peak of morbidity in Russia will occur by the New Year. In addition, together with foreign colleagues, the speakers discussed the prospects of general vaccination of a new coronavirus infection.
Matti Salberg, Head of the Department of Laboratory Medicine at Karolinska University (Sweden) and head of the OPENCORONA project, said in his speech on DNA vaccines: "We hope in the near future to create a vaccine that will be even more effective than those that are already undergoing the last stages of research. Now we are conducting research on a drug for which we took different parts of the virus and combined them to obtain a broader immune response. DNA vaccines containing several components of the virus protein are able to protect much better against covid-19 and can play a very important role in the long-term control of coronavirus infection."
The sessions dedicated to COVID-19 were attended by the chief physician of GBUZ "City Clinical Hospital No. 40"Moscow Denis Protsenko, Chief Physician of St. Petersburg State Medical Institution "Botkin Hospital" Denis Gusev, Chief Physician of the St. Petersburg State Medical Institution City Hospital of St. George Valery Strizheletsky and other experts.
This year's conference brought together the key topics of modern medical science: oncology, autoimmune diseases and gene therapy. In the thematic sessions, the emphasis was placed on the promising therapy of pathologies that were still considered practically incurable. According to the President of the Association of Medical Geneticists of Russia Sergey Kutsev, it is gene therapy that will make a significant breakthrough in the treatment of, for example, SMA. "There are long–term observations that allow us to state that if a child receives therapy in the first months of life before the first symptoms appear, then later he not only does not get sick, but also does not differ from his peers in development," the expert stressed.
In the treatment of autoimmune diseases, in particular, multiple sclerosis, a big step forward has also been made thanks to drugs aimed at targeting the B-cell link of immunity. Pavel Yakovlev, Vice President for Early Development and Research of BIOCAD, in his report spoke about the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis, the reasons for choosing anti-B cell therapy and ways to increase its effectiveness. In the answers to the questions, Pavel also speculated on what types of therapy can replace such drugs.
In the panel devoted to oncological diseases, much attention was paid to clinical studies of new drugs and necessary changes in the regulatory model. Evgeny Imyanitov, Head of the Scientific Department of Tumor Growth Biology of the NMIC of Oncology named afterPetrova focused on personalized medicine based on the identification of specific mutations in the tumor genome. At the same time, not only the therapeutic potential of well-known targeted drugs was demonstrated, but also the so-called off-label application based on the molecular mechanisms of tumor transformation. The issues of the clonal evolution of the tumor and the mechanisms of loss of sensitivity to the therapy were touched upon.
Head of the Department of Interdisciplinary Oncology of the D. Rogachev NMIC DGOI of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation Nikolay Zhukov said that today, more than ever, potential drugs that meet the needs of practitioners and patients themselves in terms of safety, effectiveness and cost of treatment should be introduced into clinical practice as soon as possible. To do this, according to him, it is necessary to make changes to the very regulation of such studies. One of the options for solving this problem is evidence based on real clinical practice. Moreover, the initiator of such initiatives should be the expert community in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, Zhukov stressed.
Immunotherapy has certainly made a revolution in the treatment of oncological diseases. Professor Alexander Eggermont, Director of Science at the Princess Maxima Cancer Center (Netherlands) presented a report on the use of so-called immune checkpoint inhibitors in the treatment of melanoma. Particular attention was paid to the prospects of neoadjuvant and adjuvant therapy of this disease, when the use of immunotherapy can significantly enhance the effect of radical surgery. It should be noted that in his report, the professor noted, among other things, the original drug prolgolimab, developed by BIOCAD.
In her speech, Dr. Haijin Meng (SPH-Biocad, China) highlighted the features of the PRC's regulatory framework. Not only the issues of the registration procedure of a medicinal product in China as such were touched upon, but also the transformation of the regulatory framework taking into account the globalization of the pharmaceutical market.
The main event of the second day of BiotechClub 2020 was the discussion "Search for promising scientific developments: main selection criteria, success assessment, monetization", in which experts – scientists, entrepreneurs, investors – discussed the state of the industry. The speakers were Ilya Yasny (InBioVentures), Andrey Ivashchenko (HimRar), Andrey Sakharov (Mendeleev Russian Technical University) and others. According to their general opinion, there are a number of problems, the solution of which will contribute to the growth of the number of new developments and startups in the domestic market. The speakers noted that today in Russia there is practically no clear legislative framework and practice for regulating relations between scientists and investors. However, the Russian scientific school has all the prerequisites to produce really high-quality products, the key steps can be: updating regulatory norms and expanding opportunities for investors in terms of easing the tax burden and optimizing financial reporting.
The BiotechClub conference was attended by practitioners, investors, scientists and entrepreneurs, as well as employees of research centers operating in the field of biotechnology. The moderators were researchers from BIOCAD.
The conference program and the recording of speakers' speeches are available at the link.
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