Careers in Discovery

Simon Saxby, Leaf Expression Systems

"Normally when a company develops a vaccine, they're keeping it secret. They want to protect their IP, and when they launch it they want to generate revenues, make a profit and pay back their R&D expenses. This time around, everybody collaborated....there were no secrets. The sum of all those parts is far greater than any of them individually, and that's why we were able to produce a vaccine so quickly."

Simon Saxby is the CEO of Leaf Expression Systems, a company harnessing the power of plants as single-use bioreactors.

Simon's international career has seen him cover a huge amount of ground, from antibody research to biologics manufacturing, and he joined us on Careers in Discovery to discuss his journey so far.

Enjoy!

David Moffat, Macrophage Pharma

"Always challenge dogma & assumption...we were told that we'd never make drugs with kinases, but 30 years later there are over 50 kinase inhibitors on the market, they account for probably 30% of R&D spend and generate revenues of over $50bn."

David Moffat is the Chief Technology Officer at Macrophage Pharma, a company harnessing macrophages to treat disease in areas of real need.

David joined us to talk about his career, challenging dogma and why not making a decision is a big mistake in Biotech.

Enjoy!

(You can find the article that David discusses in his interview here: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/acs.jmedchem.7b01445)

Matt Segall, Optibrium

"At least for the forseeable future, progress is about that combination between human expertise and new computational & AI algorithms. It's this combination that will give the best outcomes." Matt Segall was one of the pioneers of applying computational physics techniques in a drug discovery and development setting. Now CEO of Optibrium, Matt joined us on Careers in Discovery to talk about his career, the need to solve real problems and the highs & lows of life in Biotech. Enjoy!

Paolo Vicini, Confo Therapeutics

"When you think about it, developing therapeutics is a very complex human endeavor. I sometimes liken it to building a plane - you have all this different expertise that has to come together in the right place, at the right time, for the right compound."

Paolo Vicini is the Chief Development Officer at Confo Therapeutics. His career has taken him around the world and from the early days of computational biology to developing translational research programs to deliver drugs to patients.

Paolo took us on a tour of his career, including:

🌍 His decision to leave academia after getting tenure

🌍 His observations on science as an international discipline

🌍 Why, in the end, it's all about the people

Enjoy!

Quin Wills, Ochre Bio

"The things I love about Biotech are that you move incredibly fast, you take calculated risks and it just has to work. It's so authentic, and is one of the most exciting things you can do as a scientist."

Quin Wills is the Chief Scientific Officer of Ochre Bio, a Biotech company applying a novel combination of scientific disciplines to some of the most chronic problems in healthcare.

In an interview packed with insight, we talked about Quin's career, as well as:

🩺 the unacceptable problem that leads to one in six patients dying

🩺 the "silent years" of age related diseases

🩺 why you should do what you love, even if it means starting over

Enjoy!

Tim Newton, Reflection Therapeutics

"Good science is incredibly important, but it's just one leg of the chair, and it's very unstable on its own. Without it, nothing happens. But the strength of your team and business plan, as well as how clear the path to market is, are crucial."

Tim Newton is the CEO & founder of Reflection Therapeutics, a Cambridge Biotech using the power of T cells to fight neuroinflammatory conditions.

Tim talked to us about:

🦠 the lightbulb moment that led to him leaving academia

🦠 how to use your network to transition to industry

🦠 some key pieces of advice for new Biotech entrepreneurs

Enjoy!

Sarah Cole, TranSINE Therapeutics

"There are always really interesting activities to be undertaken, and part of growing into a leadership role is the realisation that actually, your time is best spent by cherry-picking and doing the essentials well, rather than doing fifty things poorly."

Sarah Cole is the Vice President of R&D and Operations at TranSINE Therapeutics, a growing Biotech start-up developing a novel protein-enhancing therapeutic platform.

Sarah talked with us about her career, along with:

🧬 Choosing what to focus on in a new Biotech company

🧬 Transitioning from a research role into Venture Capital

🧬 Starting your research with the commercial realities in mind

Enjoy!

Tauhid Ali, Cambrian Biopharma

"The entrepreneurial mindset is very important in delivering therapies to patients. Small companies have an urgency and speed that bigger companies don't, and an entrepreneurial mindset is the reason."

Tauhid Ali is the Executive Vice President of Translational & Clinical Science for Cambrian Biopharma, a new kind of Biotech company with a real opportunity to disrupt the traditional business models of the sector.

Tauhid joins us on Careers in Discovery to talk about his life in Clinical Science, as well as:

🧫 Geroscience, the wider impact it has and why it could be the next big thing in Biotech

🧫 Working as part of a DisCo

🧫 The need for "patient capital" in drug development

Enjoy!