At the end of November, 1,562 people came together over two days for the AstraZeneca-Cambridge Online Science Symposium, an event that went from concept to delivery in just seven weeks. It brought us the scientific inspiration we needed at the end of a difficult year and sparked new ideas for collaborations, giving us something to look forward to in 2021.
The organising team was thrilled with the attendance levels which were impressive by any measure. For an event restricted to researchers at the University, clinicians at the Cambridge hospitals and R&D teams at AstraZeneca (plus a few colleagues from the nearby Sanger and Babraham Research Institutes), the level of participation was extraordinary. It did not even cover the full extent of the AstraZeneca-Cambridge partnership: a separate, complementary event had taken place in September to discuss the latest developments in cancer research, diagnosis and treatment.
The Symposium not only gave us the opportunity to hear about new scientific advances but it also gave us time to reflect on our partnership and why it works so well.
Commitment to the partnership
The Symposium began with a keynote by Sir Mene Pangalos, Executive Vice President of Biopharmaceuticals R&D at AstraZeneca and was closed by the University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Business and Enterprise, Professor Andy Neely. The visible support of senior leadership in both organisations is a powerful statement demonstrating the value of the collaboration so far and its ambition for even greater things to come.
The breadth of collaboration
The scene was set with Mene’s announcement that there are currently more than 140 active research projects between AstraZeneca and the University which range from PhD studentships to long-term collaborative projects in 27 different Departments. Mene also described the four laboratories in which AstraZeneca and the University are working hand in hand: the Antibody Alliance Laboratory and the Functional Genomics Centre (both part of the CRUK Cambridge Centre), the new Cambridge Centre for AI in Medicine (which I’ll come back to) and the Cambridge Testing Centre, a herculean joint effort by AstraZeneca, GSK and the University to repurpose a building into a dedicated COVID-19 testing facility in a matter of weeks. The scale of the collaborative work across both organisations shows what a fruitful and integrated partnership has developed since our scientists first started working together more than 20 years ago.
All about the science
A shared belief in the importance of curiosity-driven research enables open discussion and high quality peer-to-peer interactions between the partners. The Symposium brought to life how working towards a common scientific goal enables our researchers to develop relationships where the different needs and drivers of academia and industry can be shared and accommodated successfully.
It also showcased some of the fantastic translational science emerging from the partnership in respiratory, immunological, cardiovascular, renal and metabolic disease as well as the developments taking place in data science and AI across medicine and healthcare. Presenters ranged from world-leaders in their field to PhD students who, during the course of 54 live presentations, two panels and 617 Powerpoint slides, shared new findings about disease pathways and new approaches to disease management in the clinic.
Making a difference
For all of the speakers, the commitment to using their science to make a difference to people’s lives was palpable. The PhD students, researchers and clinicians from both organisations talked passionately about their work and exemplified the value of collaborating at the interface of academia and industry. Being able to hear from AstraZeneca about how the collaboration is having an impact on drug discovery generated a real sense of energy and purpose which will inspire us in our day-to-day research at the bench.
…over Zoom
In any other year, we would have met in person. After all, one of the reasons for AstraZeneca moving its global headquarters to Cambridge was to foster close working relationships through geographical proximity to scientists and clinicians on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus and throughout Cambridge.
While we definitely missed the benefits of networking (and cake) in the breaks, and gave a wry smile at the few ‘you’re on mute’ incidents, going digital definitely had some pluses. It made it easier for people to dip into the sessions most relevant to them which, I’m sure, increased the overall number of attendees – and, therefore, the reach of the event. We were able to have key presenters calling in from hospital (in full PPE) without needing to take a day or two out of the clinic to attend the full program. The technology also makes it less intimidating to ask questions and we noticed how deeply the delegates were engaging with the science, asking for clarification and information in a way they might not have done with 1500 colleagues in the room, if indeed we could have fitted them all in! We need to think about how we can retain some of the advantages of digital when we return to our analogue lives – which we hope will be soon, thanks in part, it seem likely, to the efforts of AstraZeneca and our brilliant friends at Oxford.
Looking to the future
While many promising areas of research and innovation were discussed during the Symposium, one really stood out to me, which is the speed at which big data and AI are transforming the whole drug discovery process. Already, we are seeing examples of the new techniques being developed and applied, such as harnessing large genomic datasets to explain why patients respond differently to treatments, achieving breakthroughs in our understanding and treatment of complex diseases and guiding the design of clinical trials.
The Cambridge Centre for AI in Medicine, a new collaboration between AstraZeneca, GSK and the University, has been launched to capitalise on the enormous potential of this cross-disciplinary research. It was incredibly exciting to hear about the ambitions for the new Centre.
As the University’s Relationship Manager with AstraZeneca, I had some prior knowledge of the extent of our collaboration. But seeing the two organisations come together – even virtually – made apparent the vitality of the partnership and of the individual relationships that lie behind it. In his closing statement, Andy Neely talked about our shared commitment “to creating the conditions in which innovation can flourish, through nurturing new talent in both organisations and by encouraging new ideas for collaboration to emerge.”
That's exactly what we did during those two days in November. There is no doubt that many of the insights and ideas we discussed will go on to have a profound impact on people’s lives in the coming years. And that’s why we do what we do - together.
Dr Kathryn Chapman
Deputy Director of the Milner Therapeutics Institute
and University Relationship Manager for the Cambridge-AstraZeneca Partnership
December 2020
