Prestigious Scientist Dr. Richard A. Lerner to become Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of the National Institute for Biotechnology, Research and Training (NIBRT)

Dr. Richard A. Lerner meets with An Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan TD

Dublin, Thursday June 18^th 2009, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Mary Coughlan TD, today met with Dr. Richard A. Lerner, a world-leading scientist and key international influencer of high stature within the Life Sciences Sector, who will take up the role of Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board at the National Institute for Biotechnology, Research and Training (NIBRT), later this year. Dr. Lerner is involved with many leading global corporations in the Life Sciences Sector. In recognition of his scientific achievements Dr. Lerner received a Ulysses Medal and honorary doctorate from University College Dublin during this visit to Ireland.

NIBRT, a world-class institute supported by the Irish Government with the aid of IDA Ireland, has a mandate to support the development of the existing bio- processing industry in Ireland and to attract additional bio-processing companies to the country. The institute is mandated to provide education, training and research solutions for the bio-processing sector in Ireland and is based on an innovative collaboration between University College Dublin, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin City University and the Institute of Technology, Sligo.

NIBRT has been successful in forming research collaborations with major biopharma companies including Schering Plough, Eli Lilly and Co, Becton Dickinson, Shire, ABB, Merck Serono, Astellas, Ferring, Pfizer. NIBRT has also designed, developed and delivered bespoke, accredited competence-based training solutions to key clients including Wyeth, Pfizer, Eli Lilly and Co and Centocor.

With respect to the development of NIBRT’s landmark building, NIBRT has reached a significant milestone with the issue of the “building works” main contract package for tender. The tender package has now been issued to the short list of contractors after the pre-qualification phase. The tenders are due to be returned in June 2009.

An Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Mary Coughlan TD said, ‘It is a great honour to meet with Dr. Lerner and to have a scientist of his calibre take on the role as Chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board at NIBRT. Dr. Lerner has a diverse scientific career spanning forty years and he will bring an immense wealth of experience to this role.’

‘Bringing the expertise which Dr. Lerner possesses to the forefront of NIBRT is characteristic of the Government’s strategy of innovative collaborations underpinning Ireland’s ‘Smart Economy’ and his involvement with a variety of companies in the Life Sciences sector will be to the benefit of all parties involved.’

Dr. Lerner’s scientific career is particularly significant not only for the broad scope of his achievements in several diverse areas of biomedical research, but for his leadership and vision in concurrently directing the totality of scientific activities at The Scripps Research Institute, one of the world’s largest independent, non-profit biomedical research organizations. His work spans a wide range of seemingly disparate discoveries, from unique insights into protein and peptide structure to the identification of a sleep-inducing lipid. He has been widely recognized by numerous prestigious societies and organizations in the United States and abroad. One of his accomplishments, and that for which he is perhaps most well known, is groundbreaking advances in the field of catalytic antibodies, showing that antibodies can be employed as enzymes (work conducted simultaneously with Scripps Research Professor Peter Schultz, then at the University of California, Berkeley). This work permitted the catalysis of chemical reactions considered impossible to achieve by classical chemical procedures. While it has taken enzymes acting on natural biological systems millions of years of evolution to reach their present level of efficiency, antibodies can be produced overnight, for obtaining an almost limitless variety of products — beyond natural ones — with an efficiency that may exceed that of natural enzymes.