WASHINGTON (October 20, 2014) – A major challenge for federally funded research and technology is bridging the so-called "valley of death" - a state of development where many promising discoveries die because they are not sufficiently advanced to attract private sector partners or venture funding even though they may have tremendous potential impact. This is a particularly serious problem when dealing with rare or neglected diseases where developing new treatments can literally mean the difference between life and death.
To specifically address the challenges of the valley of death, the National Institutes of Health established the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). Utilizing a unique technology transfer model, NCATS has formed high-impact R&D partnerships that are revolutionizing how government agencies can remove barriers to commercialization, spur innovation, and provide greater returns to the American taxpayer from the billions of dollars invested in the federal research system.
The House Technology Transfer Caucus, the Center for Clean Energy Innovation (CCEI), and the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) will host a panel discussion to highlight the successes that have come out of the NCATS program, the benefits of its business model in transitioning drug discovery to drug development and how it can be transferred for use by other government agencies. The event will be held from 10:00 AM to 11:30 AM, Wednesday, October 29 at the Rayburn House Office Building, Rm. 2168, on Capitol Hill.
The panel will be moderated by Matthew Stepp, Executive Director of CCEI and will feature Christopher Austin, Director of NCATS; Joe Allen, former President of the National Technology Transfer Center; Steve Seiler, CEO of AesRx, LLC; Paul Kaplan, Senior Director of Program Management at Genzyme; and Ronald Bartek, President of the Friedreich’s Ataxia Research Alliance.
The event is free, open to the public and complies with ethics rules.
Register for the event.
