19 April 2007

250 scientists meet for the Scottish Translational Medicine Investigators Conference

*** Embargoed for use until 00.01 am, Thursday April 19th ***

Scientists from across Scotland and from US pharmaceutical company, Wyeth, will merge in Dundee on April 19th and 20th as the Translational Medicine Research Collaboration (TMRC) moves into its second year. The two-day event will include plenary lectures from many of Scotland’s most prominent medical researchers as well as a keynote address from the distinguished cardiovascular disease specialist, Professor Jean-Claude Tardiff of Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York. The second day will include a number of workshops designed to focus the scientific partners on addressing key translational medicine issues around specific diseases. In total over 250 scientists from Scotland and Wyeth will take part in this now annual event.

The TMRC was launched in April 2006 as a multi-faceted collaboration to facilitate the translation of basic scientific and clinical research into new and effective drug discoveries. The main focus of the collaboration is the development of biomarkers and experimental systems to address the major challenges of innovative and safe drug discovery and development in the 21st century.

Frank Walsh Ph.D., Executive Vice President of Discovery Research at Wyeth said, "Ongoing research has furnished us with new generations of drug targets and therapeutic agents. To assist in the development of these agents we are embracing the evolving discipline of Translational Medicine. Partnerships such as the Scottish TMRC are critical to the successful development of novel therapeutic agents as well as diagnostic tests as we truly move into the world of personalized medicine."

Professor Michael Greaves from the University of Aberdeen and chair of the Science Symposium added, "Already the Collaboration is proving to be successful in bringing together clinicians and scientists from across Scotland and a major pharmaceutical company, all with the common aim of developing improved treatments for patients. A large number of innovative research projects are underway. The symposium and workshops will provide an excellent forum at which a further portfolio of scientific studies will be developed which take advantage of the international quality clinical research expertise available in Scotland."

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The TMRC - Translational Medicine is a revolutionary new approach to developing new drugs and treatments by focussing research on new tests for the diagnosis and monitoring of human diseases. The TMRC consists of a central core Research Laboratory working with ‘Centres of Excellence’ in each of the four University Medical Schools. The Research Laboratory will be based at the University of Dundee, with 50 scientific jobs created in the first instance. The Collaboration also builds upon the development of a new Clinical Research Centre network across the four universities and the NHS in Grampian, Greater Glasgow, Lothian and Tayside.

* Wyeth is one of the world's largest research-driven pharmaceutical and health care products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development, manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biotechnology products and non-prescription medicines that improve the quality of life for people worldwide. The Company's major divisions include Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth Consumer Healthcare and Fort Dodge Animal Health. http://www.wyeth.com

* Translational Medicine is a revolutionary new approach to developing new drugs and treatments by focussing research on new tests for the diagnosis and monitoring of human diseases. These tests, called biomarkers, are new proteins or markers that can be measured in blood samples or X-rays of patients. They can then be used to follow the progress and response to the treatment of patients with diseases such as heart attacks, cancer, depression and osteoporosis.

* Biomarkers can also help to develop new treatments. The Collaboration will include them in specialised clinical trials in Scotland working with the established network of doctors and researchers who conduct medical research to the highest ethical standards, whilst protecting patient confidentiality. These trials will facilitate the speed in getting new treatments from the laboratory to benefit patients in the clinic, with the potential to enhance patient care and treatments. It will also help adapt prescription drugs to individual needs so that doctors can discover which groups of patients respond best to which medicines, enabling resources to be targeted more effectively, and making sure that the right patients get the right treatments.

* More information on the other collaboration partners can be found on their web sites here:

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Roddy Isles
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University of Dundee
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