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MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge Presents "Vaccines and Global Health: New Technologies Create Global Opportunities"

Session to Feature Keynote by Dr. Andrin Oswald, CEO of Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Division

On November 9, the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge will present a session on the development of new technologies for the research, development and treatment of infectious diseases. The session will feature a keynote presentation by Dr. Andrin Oswald, CEO of the Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Division, to discuss the global public health concern for infectious disease and the reinvigoration of the market for disease research and vaccine development. Dr. Oswald will also share his thoughts on new vaccine opportunities and the response of the pharmaceutical industry to the H1N1 pandemic.

Following Dr. Oswald's presentation, the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), making a rare public address in Boston, will discuss its Innovation Fund, which features a three-year commitment of $10 million and is supported in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The IAVI will share its interest in partnering with companies in the biotechnology space.

Additionally, Dr. David E. Anderson of Variation Biotechnologies and Mustapha Leavenworth Bakali of Genocea Biosciences will each give short presentations about the current state of their respective companies. Both Variation and Genocea are well-funded private companies with investments from leading venture capital firms Clarus Ventures, Arch Venture Partners, 5AM Ventures; and Auriga Partners, Cycad Group, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Lux Capital Management, Polaris Venture Partners and Morningside Ventures, respectively.

Following the presentations, Dr. Una Ryan, a noted vaccine expert and the former CEO of AVANT Immunotherapeutics, will moderate a panel conversation featuring all of the evening's presenters.

Keynote speaker:

Dr. Andrin Oswald, M.D., is CEO of the Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Division and a permanent attendee of Novartis' Executive Committee. Dr. Oswald previously held positions of assistant to the chairman and CEO; head of the Country Pharma Organization (CPO) and country president for Novartis in South Korea; and CEO of Speedel and global head of development franchises at Novartis Pharma, all with Novartis. Prior to joining Novartis in 2005, Dr. Oswald worked with McKinsey and Company, Switzerland.

Panelists:

Dr. David E. Anderson, Ph.D. is vice president of immunology and co-founder of Variation Biotechnologies, a leader in the discovery and development of vaccines to fight infectious diseases. Dr. Anderson has extensive training and has published a number of records in many fields of immunology and is a former faculty member at Harvard Medical School.

Mustapha Leavenworth Bakali is CEO at Genocea Biosciences. Over the past 20 years, Bakali has held senior operating and leadership positions at ID Biomedical, acquired by GlaxoSmithKline; PowderJect Pharmaceuticals, acquired by Chiron; Chiron Vaccines, acquired by Novartis; and Intercell AG. Previously, Bakali was COO at ID Biomedical (IDB), a Vancouver, Canada-based company focused on vaccines for influenza.

Michelle Dees is the director of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative's (IAVI) Innovation Fund, a grant-giving mechanism targeted primarily at small- and medium-sized biotech companies. Prior to joining IAVI, Dees was manager of business development, marketing and regulatory affairs at Innovative Drug Delivery Systems (IDDS). Previously, Dees served in the Guyana Red Cross Society as a health education coordinator and director of the Red Cross Children's Home.

Dr. Una Ryan, Ph.D., O.B.E. is president and CEO of Waltham Technologies, a developer of innovative methods to clean water. Previously, Dr. Ryan held senior positions at AVANT Immunotherapeutics, Inc., T Cell Sciences Inc. and Monsanto Company. Dr. Ryan has extensive experience in the biotech industry and has served on the boards of the Biotechnology Industry Association and the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, which she chaired from 2004-2006.

When:  Monday, November 9, 2009
       5:30 p.m.: Networking
       6:15-8:00 p.m.: Program
       8:00-9:00 p.m.: Networking reception

Where: MIT Stata Center (Building 32), Kirsch Auditorium, 32 Vassar St.,
Cambridge, MA

Registration and information:
http://www.mitforumcambridge.org/iseries/nov09.html

Pricing: Forum members: $25, Non-members: $40. Students from all
universities are free with valid ID. Pre-registration is encouraged.