The global population is getting older and with that comes more disease.

What if we could delay ageing as a way of treating those diseases?

My guest in this episode is Janette Thomas, CEO of Five Alarm Bio Ltd., a drug discovery company focusing on novel approaches to anti-aging, with broad potential therapeutic applications.

She discusses the applications of this approach and where the idea came from. She also shares how they put together the information to secure investors and the art of patenting the right drugs.

Janette also gives insight into the challenges still facing the scientific industry in overcoming not just gender bias but inclusivity overall. She also suggests ways to encourage more women into STEM subjects.

“Make sure that you challenge people when they haven't included others” - Janette Thomas

You’ll hear about:

1:10 – Janette’s inspiration to become a scientist

08:40 - Gender bias in science and academia

13:16 – Janette’s experiences in the Pharmaceutical industry

17:26 – Why you need effective communication

21:58 – Where the idea for Five Alarm Bio came from

26:23 – Janette’s work on chronic wounds

29:43 – Carving out your square of the universe

32:36 – Working with CROs

38:23 – Janette on managing her mental health

Follow Janette:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/janette-thomas-50a3766/ 

Five Alarm Bio Ltd. on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/five-alarm-bio-limited/ 

Five Alarm Bio website - http://www.fivealarm.bio/ 

Connect with Me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markdavison100/ 

Grant Instruments: https://www.grantinstruments.com/ 

Grant Instruments on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grant-instruments-cambridge-ltd/ 

Imagine having to climb a mountain every day just to get to school. This was the childhood of my guest George Adjabeng.

George Adjabeng grew up in Ghana, the son of subsistence farmers. He excelled at chemistry in school and college, and emigrated to the USA to pursue a pharmaceutical career before turning entrepreneur. His successful company Ecodyst is now giving back to Ghana by donating equipment to universities there.

In this episode George shares his experiences from that life on the farm to building his own company. He discusses his lightbulb moment that created Ecodyst and how he bootstrapped and got to market quickly and the challenges he faced.

George has revolutionised the way people use chemistry labs but has done so in his own way that stands out and brings a sense of nature into the lab environment.

Listen in to find out how.

 
“I grew up with no electricity or water.” - George

 
You’ll hear about:

 01:03 - George’s early life in Ghana

03:42 - From Ghana to Canada to US pharma industry 

08:59 – George’s career in the pharmaceutical industry

16:36 – George’s innovative idea for Ecodyst

20:12 - Overcoming funding and technical challenges

25:13 - Bootstrapping a business with limited resources

28:15 – How George has revolutionizing lab equipment

34:03 - Drug discovery technology and global growth

Follow George:

George’s The Inspiring Story - https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/from-subsistence-farming-global-impact-inspiring/ 

George’s research - https://www.researchgate.net/scientific-contributions/George-M-Adjabeng-15755137 

Connect with Me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markdavison100/ 

Grant Instruments: https://www.grantinstruments.com/ 

Grant Instruments on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grant-instruments-cambridge-ltd/ 

What is the future of DNA and gene synthesis?

Before the covid pandemic, nucleic acids were mostly research tools. Terms like mRNA vaccines (nucleic acids as clinical agents) were relatively unknown. But since then, RNA and DNA have been thrust into the limelight for both the public and investors alike. How will the field evolve?

My guest in this episode, Steve Harvey, is working at the forefront of DNA synthesis, so who better to talk us through its evolution and future.

Steve is the CEO of Camena Bioscience, where they focus on improving DNA and gene synthesis. This enables biotechnologists to use more accurate and pure starting points, so their results aren’t held back by limited tools.

In this episode Steve discusses his career in laboratory research and the biotech space, from manual experiments in a classical wet lab environment through to the evolution of artificial intelligence. He also talks about the quality challenges faced within DNA and gene synthesis, and how Camena Bio addresses those. 

Steve is just as committed to his people as to his science. He discusses the challenge of scaling a biotech company while keeping that all important dynamic and accountable culture.

You’ll hear about:

00:56 - Biotechnology and DNA-based therapies

07:29 – How AI is changing drug discoveries

12:26 – Steve’s biotech experiences 

15:09 - DNA sequencing advancements and challenges

20:50 – The problems with storing digital information in DNA

29:47 – The evolution of DNA synthesis technology 

33:56 - Company culture and growth strategies

38:57 - Scaling a biotech company with a dynamic culture

Follow Steve:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-harvey-camenabio/ 

Twitter - https://twitter.com/camenabio 

Camena Bioscience - https://www.camenabio.com/ 

Connect with Me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markdavison100/ 

Grant Instruments: https://www.grantinstruments.com/ 

Grant Instruments on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grant-instruments-cambridge-ltd/ 

What are the biggest challenges facing scientific innovation?

The path from science ideation to business execution is not an easy one. You will eventually need to translate great ideas into well-positioned products or services, and bring investment into the business from what can be a complex ecosystem of stakeholders.

Knowing how to overcome these challenges is key to any innovation’s success.

In this episode I am joined by Dr Darrin Disley OBE. Darrin is a seasoned veteran of UK life sciences. He is currently CEO and investor in Mogrify Ltd, a pre-clinical stage biotechnology company developing a pipeline of in vivo reprogramming therapies that address chronic diseases of ageing, using a systematic direct cell conversion and maintenance platform powered by big-data.

Before Mogrify, Darrin was CEO of Horizon Discovery, a discovery tools specialist, growing the company very quickly from start-up to UK AIM-listed PLC . We discuss his career journey, from school in London’s East End through life as a semi-professional footballer to how he became a successful, multi award-winning entrepreneur. He also discusses the challenges faced in commercialising scientific innovation and how to grow a business in the biotech industry.

This is a fascinating masterclass for any aspiring entrepreneur, or anyone with an unconventional start to their scientific career. Darrin proves that whatever your starting point, with application (and some good fortune along the way) you can achieve your dreams.

You’ll hear about:


01:30 – Darren’s nonlinear journey of self-discovery 

05:07 – Darren’s life as a semi-pro footballer

08:55 – Darren on being inspired by his teacher

14:59 – From a PhD to entrepreneurship

21:20 - Technology and drug discovery

24:59 - Challenges in commercialising scientific innovation

30:56 – Growth in the biotech industry

41:13 - Building a successful biotech company

48:42 – Challenges faced in public markets

Follow Darrin:

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrinmdisley/ 

Twitter - https://twitter.com/DarrinMDisley 

Mogrify - https://mogrify.co.uk/

Connect with Me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markdavison100/

Grant Instruments: https://www.grantinstruments.com/ 

Grant Instruments on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grant-instruments-cambridge-ltd/ 

Welcome to The Big Experiment, where we explore the scientific business world, and find out how great ideas turn into great companies.

I'm Mark Davison CEO of Grant Instruments, a scientific insurance (instruments) company based in Cambridge, UK. But I'm also a veteran of pharmaceutical and biotech roles from drug discovery, right through to medicine supply chains.

Amazing science impacts our lives every day, but lab breakthroughs are just the first stage in a very long journey, we're going to go behind the scenes to look at the real people who turn new discoveries into business.

Their personal stories are just as fascinating as a (the) science. And each week, I'll be inviting some great guests to share their career and their world, their triumphs and their failures.

If you're a scientific entrepreneur, we'll give you some tips and tools to help you grow your business and avoid the traps. If you just love science and want to know more about how scientists and entrepreneurs work, you'll get plenty of human stories too.

We'll be launching on Monday, the 18th of March. And If you enjoy the episodes remember to like, comment, review, share with your network and subscribe.


Connect with Me:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markdavison100/

Grant Instruments: https://www.grantinstruments.com/

Grant Instruments on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/grant-instruments-cambridge-ltd/