Supporting research, talent and innovation

By: John Bo Northroup

The Lundbeck Foundation aims to be a catalyst for talent and the innovative ideas of research communities. The road from research to business concern is paved with obstacles, and the Lundbeck Foundation wants to help remove these. As they say, it is important to take a broad and long-term view, and to be receptive to new, and occasionally crazy, ideas.

Denmark benefits from several commercial foundations that take both a broad and a long-term approach to their activities. One of these is the Lundbeck Foundation which, in addition to co-owning the pharmaceutical company Lundbeck, provider of security and emergency services Falck and asthma and allergy group ALK, is a committed investor in biotech start-ups as well as Danish and international life science enterprises.

The aim of the Foundation’s investments is to add value by transforming research into products such as new drugs, for the benefit of patients and society alike.

‘We consider ourselves a catalyst for talent and the innovative ideas of our research communities, and we aim to take both a broad and a holistic view,’ says Christian Elling, Managing Partner at Lundbeckfonden Emerge, an entity within the Lundbeck Foundation. Lundbeckfonden Emerge can help by providing initial capital and advice on identifying an idea during the early phase of a biotech start-up and by investing in more mature biotech companies.

‘It’s very much about giving clever ideas room to develop. And our support is not restricted to co-financing, we also provide advice and mentoring,’ Christian Elling explains.

Good ideas do not come to fruition by themselves. However, with the right support, innovation can be transformed into a commercial venture in the form of a biotech company that, in time, will grow, create jobs, generate export and, not least, benefit patients. The time aspect is a vital factor and one of the key features of foundation ownership and involvement.

‘We’re able to take a long-term approach. You could say we’re there at the ante-natal classes; we put the baby in an incubator after the birth, if necessary; we help the child learn to walk; and we’re more than happy to participate in the lifelong responsibility of parenthood – although not if it proves unnecessary,’ says Christian Elling.

This is a marked contrast to, for example, private equity funds and similar ownership interests, which typically have a much shorter time frame. In the fields of biotech and drug design, in particular, things take an inordinately long time, and there are often setbacks along the way.

‘We must allow for people to make mistakes, to gain novel insights and to adjust both their ideas and the envisaged drug candidate or therapy,’ Christian Elling stresses.

Time also gives us more opportunity to keep an open mind.

‘A novel insight may lead us down a path quite different from the one originally planned, but the new destination may still add value in the form of a novel drug candidate or therapy for the benefit of science, patients and society. That’s one of the advantages of thinking holistically,’ says Christian Elling.

A need for more research into brain disorders

Last year, the Lundbeck Foundation announced a substantial change in gear with its 2030 strategy: “Bringing Discoveries to Lives”. Elements of the strategy include a doubling of the Foundation’s worth and grants as well as further expansion of its portfolio of long-term ownerships in the field of healthcare. Just as important, however, is the Lundbeck Foundation’s continued aim to help generate innovation and encourage talent. One of the strategy’s value pillars is connecting academia and research with commerce.

The Lundbeck Foundation works to elevate Denmark to a frontrunner in the field of brain research by funding Danish-based research that promotes better understanding of the brain and better prevention, diagnosis and treatment of brain disorders. The Lundbeck Foundation's sharp focus on the brain and brain research is intrinsically linked to the astronomical cost of brain disorders to society. New research conducted at Aarhus University shows that brain disorders affect one in five Danes, and the direct and indirect costs associated with these disorders amount to more than DKK 100 billion a year. What’s more, the human cost paid by both patients and their relatives is immense.

Christian Elling emphasises that the field of brain research is not nearly as advanced as research on cardiovascular diseases or diabetes.

‘There is therefore a need to establish research and develop areas of expertise related to brain research. This takes time, and when it comes to supporting initiatives associated with brain research and the central nervous system our approach is also long-term,’ says Christian Elling.

In this context, an interesting angle is the potential for biotech companies to use their technology and knowhow to join forces and identify tomorrow’s solutions to the increasing threat posed by brain disorders to public health and society.

Three examples from the Lundbeckfonden Emerge portfolio

One example is NMD Pharma in Aarhus. NMD Pharma is a biotech company making a stand against neuromuscular diseases that cause muscle fatigue. The company focuses on the point where the nerves meet muscles and on identifying molecules able to strengthen nerve-muscle communication. The basic idea comes from many years of basic research into neuromuscular diseases, and they have succeeded in transforming a seedling idea from an academic project into a growing biotech company.

Another example is Vesper Biotechnology, a spin-off from research at Aarhus University. The company builds on basic research into a group of special proteins that play a key role in brain disorders that have been funded for many years by organisations such as the Lundbeck Foundation. The Lundbeck Foundation has also invested in Vesper Biotechnology for a number of years, and the company has patiently researched further, aiming to transform this basic research into potential, novel drugs to combat certain dementia disorders.

A third example is biotech company SNIPR Biome. SNIPR conducts research into the use of so-called CRISPR technology for the design of precision drugs, for instance to fight serious infections and multi-resistant bacteria. Put simply, SNIPR Biome uses the CRISPR technology to edit the genes in the bacteria we have in our bodies. Last year, the company was the winner of the Life Science category of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award, in recognition of, among other things, their ability to raise capital based on their exciting technology. Specifically, they managed to raise USD 50 million in one of Europe’s largest Series A financing rounds for many years. CRISPR technology could potentially also be applied to areas relevant to the central nervous system, and it is an example of the way in which the various fields of research can inspire each other.