See you in Munich… or Amsterdam!
Before we get to the scary stuff, have you registered for the 9th annual Amsterdam Immunogenicity and Tolerance Seminar yet? We have an amazing line up of talks planned (see details here). A range of speakers from Cardiff and the UK, Mainz, Germany, and Paris will be weighing in on our favorite topics!
We’ll have Sally Ward talking about FcRn inhibition’s impact on autoimmunity, and I’ll update you on Non-antibody Scaffold Proteins and the personal, regional and global impact of HLA restriction on immune response. We’ll also get an update from Femke Broere on a potential Treg epitope therapy for Rheumatoid Arthritis from AMC, not to mention 7 other talks! We look forward to seeing you there! (We’ll be at Bio-Europe in Munich too! LMK if you’ll be there!
Fearless Truth in Biotechnology
“Science without Fear” has been our motto for nearly 25 years. There is a reason that we have adopted that motto and believe in it. Speaking the truth sometimes takes courage, and science is all about truth. Our job as scientists (and yours!) is to follow the facts and to create new technologies, new medicines, based on new truths. If the facts are incorrect, or are deliberately falsified, the whole construct falls apart. And, I believe, having a strong moral compass is essential for running a biotech business too.
Setting aside politics (Oy!), a moral compass is missing for some people in biotech. Not too long ago, we had visits from the FBI and, separately, the SEC. The SEC was investigating a company that was promoting our technology to increase the value of their stock (without our permission, needless to say!). That company recently declared bankruptcy and disappeared. Good riddance! There’s no room for “I know a guy” in good, solid science.
Meanwhile, the FBI came to our office to warn us that foreign governments were after our technology. Bill and Matt reassured me (again) that we have solid cybersecurity systems in place to protect our tools and our servers, that make it impossible to hack in.
Point being, there are bad people in biotechnology – keep an eye out for them. And to quote Jimin (from BTS) – be a good human!
At EpiVax, we hew to truth and facts, and follow our moral compass. When we publish, when we present, we stick with the facts. Sometimes we have to provide facts that don’t sit well with the recipient of the information, but ‘the facts are the facts’ and we are fearless. Maybe that’s why we’ve been around for 25 years (so far!).
Picture of our 25th “Lab Day at the Beach” above.
Be a Good Human! Give Thanks!
Before I forget, I would like to give a special thanks to the Amsterdam Immunogenicity and Tolerance Organizing Committee:
Corine Kruiswijk (Director, Translational Research, Intravacc), Christiane Gerke, PhD (Head of Vaccine Programs & Vaccine Innovation Development, Institut Pasteur), Marcel Hoefnagel (Senior Scientist/Assessor, College ter Beoordeling van Geneesmiddelen), Elly van Riet (Senior Scientist, TuBerculosis Vaccine Initiative) and Brian Roberts, PhD (Scientific Director, Preclinical Immunology, EpiVax Inc.)
Be Well! Stay Happy! And get your new COVID vaccine … I did! #VaccinesWork!
-Annie