Pharmaceuticals Sandton, Johannesburg
19 March 2009
Programme director
Executive directors and event organisers
Distinguished guests and delegates
Ladies and gentlemen
Although South Africans have won four Nobel science prizes, only one of them
has been for Chemistry. It was awarded in 1982 to Aaron Klug, later Sir Aaron
Klug, for his work on crystallographic electron microscopy and his structural
elucidation of biologically important nucleic acid-protein complexes, or
simply, his depiction of the building blocks of life.
One of government's key responsibilities is to improve the well being of the
nation through sustainable development. The 2001 National Biotechnology
Strategy essentially outlines multiple opportunities for socio-economic returns
through the country's strategic investment in various biotechnology capacities
required to build a globally competitive bio-economy that can provide solutions
to local and regional challenges such as malaria, HIV and AIDS, TB, food
security and unemployment.
The implementation of the National Biotechnology Strategy has seen the
establishment of the Biotechnology Innovation Centres (BICS). These comprise
the three regional biotechnology innovation centres, namely, BioPAD, Cape
Biotech and LIFElab, a National Plant Biotechnology Innovation Centre, named
PlantBio, a technology platform, the National Bioinformatics Network, and a
public understanding of Biotechnology programme.
To date, approximately R900 million has been invested by the department in
realising the objectives and outputs of each of these Biotechnology Innovation
Centres. In terms of performance, the focus of these institutions is not simply
to create competitive biotech intellectual property. Rather, we are
specifically requiring tangible outputs such as biotech goods and services, new
biotech companies, and more ambitiously, a movement towards a South African
bio-economy.
A primary focus of the department has also been the implementation of the
National Research and Development Strategy of 2002, which embraces a commitment
to the realisation of national imperatives such as wealth creation and an
improved quality of life, through an integrated approach to human resource
development, knowledge generation, investment in infrastructure and improvement
of the strategic management of the public science and technology
system. These key elements also form the basis of the Ten Year Innovation
Plan, which broadly aims to drive a knowledge-based economy.
During early 2008, we published a Ten Year Innovation Plan, which identifies
five priority areas of focus. Of these, the Farmer-to-Pharma grand challenge is
of particular relevance to the objectives of iThemba Pharmaceuticals. In this
case, we want to develop South Africa's biotechnology and pharmaceuticals by
harnessing and capitalising on the country's rich biodiversity and indigenous
knowledge using biotechnology tools.
This challenge basically identifies the need to pull together biotechnology,
indigenous knowledge system (IKS) and South Africa's rich biodiversity in an
effort to competitively position the country in the emerging bio-economy. On
the other hand, my department is championing the establishment of Centres of
Competence to be managed and further developed under the Technology Innovation
Agency (TIA), the establishment of which is now eminent following the
promulgation of the TIA Act in November last year.
The TIA will be a key intervention to support government in its efforts to
stimulate and intensify local technological innovation, and increase South
Africa's industrial competitiveness. The TIA will assist our science system in
translating our body of knowledge into new commercialisable technology-based
products and services.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) Global strategy on public health,
innovation and intellectual property acknowledges the initiatives taken, in
recent years, by member states, the pharmaceutical industry, charitable
foundations and non-governmental organisations to develop new products against
diseases affecting developing countries, and the need to increase access to
existing health products and medical devices.
However, these initiatives are not sufficient to surmount the challenges of
meeting the goal of ensuring access and innovation for needed health products
and medical devices. Our commitment to developing biotechnology for South
Africa can only be achieved through meaningful partnerships with relevant role
players, which include government, universities, science councils, industry,
the private sector, international collaborations, philanthropic funders and
venture capitalists.
As many of you will know, South Africa has a history of successful
engagement with traditional biotechnology. Specific examples include the Cape
Wine Industry that dates back over 350 years, and one of the largest breweries
in the world. Our people have also created a number of new plant varieties,
utilising South Africa's unique indigenous flora.
For example, developments in the Fynbos and Protea families have added great
commercial value to the country's efforts on the international cut flower
market. We have also established competitive industries in the production of a
wide range of dairy products, including cheese, yoghurt, Maas, and baker's
yeast.
Notwithstanding these successes, we have been slow to capitalise on our
potential in the past few decades, while genetics and genomic sciences were on
the rise. Now we must try to catch up with those developing countries that
caught the bio-wave such as Brazil, India, China and Cuba. We also recognise
the role biotechnology plays in identifying the basis of diseases and
developing amongst others, drugs to combat them.
My department is delighted to recognise and support initiatives such as
iThemba Pharmaceuticals in which we have investment R30 million through a joint
investment between LIFElab and BioPAD, two of the Biotechnology Innovation
Centres (BICs). Since funding was secured in 2006, things have moved forward
rapidly. A state-of-the-art chemical laboratory has been constructed at a site
in Modderfontein, just a few kilometers from here, and the CEO and a number of
other key staff with pharmaceutical industry experience, have been
appointed.
Through the influence of the iThemba Founders and the Scientific Advisory
Board network, strong technical linkages have been established with renowned
academic institutions in Europe and the United States, which also include South
African universities, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and
the Medical Research Council.
One of the initial technologies licensed to iThemba from Emory University to
enable cheaper production of the anti-retroviral drug, Abacavir, will play an
important role in addressing the need for more affordable and accessible
anti-HIV drugs for South Africa. Another technology licensed from Emory
University includes a number of compounds that have potential as anti-TB drugs.
Tuberculosis is currently one of the top ten causes of mortality and morbidity
in South Africa. Hence, this is another critical area where effective,
affordable and accessible treatment is required.
Commercial linkages have been created with a number of respected global
biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, and these will be iThemba's
partners in growing the company.
My department is also pleased to note that a library of 20 000 compounds has
been provided to iThemba by the UK Medical Research Council, and is being
screened for potential anti-malaria drugs. The screening is funded by the
Geneva-based Medicines for Malaria Initiative, which has also awarded iThemba
its first synthetic chemistry contract.
A collaborative agreement has been finalised between iThemba and Chimerix
Incorporated, a US based Biotechnology Company. Under this agreement, iThemba
will screen one of Chimerix's potent compound libraries for potential drugs to
combat a number of infectious diseases. We are hopeful that the important work
that has now begun at iThemba Pharmaceuticals will prove significant and worthy
of widespread acclaim for making inroads in combating the so far intractable
diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis and the spread of HIV infections, which
have handicapped Africa's progress for generations.
These diseases, often working in cahoots with one another, have wreaked
havoc across our continent, indiscriminately denying young children a life;
cutting down teenagers, heads of households, the rich and the poor, the
educated and the illiterate in a random and heartbreaking way, which can be
considered as nothing less than genocide by disease. If iThemba can find a way
of curtailing the progress of any one of these killers, it would have achieved
something definitely remarkable.
The extraordinary team that iThemba has assembled to nurture this enterprise
makes us truly optimistic that great things will follow. Allow me the
opportunity to acknowledge by name some of the founders of the company who also
serve on its Scientific Advisory Board.
These are:
* Dr. Anthony Barrett who is a Glaxo Professor of Chemistry at Imperial
College, London, and co-founder of Argenta Discovery, highly successful
contract chemistry services company.
* Our own Professor James Bull, an Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the
University of Cape Town, and a consultant-advisor to several pharmaceutical
companies.
* Dr. Eric Carreira is Professor of Organic Chemistry at ETH Zurich, and an
acknowledged world-expert in natural products chemistry.
* Dr Steven Ley is a BP Professor of Organic Chemistry and Fellow of Trinity
College, Cambridge. He co-founded Cambridge Discovery Chemistry, which was
later sold to Millennium Pharmaceuticals.
* Dr. Dennis Liotta is a Samuel Candler Dobbs Professor of Chemistry at Emory
University, Atlanta. He is the inventor of the successful HIV drugs Emtriva,
Reverset and Racivir; and founder of Slainte Bioceuticals and Pharmasset
Ltd.
* Dr. George Painter is the co-founder and President of Chimerix Inc., and a
former Vice President of Research and Development (R&D) Triangle
Pharmaceuticals.
* Dr. Rebanta Bandyopadhyay who is the Chief Scientific Officer of iThemba and
has extensive experience in the pharmaceutical industry, including drug
discovery and development.
I thank you all for your involvement and dedication to this enterprise so far.
Your honourable intentions, commitment and enthusiasm are critical to the
success of iThemba.
Allow me, in closing, to take this opportunity to urge iThemba, in the
course of its endeavours, to work in collaboration with other initiatives, such
as the African Traditional Medicines Platform, to mine South Africa's rich
biodiversity and indigenous knowledge to produce less costly pharmaceutical
products, with limited or zero side effects, for the benefit of all South
Africans.
To enhance the pipeline and the delivery of effective and cost-effective
treatments for infectious and chronic diseases affecting South Africans, I also
encourage you to seek collaboration with the Drug Delivery Platform at WITS
University, and the Aptamer Technology Research platform, to name a few.
Many of you will agree that the science and technology system in our country
is going through a very challenging, but exciting phase of development. Its
development has also received great support from government since 1994.
In 2002, former President Thabo Mbeki had this to say about the NSI: "We have
to devote the necessary resources to scientific and technological research and
development, including biotechnology. We must further encourage innovation
among our people and insure that we introduce new developments into our
productive activities."
We definitely need the help that iThemba seeks to provide. South Africa is
the most highly developed country in Africa, and most of the continent looks to
us to show the way forward. If we can contribute towards the elimination of
countless deaths from malaria, HIV infections and tuberculosis, we would have
done our bit in reducing the disease burden in Africa. And we have no doubt
that iThemba Pharmaceuticals will help us rise to the occasion.
Finally, it gives me singular pleasure to declare iThemba Pharmaceuticals
officially open for business. South Africa and the continent wish you good
fortune.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Science and Technology
19 March 2009
Source: Department of Science and Technology (http:///www.dst.gov.za)
