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Biotech
@ Kellogg: Biotech in the Post-Genomic Era
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conference is over, let the party begin! Tired but invigorated
planners celebrate, with Professors Hughes and Löffler,
the conclusion of a most successful Business of Biotech
program. |
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The Biotech
@ Kellogg conference held April 27-28, 2001, at the Allen Center
and the Jacobs Center had a record attendance of more than 300
participants.
The opening keynote speaker was Tony White, President,
Chairman and CEO of Applera Corporation (formerly Perkin-Elmer
and PE). Mr. White, who had a 26-year career with Baxter International
prior to his taking the helm at Applera, directed his remarks
to the genomics race and some of the important issues emanating
from the sequencing of the human genome. White is well positioned
to speak on such a topic, for his Celera Genomics Group was
a key player in the "race" with the Human Genome Project.
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Tracy
Vetterick, (l) a conference planner, poses with panelists
Christ Ehrlich (c) of Interwest Partners, and Lance Fors,
Ph.D., CEO of Third Wave Technologies
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Celera was
a major part of White's strategy to turn a small-sized scientific
products company into a major player in the life sciences, one
which provides, and will become one of the world's leading sources
for, genomic and related medical and agricultural information.
Following White, and welcoming remarks by Dean Donald Jacobs,
Carl Feldbaum, President of BIO: The Biotechnology Industry
Organization, spoke on the "Past, Present and Future of
Biotech." Feldbaum, from his unique position as head of
the national biotech trade association, gave the audience a
view of "the big picture," nuancing some of the controversial
areas in the field. BIO represents more than 750 biotech firms,
academic organizations and state biotech centers.
Mr. Feldbaum came to Washington, DC in 1973 as an assistant
special prosecutor to Archibald Cox, who was investigating the
Watergate scandal. Mr. Feldbaum's career includes positions
as Assistant to the Secretary of Energy and Inspector General
for defense intelligence prior to his work as Senator Arlen
Spector's chief of staff. A Princeton graduate, Mr. Feldbaum
also has a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania School
of Law.
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Returning
to check on the new team's conference, graduates and two
of the founders of Kellogg's healthcare/biotech conference
concept Ted Davis and Marc-Henri Galetti.
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Following
Feldbaum, and an attendee reception, was a panel of Kellogg
and Northwestern grads who were experiencing careers in the
biotech business or related industries. These included: Ted
Davis, V.P. of Vector Fund Management; Karen Daniels, V.P. of
Marketing at Amgen; Tassos Gianakakos of Maxygen; and Kerry
McWeeny of Motorola Biochip Systems, among others.
The following morning Alicia Löffler, Director of Kellogg's
Biotech Center, and the conference's two student co-chairs,
Markus Hildinger, Ph.D. and Matt Wotiz, opened the full-day
program with greetings to the packed house at Leverone's Coon
Forum.
The morning's opening keynote address was given by venture capitalist
Sam Colella, General Partner with Versant Venture Partners,
a long-time and well-respected investor in the life sciences,
healthcare, biomedical and biotech ventures. Prior to his venture
capital career, Mr. Colella had 20 years of successful operating
experience in high technology industries. He was president of
Spectra-Physics, Inc., from 1971 to 1984, the world's leading
laser supplier. Colella is current Chairman of Onyx Pharmaceuticals,
and is an investor in numerous other biotech ventures. Colella's
topic was "The Status of Venture Capital in Biotech."
The first panel of the day focused on biotech and asked the
question "How do market conditions influence the biotech
industry at all stages?" The panel enjoined to provide
insight into this question included the venerable Arthur Pancoe,
Sr. Managing Director of the Chicago office of Bear Stearns;
Oliver Fetzer, Ph.D., a V.P. with the Boston office of BCG:
and Misty Gruber, a lawyer with the Sonnenschein, Nath and Rosenthal
law firm in Chicago who has worked with, and invested in, numerous
biotech ventures.
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Dr.
Edward Hughes (l) with Biotech Advisory
Board member, David Flores, President and
CEO of BioCentury.
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Randy
Scott, Ph.D., the Chairman and CEO of Genomic Health, Inc.,
gave the final keynote presentation. Scott's topic was "Bioethics."
Known for his straightforward and sometimes controversial viewpoints,
Scott gave a thought-provoking presentation. Active in several
biotechs (he continues as Board Chairman of Incyte Genomics,
Inc.), Scott was recognized as Silicon Valley Entrepreneur of
the Year in Biotechnology by NASDAQ and by Ernst and Young.
The day's second panel raised the question "How has the
Genomics Revolution Changed R & D in Industry?" The
perspectives of several different members of the industry attempted
to answer this question from their diverse viewpoints: Kellogg
graduate, venture capitalist Chris Ehrlich; scientist/entrepreneur
Lance Fors, Ph.D.; business developers Chris Burnley of Monsanto
Genomics and Steve James of Suresis and pharmacologist Ian Jardine,
Ph.D., president of Thermo-Finnigan Corporation.
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Scott
Saywell (l) and Ty Smith, officers
in the Healthcare/Biotech Club, and conference planners,
toast the conference's success with Biotech Program Director
Alicia Löffler. |
Another panel
explored "the new 'tech in biotech'." Speaking on
this panel was Lewis Gruber, CEO and founder of Arryx and Founder
and former CEO of Hyseq, Inc. Additional members on the panel
were Argonne's Director of Biosciences, Lee Makowski, Ph.D.,
and Richard Oliver, Ph.D., a management professor of Vanderbilt
University and author of The Coming Biotech Age.
An interesting afternoon panel was entitled, "Biotech and
Pharma: Who Needs Whom More?" Perspectives from both sides
of the aisle came out in the session. Kellogg grads Dick Brewer,
President and CEO of the biotech firm Scios, Inc.; Karen Daniels,
V.P. of Marketing at Amgen, Inc.; and Kevin Buchi, Sr. V.P.
and CFO of Cephalon gave the biotech perspective, while David
Thompson, V.P. of Corporate Strategy at Eli Lilly held his own
from the big pharma perspective. A more tempered perspective
came from David Clough, a Ph.D. microbiologist who has a law
degree and is a registered patent attorney and Partner with
Katten Muchin Zavis.
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Dr.
Ed Hughes celebrates with some of the
conference planners.
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The Biotech
@ Kellogg program was sponsored by the following firms: Gold
Level: MediChem, Motorola Life Sciences, and BioSpace; Silver
Level: Kraft and Katten/Muchin/Zavis; and Bronze Level: NeoPharm,
MBHB, Lilly, Agilent Technologies, and Bio Century. |
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