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Medical moonshots
Can we fast-track cures for diseases? Hear about exciting discoveries in novel therapeutics, nanomedicines, AI and neuroimaging with leading researchers Michael Bowen, Victoria Cogger and Chenyu Tim Wang. Hosted by Tegan Taylor, ABC health and science journalist.
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The world has seen massive strides in technology, from nanorobotics to gene editing, artificial intelligence and brain imaging. These rapid advances in such a short time are taking us into a new era of medical treatments.
Personalised skin cancer vaccines have been hailed the second 'pencillin’ moment. Precision drugs for disorders of the brain and mind are on the horizon, as well as oral insulin, potentially offering people with Type 1 diabetes a more effective and needle-free alternative.
There's a great need for novel treatments for a range of diseases and disorders. This event brings together researchers at the cutting-edge to lift the lid on their medical moonshots and explore how the discovery and development of breakthrough treatments can be accelerated.
Explore a conversation hosted by ABC's Tegan Taylor and featuring neuroscientist and psychopharmacologist Michael Bowen, biomedical research leader Victoria Cogger and neuroimaging scientist and engineer Chenyu Tim Wang, as they take us through their breakthroughs, journey in the ‘Valley of Death’ (a clinical trial term), and finding new solutions to major problems in health.
Presented with Brain and Mind Centre and Sydney Biomedical Accelerator, this event was held on Thursday 22 August 2024 at the University of Sydney.
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The speakers
Professor Michael Bowen, Brain and Mind Centre and School of Psychology
Michael Bowen is a neuroscientist and psychopharmacologist at the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre and School of Psychology. His research is focused on discovering and developing novel therapeutics for substance use disorders and social challenges in disorders of the brain and mind.
He is the co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Kinoxis Therapeutics. Kinoxis is commericialising KNX100, a now clinical-stage small molecule Michael discovered with colleagues at the University of Sydney, and earlier stage compounds targeting the oxytocin receptor. KNX100 is being developed for the treatment of substance use disorders and agitation and aggression in dementia, and the oxytocin targetting compounds are being developed in partnership with Boehringer-Ingelheim, one the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, for the treatment of social challenges in psychiatric disorders.
Professor Victoria Cogger, ANZAC Research Institute and Faculty of Medicine and Health
Victoria Cogger was appointed the Director of the ANZAC Research Institute at Concord Hospital in February 2023. The ANZAC is a biomedical research institute focussed on integrating the highest quality innovative research in the basic sciences with clinical and population health.
Victoria leads a multidisciplinary research team focussed on understanding the biology of the liver relating to ageing and disease, and translating this knowledge to develop targeted nanomedicines for the treatment and prevention of these diseases. She is co-founder, scientific adviser and a shareholder of EndoAxiom, a company leading the development of nanomedicines for use in people. Its lead product is oral insulin for the treatment of diabetes – the culmination of 20 years of research collaboration by Victoria and colleagues.
Dr Chenyu Tim Wang, Brain and Mind Centre and Sydney Neuroimaging Analysis Centre
Chenyu Tim Wang is a neuroimaging scientist and engineer who co-leads the Computational Neuroimaging Team at the University of Sydney’s Brain and Mind Centre. His research focuses on advanced imaging biomarkers and large-scale AI adoption for clinical imaging applications.
He is also the co-founder and COO of the Sydney Neuroimaging Analysis Centre (SNAC), a regulatory-compliant central MRI reading centre that serves the pharmaceutical industry. SNAC also offers AI-based SaaS and SaMD solutions (IQ-Solutions) for precision management of chronic neurological diseases, using MRI to enhance disease monitoring and treatment strategies. SNAC also produces informatics solutions (TORANA) for the management, routing and databasing of medical scans in clinical and research workflows.
Host: Tegan Taylor, health and science journalist
Tegan Taylor is a multi-award-winning health and science reporter for the ABC. She hosts shows including Radio National’s Health Report, Quick Smart and What’s That Rash?. She’s received a Walkley Award, the Eureka Prize for Science Journalism and her work has appeared in the Best of Australian Science Writing.
Declaration
The University of Sydney is a shareholder in Kinoxis Therapeutics. Researchers Professor Michael Bowen and Professor Michael Kassiou are participants in the Kinoxis Therapeutics Employee Share Option Plan. The University of Sydney is in the process of appointing a non-executive director of Kinoxis.
Professor Victoria Cogger, Dr Nicholas Hunt and Professor David Le Couteur are the patent inventors and hold equity in the company Endo Axiom Pty Ltd. The University of Sydney is a shareholder in Endo Axiom. Endo Axiom holds the intellectual property licence to commercialise and develop nanotechnology-based oral insulin. Endo Axiom has partnered with Ab Initio Pharma to advance the development and manufacturing of the oral insulin for diabetes treatment.
The University of Sydney is the academic partner in the development of IQ-Solutions and TORANA, led by SNAC during CRC-P Round 5 (CRCPFIVE000141, AI: New Smarts for the Medical Imaging Industry). Dr Tim Wang is a part-time researcher at the University of Sydney and personally holds equity ownership in SNAC.
Header image: credit Planet Volumes via Unsplash