Archive for the ‘Women in Biotech’ Category
Feb
07
Posted under
Biocon,
Blog,
Companies,
Diagnostics,
Funding,
india,
insulin,
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw,
Medical Devices,
Medical Supply,
Pharmaceuticals,
Startups,
Universities,
Videos,
Women in Biotech by John Carroll
Perfecting the hybrid R&D model
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw
Chairman and founder
Biocon
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw is a powerhouse in India. While many life sciences businesses in the subcontinent have struggled to develop a winning formula, she was out striking a rich development deal on biosimilar insulin products with Pfizer. And starting out with nothing, she's forged a drug development arm that could well prove that the country's acknowledged scientific skills can translate into a thriving development industry.
Oddly enough, Mazumdar-Shaw started off in the beer business, learning a considerable amount about enzyme activity that would later bring her fortune with an industrial enzymes manufacturing business. But her most recent breakthroughs have been built on a deep understanding of the ways in which India can play a big role in the multinational pharma game.
"I really believe this is an interesting hybrid model for drug innovation," Mazumdar-Shaw recently told FierceBiotech, taking the "low-cost base in India and marrying it with the discovery skills in the U.S. and seeing if you can reduce the cost and time for drug development. We do what we do best in India and they do what they do best in the U.S."
With a 20% annual growth rate, Mazumdar-Shaw has proven that the subcontinent can create a go-go life sciences outfit with broad international connections. Her vitality has inspired a whole generation of Indians, men and women, meaning that there is tremendous potential to be tapped. The success of the industry and Mazumdar-Shaw are closely entwined.
Nov
29
Posted under
Blog,
Companies,
Diagnostics,
Funding,
Medical Devices,
Medical Supply,
Pharmaceuticals,
Startups,
Universities,
Videos,
Women in Biotech by Biotech News
Female biotech executives have been key players in many of the biggest events in the industry this year--Takeda Pharmaceutical's buyout of Nycomed, the merger of Alkermes ($ALKS) and Elan Drug Technologies and the sale of Plexxikon to Daiichi Sankyo. Should we be surprised? No, women in this industry defy the odds when they rise to key positions in the male-dominated biotech game. Of course we're seeing them accomplish big things. But they deserve recognition.
So, we're excited to bring our readers FierceBiotech's much-awaited-and belated-Women in Biotech feature. We had an overwhelming response to our call for nominations this year, with more than 130 great submissions and an amazing slate of candidates. True to our mission of providing readers the top news in biotech, many of the honorees here are women who drove some of the big stories we covered this year. We also wanted the women featured this year to represent the best of the global biotech industry, and you'll find women here who are making an impact for organizations based in Asia, Europe and here in the U.S.
These women are inspiring, not just to women, but (at least speaking for the males on our team) men involved in the industry, too. Our profiles will bring you up to date with what each of these female movers in biotech are working on these days. Some are rallying scientists at young startups, gearing up for important late-stage trials or leading research of serious health concerns such as HIV. For each of the honorees, there are unique stories about how impressive women have gotten ahead in the competitive biotech field.
"I think that the potential interesting little extra that you get from speaking to some of the women in biotech is we've probably been challenged with thinking a little bit more about how to cultivate our careers," said Abbie Celniker, chief executive of Eleven Biotherapeutics and one of this year's Women in Biotech. "As a result, we can be a tiny bit more self-reflective because we've had to do lots of course correction to make sure we could compete in the days when it was more predominately male."
Click here to see the 2011 winners 
Click here to see last year's list
Nov
29
Posted under
Blog,
Companies,
Diagnostics,
Funding,
Laura Shawver,
Medical Devices,
Medical Supply,
Pharmaceuticals,
Startups,
Universities,
Videos,
Women in Biotech by John Carroll
Laura Shawver, Ph.D.
CEO, Cleave Biosciences
Laura Shawver might never have found herself in the front ranks of biotech entrepreneurs without a helpful twist of fate. Close to accepting a job in academia at the University of Kansas, she discovered an ad about a position for a bench scientist in molecular biology at Triton, a Shell subsidiary. That position got her started down a career path marked by a series of takeovers that ultimately paved the way to the president's office at Sugen. This was back in 2000 to 2002, before outsourcing became a dominant trend and big staffs were the order of the day.
Today, Shawver is CEO of San Francisco-based Cleave Biosciences, which has a staff of nine, an A round of $42 million and a mandate to go after a new field in cancer drug development. This is her second go-round as a biotech CEO. She took charge of Phenomix when it was tackling a diabetes program in San Diego. Phenomix was shut down after its big pharma partner pulled out and the odds of success looked bleak.
In biotech, though, that kind of experience can be a plus. And everyone, including the venture backers whose trust she retained, understands the long-odds gamble involved in drug discovery and development.
Four years ago, Shawver found herself playing a role in medical science she never had expected: as a patient, being treated for ovarian cancer. For a take-charge individual like herself, it was a chance to assess the strengths and weaknesses in the field and then do something about it. She launched the Clearity Foundation, a nonprofit group which helps women with recurrent or hard-to-treat ovarian cancer gain access to molecular profiling and diagnostic tests that can help determine the next treatment choice. The foundation set out to help provide access if insurers wouldn't and maintain a database to track outcomes over time.
For Shawver, a stint in San Diego led to a love of surfing, which helped provide some balance and perspective on her life and career.
"I lived up here (in San Francisco) for 13 years and then moved to San Diego," says Shawver. "That's where I learned to surf. Cleave has only been going since September," an experience she describes as "Mach 3 with your hair on fire." The short translation to that is there's no time to catch a wave just now, but once things settle down a bit she plans to be back on the beach for some rec time.
"It's never a dull moment," says Shawver about her new startup. "I always love the people I work with and the team spirit that goes along with the project; everybody pulling together with a common goal and trying to help people with serious diseases. I guess I never planned to be a CEO. I thought I'd always be a scientist. But I was fortunate to have good mentors who gave me opportunities."
Nov
29
Posted under
Blog,
Companies,
Diagnostics,
Funding,
Medical Devices,
Medical Supply,
Pharmaceuticals,
Startups,
Universities,
Videos,
Women in Biotech by Biotech News
by Ryan McBride and John Carroll
Female biotech executives have been key players in many of the biggest events in the industry this year--Takeda Pharmaceutical's buyout of Nycomed, the merger of Alkermes ($ALKS) and Elan Drug Technologies and the sale of Plexxikon to Daiichi Sankyo. Should we be surprised? No, women in this industry defy the odds when they rise to key positions in the male-dominated biotech game. Of course we're seeing them accomplish big things. But they deserve recognition.
So, we're excited to bring our readers FierceBiotech's much-awaited-and belated-Women in Biotech feature. We had an overwhelming response to our call for nominations this year, with more than 130 great submissions and an amazing slate of candidates. True to our mission of providing readers the top news in biotech, many of the honorees here are women who drove some of the big stories we covered this year. We also wanted the women featured this year to represent the best of the global biotech industry, and you'll find women here who are making an impact for organizations based in Asia, Europe and here in the U.S.
These women are inspiring, not just to women, but (at least speaking for the males on our team) men involved in the industry, too. Our profiles will bring you up to date with what each of these female movers in biotech are working on these days. Some are rallying scientists at young startups, gearing up for important late-stage trials or leading research of serious health concerns such as HIV. For each of the honorees, there are unique stories about how impressive women have gotten ahead in the competitive biotech field.
"I think that the potential interesting little extra that you get from speaking to some of the women in biotech is we've probably been challenged with thinking a little bit more about how to cultivate our careers," said Abbie Celniker, chief executive of Eleven Biotherapeutics and one of this year's Women in Biotech. "As a result, we can be a tiny bit more self-reflective because we've had to do lots of course correction to make sure we could compete in the days when it was more predominately male."
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