Download A PHILANTHRO-CAPITALIST`S WISH TO “DESTROY MOTOR

NUNERVE
COMMERCIALISATION STORIES
A PHILANTHRO-CAPITALIST’S
WISH TO “DESTROY MOTOR
NEURON DISEASE”
NuNerve’s research strategy is focussed on the understanding
of neurodegenerative diseases and transforming outcomes
for Motor Neuron Disease patients by concentrating on gene
discovery, gene function, protein and molecular mechanisms.
The company NuNerve was seeded by a multi-million dollar bequest
from Mr Peter Goodenough, a determined and independent
entrepreneur, who lost his life to Motor Neuron Disease (MND) in 2004.
The charter of the company in the words of Mr Goodenough is “to
destroy Motor Neuron Disease” even though he knew he would not
personally benefit from the philanthropic capital invested towards
MND research.
NuNerve funds a number of MND research programs in the
Queensland Brain Institute (QBI) at The University of Queensland.
UQ’S RESEARCH EXCELLENCE TO
EXCELLENCE PLUS WITH UNIQUEST
UQ Research Strength:Neurosciences
UQ Innovator(s):Dr Marie Mangelsdorf,
Associate Professor Elizabeth
Coulson, and Professors Joe
Lynch and Pankaj Sah
UQ Faculty or Institute:Queensland Brain Institute
UQ Research Outcome:Potential therapeutic and
prevention for Motor Neuron
Disease
UniQuest IP Position:A number of maturing patent applications related to MND
UniQuest Partnering:Collaborate with Mr
Goodenough’s Trust to form
NuNerve and leverage the
funds to amplify QBI’s chances
“to destroy MND”
UniQuest
License IP to NuNerve Pty
Commercialisation: Limited and manage arising IP
WHAT IS MND?
Motor Neuron Disease is the name given to a group of related brain
disorders that affect the motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord,
leading to muscle wasting and the loss of nerve cells that control
speech, swallowing and respiration. The condition results from
the steady but inexorable loss of nerve cells that control muscle
movement and function (motor neurons).
Currently there is no known cure or effective treatment for MND,
and most sufferers die within three years of diagnosis. Researchers
globally are striving to understand what MND is, why it occurs, how to
slow its progress and reduce its impact, and ultimately to find a cure.
Finding a treatment or prevention didn’t happen soon enough for
the self-made millionaire Mr Peter Goodenough who lost his life
to MND in 2004 but he wanted some of his wealth to be used “to
destroy MND” even though he knew he would personally not benefit
from the research. During the 1970s and 1980s, Mr Goodenough
developed a multi-million dollar civil engineering contracting
company with extensive interests in Papua New Guinea. At its peak,
Mr Goodenough’s Bougainville operation employed more than 100
people for road building, trucking and pre-fabricated housing.
A PHILANTHRO-CAPITALIST’S LEGACY
Neil Matheson, Mr Goodenough’s Joint Trustee and former
accountant, said that Mr Goodenough identified The University
of Queensland after spending six months trying to find the best
scientists to work on a cure for MND.
Peter died at the age of 68 after a three year battle with MND which left
him wheelchair-bound and unable to speak for the final year of his life.
Nevertheless, as a part of his legacy, a multi-million dollar investment
was made in NuNerve to fund ground breaking MND research at UQ’s
QBI with the goal of finding a cure for Motor Neuron Disease.
At the request of Mr Goodenough’s Trust in 2009, UniQuest
established NuNerve Pty Limited and a number of inventions relevant
to MND (and already the subject of a patent application) were
licensed to NuNerve.
NUNERVE
COMMERCIALISATION STORIES
“I have derived great satisfaction in helping to
facilitate the wishes of the late Peter Goodenough,
by provision of funding, through his Estate, to UQ
and QBI. This has enabled excellent progress in
medical research into MND, which may one day
lead to beating this dreadful disease which afflicts
so many people. I am proud to be associated with
NuNerve Pty Limited, which enables this work to
carry on for the future”.
PARTNER WITH UNIQUEST
Neil Matheson FCA
Chair - NuNerve Pty Limited
UniQuest has created over 70 companies from its intellectual
property portfolio, and since 2000 UniQuest and its start
ups have raised more than $490 million to take university
technologies to market. UQ technologies licensed by
UniQuest – including UQ’s cervical cancer vaccine technology
and image correction technology in magnetic resonance
imaging machines – have resulted in combined sales of
final products in the order of $10 billion net sales between
2007-2013.
ARC LINKAGE
With the NuNerve Board comprising of Trustees of Mr Goodenough
and representatives of UniQuest and the Queensland Brain Institute,
the company has leveraged the bequest to obtain matching funds
from three successful Australian Research Council Linkage grant
applications. As of 2014, that has channelled a total of $11 million of
funding for MND research at QBI to date.
The three QBI research leaders and their respective Australian
Research Council Linkage projects are outlined below.
UniQuest is one of Australia’s leading research
commercialisation companies. It specialises in global
technology transfer and facilitates access for all business
sectors to the world class expertise, intellectual property and
facilities at The University of Queensland, Australia.
OUR TRACK RECORD
UniQuest enters into over 400 research contracts per year
– many repeat clients from industry.
If you want to know more about this commercialisation
story or other offerings from Health and UniQuest then
contact Dr Mark Ashton, Senior Director – Health in IP
Commercialisation by mobile +61 (0)410 601 970, email
[email protected] or visit www.uniquest.com.au
Dr Marie Mangelsdorf and her research team, initially headed by Dr
Robyn Wallace, are uncovering the genetic causes of MND.
Associate Professor Elizabeth Coulson and her research team are
funded to identify and validate candidate therapeutics for MND.
THE NUNERVE JOURNEY SO FAR
Professors Joe Lynch and Pankaj Sah and their research groups are
working together to develop compounds to delay the onset of MND
symptoms.
•NuNerve exists because of the legacy of Mr Peter
Goodenough, a determined and independent
entrepreneur, who lost his life to Motor Neuron
Disease in 2004.
The Queensland Brain Institute is internationally recognised for its
ground breaking brain research. QBI attracts the best researchers
from around the world who work in multidisciplinary teams which
focus on basic research on the brain function and dysfunction. By
developing a deep understanding of the nervous system, how it
works and how best to regulate it, QBI and companies like NuNerve
are supporting research that can lead to the development of new
therapeutic approaches to prevent and delay disease onset.
PAVING THE FUTURE
It is clear that NuNerve is delivering on its charter to advance groundbreaking research on Motor Neuron Disease towards a cure. However,
findings from these studies are also relevant to disorders such as
Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis and dementia where an
understanding of cell death and how to delay or mitigate it, enables
the development of new potential drug treatments.
•In the words of Mr Goodenough, the charter of the
company is “to destroy MND”.
•Mr Goodenough wanted to fund MND research in the
Queensland Brain Institute after he spent six months trying
to find the best scientists to work on a cure for the disease.
•NuNerve was founded by Mr Goodenough’s
Trust in collaboration with UniQuest to fund research
in the Queensland Brain Institute at The University
of Queensland.
•The investment by Mr Goodenough’s Trust into NuNerve
has been leveraged in three successful QBI grant
applications to the Australian Research Council Linkage
Program with NuNerve as the commercial partner.
•As of 2014, NuNerve funding matched by the Australian
Research Council’s Linkage Program has channelled a
total of $11 million of funding to QBI for MND research.