Fostering Innovation and Discovery in Biomedical Research

N TODAY’S SCIENTIFIC ERA,MOLECULAR RESEARCH HAS PAVED thewayforthedevelopmentofpharmaceuticalsthatare improving the lives of millions of patients. The discovery of the human immunodeficiency retrovirus as the causativeagentofAIDSledtothedevelopmentofreversetranscriptase inhibitors such as zidovudine. Monoclonal antibodiesdirectedagainsttumornecrosisfactorhavechanged the lives of many patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Imatinib mesylate, a specific inhibitor of the bcr-abl protein kinase,hastransformedtheprognosisforpatientswithchronic myeloid leukemia; and as drug-resistant variants arise, DNA sequencing can identify the mutations responsible and providearationalbasisforfurtherdrugdevelopment. 1,2 In2004 thefirstangiogenesisinhibitorswereapprovedbytheUSFood and Drug Administration, in one case for treatment of metastatic colorectal cancer and in another for age-related macular degeneration. 3,4 There is reason for optimism that this is justthebeginning,andthatthehugeinvestmentsinmolecular biology and genomics research made 10 to 30 years ago will provide an increasingly robust flow of new and effective medicines. Yet this gap of 10 to 30 years between discovery research andpharmaceuticalsbeingprescribedbyphysiciansalsogives