Partner power

Professor Vern Schramm of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine (left) and Dr Richard Furneaux.

IRL has a solid track record of partnering in international research projects and has been involved in 47collaborations around the world in the past year. Examples include work with Canadian clean-energy research institution CanmetENERGY on carbon capture technology (see story page 17), and relationships with counterpart institutions responsible for measurement standards in countries in Europe, Asia and Australasia.

A priority for IRL is taking its partnership with Taiwan research institute ITRI (Industrial Technology Research Institute) to a new level, giving New Zealand businesses access to a new range of technologies and helping to fuel economic growth.

The relationship began with scientist-to­scientist contact between ITRI and IRL in 2008 and flowered into a collaboration using complementary expertise within the two organisations.

Initial work focused on advancing the commercialisation of IRL’s stroke rehabilitation devices by incorporating cutting-edge movement- sensing technology from ITRI, which is used in  a hand-held wireless mouse developed by CyWEE Inc.

IRL introduced Im-Able, the company commercialising its Able-X device for accelerating recovery from strokes, to the Taiwanese manufacturer of the hand-held mouse and the two now have a supply and distribution agreement.

The arrangement has fast-tracked the path to market for Able-X, which has recently gained approval for CE certification, allowing for sales as a medical device in Europe. Im-Able is also at an advanced stage in applying for Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in the United States. Recent investors in Im-Able include Cure Kids Ventures Ltd, the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund and Alexius Group II (representing an American entrepreneur).

Im-Able is also working with ITRI to advance the commercialisation of a hand-held dynamometer developed by IRL, which allows physiotherapists to track patient progress during rehabilitation.

“Our goal is to direct the capabilities of both teams into areas beyond medical devices, such as energy, advanced materials and natural medicines. By working more closely with ITRI, we can match manufacturing capability in Taiwan with innovations in New Zealand.”

These projects, says Dr Diana Siew, head of IRL’s Medical Device Technology Group, illustrate why ITRI and IRL make great partners.

“They value our ideas and we benefit from their expertise in taking research prototypes and making them into something that is commercially viable.”

IRL General Manager of Industry Engagement Gavin Mitchell says broadening the relationship with ITRI will bring benefits to New Zealand.

“Our goal is to direct the capabilities of both teams into areas beyond medical devices, such as energy, advanced materials and natural medicines. By working more closely with ITRI, we can match manufacturing capability in Taiwan with innovations in New Zealand.”

One of IRL’s longest-standing international relationships is between its world-leading Carbohydrate Chemistry team, led by Dr Richard Furneaux, and Professor Vern Schramm’s biochemistry team at New York’s Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University.

The two met in 1994 and Dr Furneaux says the relationship has gone from strength to strength on the back of a natural fit between goals and capability.

“Vern was looking for a chemistry group that could realise the synthesis of a target molecule he had designed and the research we were doing put us in exactly the right space.”

Together, the partners have gone on to develop an intellectual property portfolio that includes drug compounds for the treatment of cancer and auto­immune diseases, gout and, more recently, malaria. The gout treatment drug candidate BCX4208 is currently performing well in Phase II clinical trials and two possible compounds for the prevention and treatment of malaria are being investigated.

Dr Furneaux says having partners of the calibre of Professor Schramm is a crucial part of creating the knowledge and IP New Zealand needs to have a globally competitive high-value manufacturing sector.

“Given our distance from world markets, we need products that are novel, light, don't cost a lot per gram, can’t easily be copied and are in demand.

“To be first in the world with your idea, you have to hang out with the best in the world. Very little surprises Professor Schramm – he makes sure he knows what is going on and that helps us to be in a position to surprise others.”