Dates set for 2007 AGM

Mark your calendar! The 2007 Stem Cell Network AGM will be held in Toronto, Ontario November 6 - 9, 2007 at the Marriott Hotel.

For more information, please visit the SCN website at www.stemcellnetwork.ca/agm

SCN Transitional Research Grant

• The transitional research grant provides financial support to post-doctoral fellows or research associates to manage/undertake a research project while under the supervision of an investigator.
• Provide support of up to $20,000/year for a maximum of 2 years.
• Deadline: March 15, 2007.
• For more information visit the SCN website.

SCN Co-op Award

• The co-op award provides funds towards a salary for a co-op student to work on a research project with clear relevance to stem cells.
• Applicants must be enrolled in a co-operative program at a Canadian university and working towards their undergraduate degree.
• The award is for $10,000 for two four-month work-terms (which may be contiguous).
• Deadline: March 15, 2007.
• For more information visit the SCN website.

SCN Social Sciences Summer Studentship

• Provides funds towards a salary for a summer student to work on a research project with clear relevance to stem cells.
• The award is for $5,000 for one four-month work-term.
• Competitions are held annually, typically the first Friday in March.
• Deadline: March 15, 2007.
• For more information visit the SCN website.

Fabio Rossi organizes multi-flow cytometry course at UBC

Who: All Network trainees are eligible to apply to participate
What: Hands-on Course on Multicolor Flow Cytometry, partnered with BD Biosciences.
Where: University of British Columbia, Vancouver
When: Date to be confirmed. Check SCN website for updates.
Why: The aim of this workshop is to enable the participants to perform flow cytometry on complex samples using 5 or more fluorochromes.

Trainees will learn:
Theory of flow cytometry, with particular focus on experimental design, chromofore selection and multicolor compensation; magnetic pre-enrichment of rare populations; hands on set up of multilaser flow cytometers, including Diva-Vantage, LSRII, Aria and Canto; hands-on compensation of complex samples; sorting and purity assessment

Structure:
Trainees will attend lectures on theory of the application in the mornings, followed by sample preparation and staining. During the afternoons, trainees will be separated into four groups of three and each group will work on one of the four flow cytometers.

It is anticipated that trainees at an advanced stage of their training will be registering for this workshop as well as trainees that will apply the technique to their own research project.

Registration Cost:
The Network will charge a registration fee of $250 per applicant.

Registration fee is due before attending the workshop.
The Stem Cell Network will cover all expenses associated with attending the workshop (accommodation and meals). Reimbursement will be processed following the workshop and in accordance with SCN Travel Policy
(Travel Policy will be provided to selected applicants)

Applicants must be SCN Trainees.

Applicants must clearly demonstrate that they will apply the technique learned at the workshop to their own research project within one year.

Award Announcements

Winners were recently announced in the SCN Coop Award. SCN trainees, Blair Gage (Tim Kieffer's lab) and Darik Gamble (Eric Jervis' lab) were both selected to receive the awards. Provides funds towards a salary for a co-op student to work on a research project with clear relevance to stem cells.

Winners were also announced in the SCN/MDC PhD studentship. SCN trainees, Feodor Price (Michael Rudnicki's lab) and Michael Long (Fabio Rossi's lab) were both selected to receive the awards. The award provides a salary and additional support for Ph.D. students to work on a research project which are relevant to both neuromuscular diseases and the SCN goals.

Mary Fayad recently joined the Stem Cell Network/Canadian Stroke Network as the acting Finance Manager. Mary replaces Jennifer Masek, who is on maternity leave for a year.

Mary is a chartered accountant and she returns to the workforce after taking 10 years off to raise her three sons. A graduate of the University of Ottawa, Mary has worked at KPMG and Metropolitan Life. She is a runner, reader and an avid kickboxer.

Mary can be contacted by phone at 613-562-5800 ext. 8594, or by email at mary@stemcellnetwork.ca

Getting a Job After Your Graduate Degree:
Working in Technology Transfer

In this article we discuss technology transfer groups, what they do, and some of the skills required to work in them.

Technology transfer is the term commonly used to describe the business of moving publicly funded laboratory research to the private sector. With growing demands by science funding bodies for direct, practical applications of the research they are paying for it’s no surprise that the idea of technology transfer has grown in importance at publicly funded research organizations over the last several years. Virtually every university or research organization of significant size now has a group responsibility for technology transfer. These groups vary significantly in size, mandate and the roles that the employees play. Rather than speaking in broad terms in about tech transfer groups in general we’ve chosen to focus in on a single group, and it operates: The Technology Transfer and Business Enterprise (TTBE) at the University of Ottawa.

We spoke to Joe Irvine, Director of the TTBE about tech transfer and the skills required. With an MSc and BSc in molecular biology, he has more than 20 years experience in business development and commercialization at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, the University of Guelph and the private sector.

What is Technology Transfer?

“There is quite broad array of activities in technology transfer. Across the United States, technology transfer means ‘technology commercialization’. However, most of the activities within a Canadian technology transfer office are not commercialization. In our office we establish both research partnerships (contract research) and technology partnerships (development and commercialization of intellectual property). We are also involved in the activity most people associate with technology transfer, namely the creation of a research-based startup company.”

What sort educational background is required to work in technology transfer?

 “My scientific background is medical genetics followed by business development experience. We want people with a scientific background plus a business or legal background.  Experience in startups or in industry is an asset.”

How much do you need to know about a field to work with researchers in that field?

 “What you need is scientific literacy. You don't need detailed research experience, because there are so many areas of technology and development, you cannot have expertise in all areas. But most of advanced technology, is from several major research areas: life sciences, photonics, telecommunications, software, IT, nanotechnology and systems biology.  You should have one of those fields that you are extremely literate in.”

How long does it take to complete the commercialization of a given technology?

“It depends on the type of technology that you’re dealing with, but in the life science you are looking at a ten to fifteen year horizon to get to phase three clinical trials.”

How do you go about finding and developing a commercial opportunity?

“There are a lot of different requirements on commercialization. It depends on the project. It depends on the market opportunity. It depends on the knowledge and skills of the research team and management capability that is involved in a research team, the macroeconomic conditions in raising funding, and a lot of other things that are not within the control of the tech transfer office. So what you have to do is find the best commercial opportunity out of the portfolio of intellectual property and research expertise. Sometimes the value is in the quality of the researcher and not necessarily with the commercial opportunity with the intellectual property that you have.”

How do you identify researchers who are good candidates to have their research commercialized?

“All researchers are potential sources of intellectual property.  However, there are many researchers who stand out in the research portfolio. Some of them are obvious: such as those who have research chairs. The scientific peer review process and the research revenues a researcher has are good ways to determine who is a good candidate for technology transfer. But everyone has their own personality and their own interests. If a researcher is not interested in commercializing: that probably means that commercialization of their technology is not going to be successful.”

How is a commercialization venture initiated?

“Companies can look for specific research expertise, types of equipment and skills. To be honest that doesn’t happen a lot as academia is not seen as a very responsive problem- solver for companies. More often we start with technology developed by a researcher and disclosed to our office.  For a project that requires significant additional development, what we’re looking for is a researcher who has a scientific and industrial network of contacts.

Technology transfer offices have our own networks regionally, within various disciplines across the country.  We to try to match opportunities, often research opportunities with commercial opportunities. Government programs have encouraged this as both provincially and federally there is research money available for collaborative research with industry. That helps identify market opportunities and gets people to work together that might not have otherwise. If the relationship is a good one you’re going to create joint intellectual property as the project develops and this will probably be commercialized faster than what people think of as the normal process where we take a patent and go out and look for a licensee.”

For SCN trainees interested in broadening their skills into business or law and helping find practical applications of laboratory research, technology transfer looks like a great job opportunity.

Many thanks to Joe Irvine for taking the time to speak with us.

***

Some Canadian Technology Transfer Groups

Ottawa Health Research Institute Technology Transfer and Business Development
http://www.ohri.ca/tech_transfer/default.asp

University of Ottawa Technology Transfer and Business Enterprise
http://www.ttbe.uottawa.ca/index.asp

University of Toronto: Technology Transfer
http://www.research.utoronto.ca/ipc/

University of British Columbia: University Industry Liaison Office
http://www.uilo.ubc.ca/