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RARE DISEASE FUND by GSK is a trend we see increasingly today. A decade ago, rare diseases were a very hard sell to VCs or Pharma. With the easier big disease targets solved with drugs like statins, and despite newly invented diseases like ED and RLS, the traditional target pool is diminishing. However, we have not yet seen the rise of Intelligent Drugs: making good drugs perform better by using smart materials that are responsive to the environment. Smart drugs can increase compliance, thus efficacy, and be more patient-centric just as the medical paradigm is changing. Watch this space! http://lnkd.in/3ASxtj View in LinkedIn

EXPERIENCE THE UNFAMILIAR from time to time, like the person interviewed in this charming and insightful report. Take time to let new ideas simmer and cook. Without this you will miss a lot. http://lnkd.in/ZAGVHB View in LinkedIn

GREEN NANO applications and solutions for CO2 emissions and energy efficiency, both super big problems facing societies. The key to most of these ideas is to develop Bolt-On solutions that can be applied to big industrial operations without changing the basic machinery. Without this box ticked, the installation objection to the sell is insurmountable. " "" " http://lnkd.in/f_Tnyb View in LinkedIn

COMPASSIONATE CARE and quackery mixes dangerously with patients with incurable diseases. Chinese publications, an outcry from the professional community, and a few more indicators raise the suspicions, and not for the first time. Years ago, doctors were setting up" "Quacky clinics in Mexico to transplant cells into brains. Consumer beware. http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2013/05/italian-parliament-orders-clinic.html View in LinkedIn

PINHEAD BATTERIES manufactured on a 3D printer. These tiny batteries can operate micro-devices and mini-robots. Micro is a trend in many fields which opens many doors for big jumps in technology applications, and most micro-technologies need a source of juice that is to scale. Less is more. http://lnkd.in/pf575v View in LinkedIn

eDESIGN HEALTH is the brainchild of Dr Montse Vendrell in Barcelona and opens its doors in September as the newest medical innovation hothouse for entrepreneurs who want to change medicine. Linked to one of the best hospitals in the city,to world class B-Schools, and to early stage investors, this is quintessential innovation itself. More than an incubator or accelerator, this is a hands-on medically focused enterprise. It even has a full course on thinking. Check it out! http://lnkd.in/PWPWAQ View in LinkedIn

DRUG RESISTANCE in cancer is due to rapid mutations and tumor heterogeneity allowing resistant mutations to grow up a new cell ID. Biopsies to track these genetic changes are impractical. Researchers are making headway to use blood borne tumor DNA to monitor and track the mutations marking drug resistance. This is an important area if oncology research. http://lnkd.in/jvD-EU View in LinkedIn

MEDICAL EDUCATION is at the pointy end of change in medical practice. The new tools available to medical students grow daily. A sea change is inevitable as we switch from reactive to preventative medicine, and to personalized medicine, thanks entirely to the predictive power of new genetic tests. When I taught Biochemistry and Physiology to med students, Case Studies were considered innovative. Well today, there are quantum leaps forward in opportunities to educate our future docs. http://lnkd.in/PWPWAQ View in LinkedIn

TALENT SCOUT rules in this article are useful but two more also apply. Firstly, the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. This is rarely wrong. Second, one way to get a good grip on personality (remember borderlines, severe narcissists, sociopaths?) is to (very) informally engage a psychologist on your interview team. Antisocial personality traits and other personality flaws kill young companies more frequently than anything else. " "" " http://lnkd.in/w-HY3p View in LinkedIn

A BIOTECH BOOM on the horizon is being predicted by some, in no small part to the giant bet placed on the Human Genome Project which so far has yielded a blistering 60X return to society. There is no doubt that this project has opened doors and is changing medicine. And all over the world there are clever innovators in this space coming up with superb ideas. These entrepreneurs are especially prevalent in Barcelona, where it is ripe for a biotech explosion. One spark. That is all that it will take. http://lnkd.in/zuXz43 View in LinkedIn