Interview series: Our industrial collaborations
Many of our DPhil Students, Postdoctoral Scientists and Principal Investigators work with industry to solve biological challenges. Our interview series, new for August 2023, covers some of their diverse projects and explores the value of industrial collaboration, advice for commercialising your technology, and how DPhil students can get experience with commercial ventures!
You can read four interviews below.
Professor kim midwood
Professor Kim Midwood describes her commercial ventures – from managing her own spinout companies through to working with large pharmaceutical partners to develop new treatment strategies. She talks about the commercial guidance available for scientists with big ideas but no infrastructure. Kim discusses the rewards of commercialising research even if, like many experiments, it only provides an opportunity for learning!
Dr Lakshanie C Wickramasinghe
Dr Lakshanie C Wickramasinghe is an Oxford-Janssen Postdoctoral Fellow who works to discover new therapies for patients with anterior uveitis, an under-studied inflammatory eye condition which has a major impact on vision. Lakshanie talks about the mysterious immune cells of the eye, why her research is important to her and what keeps her motivated, as well as the joys of inspiring the next generation of scientists. Lakshanie also explains how her Postdoctoral Fellowship with Janssen keeps her focused on her biological research while keeping sight of the big picture: finding new treatments to improve the lives for patients with debilitating ocular conditions such as anterior uveitis.
Read Lakshanie's interview here.
Amit Halkhoree
Amit Halkhoree is an Industrial CASE (iCASE) DPhil student funded by the BBSRC who studies the interaction between the liver and the gut microbiome, in partnership with Roche. Amit discusses how he balances his DPhil studentship alongside his role of National Director of Communications at Nucleate – a volunteer-led organisation empowering students to commercialise their research.
Dr Inhye Park
Dr Inhye Park describes how her Postdoctoral Fellowship between the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology and the Novo Nordisk Research Centre Oxford has strengthened her research into Cardiovascular Disease. She describes the benefits of working between academic and industrial labs within a few metres of each other, and the collaborative networks that have allowed her to develop scientifically and professionally.