The Galien Foundation Announces Partnership with Business France to Foster US-France Life Sciences Innovation via MedStartUp Program

NEW YORK, Oct. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- The Galien Foundation, a global non-profit that fosters scientific innovation in medicine, and the French government economic development agency, Business France, announced today the launch of a joint program to foster private-sector collaborations focused on developing new therapies to treat medical conditions that pose a threat to public health worldwide. The program, MedStartUp, builds on several years of trans-Atlantic cooperation between the two organizations to strengthen commercial partnerships that bridge the traditional silos between government, industry and academia; defray the growing complexity and cost burden of R&D; and promote cross-border trade, jobs and economic growth. The program will be sponsored by Medidata, a leading global provider of cloud-based solutions for clinical research in life sciences.

"The new partnership with Business France advances the Foundation's mission – to improve the state of human health," said Bruno Cohen, Chairman of the Galien Foundation. "Our organizations are aligned in recognizing the importance of life science innovation, and MedStartUp will generate meaningful global business opportunities, bringing together talent from the two major research centers of excellence in biopharmaceuticals – the US and Europe."

MedStartUp will involve more than 250 executives and researchers from the US, France and other countries, and will take place on October 27-28 at the Alexandria Center for Life Sciences in New York. The program's mission is to foster innovative research partnerships among pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device manufacturers, vaccines producers, academic research institutes, and healthcare organizations, including e-health vendors. A focal point of the initiative is the active participation of more than 50 innovative startups based in France who are seeking US partners to share research and support global commercial development of their lead product candidates.

In addition to one-on-one meetings among participating companies, on October 27^th, the Galien Foundation will also host a panel of corporate venture capital experts from Pfizer, Orbimed Advisors and the Accelerator Corporation to discuss current best practices in financing successful life science startups. Joel Marcus, CEO and founder of Alexandria Real Estate Equities, which develops and operates a global network of life science incubator facilities, including one in New York, will moderate the session. The program will convene in conjunction with The Annual Galien Forum, a full-day symposium, held under the patronage of four Nobel laureates.

MedStartUp will be followed by the development of a number of collaborative R&D projects based on the investor meetings, which will be presented for review in June 2016 in front of a distinguished selection committee of eight industry CEOs and R&D leaders. Chaired by Roche board director and former Wyeth Pharmaceuticals CEO Bernard Poussot, the group will nominate nine candidates in four award categories:

• Best breakthrough therapy collaboration/partnership with an academic institution
• Best innovative clinical trial design
• Best use of patient-centered health engagement technology
• Best collaboration/partnership in a breakthrough therapy or diagnosis geared towards developing countries

Following six months of strategic and logistical support for project implementation provided by Business France, the MedStartUp Awards will be presented at the Prix Galien US Annual Gala in October 2016.

"In a highly competitive world, the early identification of strategic partners has become critical to commercial success in biopharmaceuticals. MedStartUp represents a unique combination of private enterprise and government advocacy that will deliver the energy, focus and resources we need to confront the rising global burden of disease," said Awards Jury Chair Bernard Poussot. "I look forward to working with my distinguished colleagues from the US and Europe to identify opportunities from this research and showcase what government and industry can do together, not only in accelerating the pace of innovation but recommending ways to improve regulatory, infrastructure and financial incentives for greater collaboration."

Bryan Spielman, Executive Vice President of Medidata, sponsor of the MedStartUp program, added: "The complexity of 21^st century biology—from translational research to precision medicine to integrated healthcare—underlies its critical dependence on new, innovative technologies. As the leading global provider of cloud-based solutions for clinical research in life sciences, Medidata shares the Galien Foundation's commitment to innovation and advancing healthcare around the world. We are proud to support this important initiative and its mission to improve scientific discovery, therapeutic effectiveness and public health."

About the MedStartUp Jury

Chairman:  Bernard Poussot - Director, Roche Holdings, Former President & CEO, Wyeth

Roch Doliveux - Honorary CEO, UCB
Mikael Dolsten - Global R&D President, Pfizer
Jean-Pierre Garnier - Former Global President, GSK
Franz Humer - Former Global President, Roche
François Maisonrouge - Senior Director, Evercore Partners
Paul Stoffels - Chief Scientific Officer, Johnson & Johnson
Elias Zerhouni - Global R&D President, Sanofi

About Business France

Business France is the government agency responsible for helping small and medium-sized French enterprises expand business abroad and to promote foreign investment in the local economy, especially in knowledge-based activities that increase high-skills employment. It was established on January 1, 2015 as a result of the merger of UBIFRANCE, which focused on helping local business, and the Invest in France Agency, responsible for attracting foreign firms to locate in France.

About the Galien Foundation

The Galien Foundation, an independent, non-profit organization, recognizes and rewards excellence in scientific innovation to improve the state of human health. It does this through annual awards that highlight research excellence in biopharmaceuticals, vaccines and medical devices as well as informational and thought leadership programs to support health innovation and cooperation among governments, industry, academia and professional organizations. Our vision is to serve as a catalyst for development of the next generation of innovative treatments and technologies that will impact human health and save lives. For more information, please visit http://galienfoundation.org/.

Follow and engage with the MedStartUp discussion on social media with #MedStartUp and by following The Galien Foundation online:

• @GalienFdn http://twitter.com/GalienFdn
• https://www.facebook.com/GalienFoundation
• https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-galien-foundation
• https://www.youtube.com/user/prixgalienusa

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SOURCE The Galien Foundation

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