Young Scientist’s research delivers DNA and success
17 November 2010
Interdisciplinary work, translational research, academia-industry partnerships, commercialisation – these are the buzzwords of the day in the science sector, and Dr Asier Unciti-Broceta is familiar with them all. Asier’s research activity has led to the development of a commercial product and his becoming the Director and Chief Scientific Officer of a new spin-out company, Deliverics. He has accomplished all of this since arriving in Edinburgh from his native Spain in 2005, and his achievements have now won him the 2010 Nexxus Young Life Scientist of the Year Award (East), presented on 16th November at a ceremony in Edinburgh.Based at the University of Edinburgh, Asier arrived from the University of Granada to work in Professor Mark Bradley’s research group at the School of Chemistry. As a Research Fellow, Asier developed his research activity at the interface of chemistry and biomedicine, with particular focus on non-toxic cell delivery systems for gene therapy applications and fluorescence-based sensors and HT screenings. His work in this area has led to the publication of numerous articles, three patent applications and, in Autumn 2010, the development of a commercial product, along
with a fellowship to drive his research towards cancer drug discovery. “This recognition represents a major step forward in my career. I could not have won this award without the support of Scottish Enterprise, the Proof of Concept Programme and the University of Edinburgh, the guidance of my mentors, Professor Bradley, Professor Espinosa and Dr Díaz-Mochón, the help of my colleagues, K. Finlayson, S. Johnstone and S. Howell, and the love of my friends and family. I feel privileged as a scientist as I will have the unique opportunity to face two fascinating challenges: to develop new products with Deliverics and to design and explore new chemicals for cancer therapy and diagnostics within the University,”
said Asier.
In 2008, Asier received a Proof of Concept grant from Scottish Enterprise to develop a commercial product that is a novel synthetic carrier for cellular delivery of DNA. The technology he has worked on with this grant in the Bradley laboratory is becoming the basis of a spin out company, Deliverics Ltd, which Asier co-founded and for which he has been appointed Director and Chief Scientific Officer.
The company’s first product will be SAFEctinTM, a kit for researchers that delivers molecules such as DNA into cells in a non-toxic and efficient manner. This product will help laboratory researchers investigating gene therapy as a route to treat diseases such as cystic fibrosis. Asier and the team at Deliverics plan to extend their technology into other areas, as well. The market size for the type of products Deliverics is developing has been estimated at $2 billion per year by 2012.
"When we were introduced to Asier and the technology that he had developed we were very impressed how close to market this was. Asier has shown a remarkable ability to drive innovation from idea to product and we look forward to seeing his continued success with Deliverics,"
said Steve Howell, Chief Executive of Innova Partnerships, the life science investment and partnering company the University appointed to help establish and spin out Deliverics' technology.
"Asier's ability to conduct important, innovative research that spans from the lab bench to the marketplace is truly exceptional - he exemplifies the type of forward thinking young scientist that will continue to keep Scottish life sciences in the global spotlight,"
said Nexxus Director Graeme Boyle.
On the 1st of October Asier was awarded a prestigious fellowship position in the Edinburgh Cancer Research Centre (Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh) and now shares his time between academia and industry.
Asier comes from a small city called Algeciras at the south of Andalusia, where the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea meet. He enjoys travelling and exploring new places and their history. “What I love the most is to get the experience of living their culture,”
he said. “I’ve lived in Spain, in Italy and here, enjoying the singularities of all these places. Here in Scotland, in Edinburgh, I feel at home.”
Asier and his partner Ana enjoy walking around Arthur’s Seat and eating fresh seafood and other local specialities.
Runners up in the Nexxus 2010 Young Life Scientist of the Year Award (East) were Dr Ross Houston of The Roslin Institute and Dr Shinya Ohta of the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology.
For further information contact Kate Fink, Marketing Communications Assistant, Nexxus T: 0131 200 6412, M: 0780 577 4824, E: k.fink@nexxusscotland.com.
