NZBio Awards Celebrate Outstanding Achievements

NZBio Awards Celebrate Outstanding Achievements

New Zealand’s biotech community is celebrating the outstanding achievements of some of its members tonight, with the announcement of the NZBio 2007 Distinguished and Emerging Biotechnologist of the Year Awards.

Professor Bill Denny and Professor Bill Wilson of the Auckland Cancer Society Research Centre are the joint recipients of this year’s Distinguished Biotechnologist Award. Together, they co-founded Proacta Therapeutics in 2001, to further the development of hypoxia activated prodrugs for treating cancer.

Professors Denny and Wilson are internationally recognised as leaders in this type of cancer treatment and have contributed to many new concepts in this field. Their company, Proacta Therapeutics, has also caught the world’s attention, recently raising US$35m in a Series B round of funding. This money will be used to take their anticancer compound PR-104 through the next phase of clinical development and to support the discovery and development of new compounds.

The 2007 NZBio Emerging Biotechnologist of the Year is Michael North of AgResearch. Holding a PhD in Food Engineering, Mike’s work is helping to add value to New Zealand’s food industry through new knowledge and novel technologies.

He is the leader of several research teams and programmes at AgResearch, and has brought new tools to the food industry such as user friendly software for the design of new food processes, virtual beef and lamb carcasses which can provide anatomically accurate bone positions and muscle location, and a device to better understand the potential for microbial growth on foods.

New Zealand’s meat and food industries have received significant commercial benefit from Mike’s research to date. His work has the potential to revolutionise the meat industry, and to have a key role in ensuring this country’s red meat industry remains internationally competitive.

“These awards are about much more than celebrating the achievements of individuals. They recognise New Zealanders whose use of biotechnology is benefiting people with serious illnesses, other industries, and the country’s economic and intellectual future,” NZBio’s CEO Brian Ward says.

“The level of talent in New Zealand’s biotech community is something we should all be proud of. We congratulate tonight’s winners and wish them well.”

Sponsored by Neuren Pharmaceuticals, the awards are the highest recognition of achievement bestowed by NZBio, New Zealand’s biotechnology industry organisation. They recognise significant contributions made by New Zealanders, or those working in New Zealand, to the field of biotechnology.

For further information contact: Brian Ward, CEO NZBio Ph 021 727 646

ENDS

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