Oxford Global is proud to present its 16th Annual Drug Discovery Summit and the co-located 3^rd Annual Discovery Chemistry & Drug Design Congress taking place in Berlin on the 8^th and 9^th of June 2015.

Over the years the congress has taken place in Geneva, however this year it will be held at the Hotel Palace Berlin in Germany.

Our prestigious Summit brings together prominent decision makers working at the forefront of research into target based discovery, phenotypic screening, preclinical biomarkers, and medicinal chemistry. Over 250 delegates will be representing leading biotech companies, global pharmaceutical organisations and internationally renowned academic institutions.

In the lead up to the event, Oxford Global spoke with Araz Raoof, Scientific Affairs and Analysis at Janssen Pharmaceuticalsand Juan-Miguel Jimenez, Senior Director and Head of Chemistry at Vertex Pharmaceuticals speakers of the Summit to find out more about their insights and involvement within the industry.

We discussed key research challenges within the industry, and when we asked Araz Raoof her thoughts about what will drive drug discovery research in the future, she replied:

“I feel strongly that our focus should be on unmet medical needs. If we discover and develop innovative products to meet those needs then the rewards will certainly follow. The truth is you never know, early on, if a drug is going to be a blockbuster. Clinical attrition rates and the development experience are obviously critical factors in this regard as also, of course, are the market dynamics.”

 She also shared her thoughts on pre-competitive collaboration in drug discovery:

“I think this will be very important. When I first started working, research activities tended to be quite inwardly focused. Now I think we realise that to treat complex diseases we researchers cannot do it alone but need, instead, a more collaborative approach. We therefore need academic institutions, regulators, and health providers etc. as well as the data they are gathering and the observations they make. The input of all these various actors will shape the future of healthcare. We must all work together to make R&D more flexible and relevant in the future.”

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