FAMOUS biomedical innovations are often cited as sharp observations of serendipitous discoveries. For example: Alexander Fleming and his discovery of penicillin from a mould growing on his overnight cultures; Louis Pasteur and the discovery of vaccination; and recently, Pfizer and the discovery of Viagra - initially meant to treat chest pains in men.
What is not emphasised but is just as important, if not more, than a discovery itself is the hard work that goes into making it a successful reality. After the exciting discovery stage, a huge amount of effort has to go into ensuring the discovery becomes a real world application.
I have been fortunate to have come across a serendipitous discovery myself.
When I started my research career some 35 years ago, I was working on angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE). This enzyme converts angiotensin I to angiotensin II, which plays a key role in narrowing blood vessels and causing high blood pressure.
The discovery came when I was working to see how the ACE derived from blood vessel cells would work on angiotensin I. Instead of getting angiotensin II, as would be expected, I kept getting this other peptide, DAA-1, which did not demonstrate the same harmful effects on blood vessel constriction and high blood pressure as angiotensin II.
Along with the members of my team, I continued to work on the compound. We later found DAA-1 to be potentially relevant for other medical applications - for example, to treat swollen hearts as a result of high blood pressure, to delay kidney failure, help the heart recover from a heart attack, prevent blood vessels from narrowing, reduce blood glucose, and combat viral infections.
When I submitted my first findings on DAA-1 to a scientific journal (Biochemical Pharmacology), some parts of the paper were rejected. That disappointment turned into excitement when I found out that I could patent those claims, as they had not been disclosed publicly. Patents are necessary to protect your innovations, as they give you the exclusive right to exploit them.
I was clueless about patents, so I worked closely with my colleagues from our university's technology transfer office as they shared with me the intricacies of patenting.
The cardinal rule you absolutely must comply with is novelty. This means you cannot have made any public disclosure of your discovery - be it oral, written or through prior public use. This was something of an anathema to me, because in academia you either 'publish or perish'.
Other considerations include making sure your innovation is inventive over previous inventions, that your claims can be reproduced by someone reading them and that you have sufficient data to support your claims.
Having filed your patent application, the next step is to focus on getting your invention commercialised - either through a licensing deal with a company that is interested in developing your technology, or by spinning off your own company. Your patents are worth nothing if they are not commercialised.
Licensing deal
Starting a business from scratch to develop and commercialise a new drug is financially beyond the resources of any individual scientist or university. So I worked closely with the university's technology transfer office to try and market and commercialise the patented innovations to industry.
Our efforts paid off financially when the technology transfer office successfully negotiated and concluded a licensing deal with an American biotechnology company for the rights to use DAA-1 in heart stents to prevent narrowing of blood vessels. It was the first drug licensing deal originating from a Singapore university then.
As for me, I was happy just to know that my efforts could be applied in the real world.
This story has a happy ending - but drug research and development is not for the fainthearted; it is a long and risky investment. Anecdotal numbers suggest a success rate ranging from 1-in-100 to 1-in-5,000. The long incubation period can sometimes outlast the academic life of the scientist, not forgetting the high cost of putting an identified drug through human clinical trials and finally marketing it to users.
Of course, such high risks are accompanied by the promise of a phenomenal return on investment, which explains the billions of dollars spent by pharmaceutical and biotech companies looking for that next blockbuster drug.
Investments in other fields of science are more forgiving. The gestation period from discovery in a laboratory to product or service in the marketplace is relatively shorter. Compared to drug development, translating discoveries and innovations in IT, engineering, physics, chemistry and design, for example, is often much cheaper.
I continue to work on DAA-1, with a focus on its potential applications as a new-generation anti-diabetic agent that could reduce blood glucose and protect the heart and kidneys in the long run. This is a contemporaneous approach, as heart diseases and renal failure are becoming prevalent in surviving diabetic patients.
As previously, I continue to work very closely with the NUS Industry Liaison Office. Over the years, this office has evolved into a one-stop centre where a first-time scientist-cum-investigator can find solace. I continue to enjoy our constant discussions on intellectual property (IP) protection and commercialisation.
Success comes in many ways and forms - but not without passion, hard work and, oftentimes, luck. As a scientist, it is extremely important to remain brave in defending your research findings. Criticism, ridicule and rejection cannot change a scientific finding that can be repeated and verified. Continue to work hard and you may one day be rewarded handsomely.
I coined the following phrase to help me through the many challenging hours I spent in my laboratory pursuing my scientific passion:
Luck has a preference for the prepared mind.
Money belongs to the ruthless.
Fortitude is an inborn error.
The writer is associate professor with the Department of Pharmacology, National University of Singapore. His life's work on angiotensin peptides has resulted in over 100 scientific publications, 13 granted patents and 11 pending ones.
