Novartis Presents 2011 Early Career Award in Organic Chemistry
Professor David Chen, Seoul National University and Professor David Spiegel, Yale University received the 2011 Novartis Early Career Award in Organic Chemistry.

NIBR discovery and tools offer new prospects for prevention and treatment of malaria infections.
NIBR, along with collaborators, discovered a new class of dual-acting antimalarial compounds that target both liver- and blood-infections - the imidazolopiperazines (IZPs). The findings were published in the journal Science online, at the Science Express website Thursday, November 17, 2011.

Read the Novartis release.

The NIBR Innovative Culture
If you ask associates at Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR) what energizes them about the organization, they are likely to describe our strategic approach to drug discovery - focus on unmet medical need of patients worldwide in areas where we understand the mechanism of disease. It has resulted in one of the leading pipelines in the pharmaceutical industry today, continually reinforced by a culture that demands innovation.

Novartis Typhoid Vaccine Clinical Trial Yielding Scientific and Diplomatic Results
“I am overjoyed by the results we have had in gaining approval for the (Vi-CRM197 ) clinical trial and for the results it is yielding. I am also pleased that this opportunity has led to continued collaboration with the Pakistani health authorities. The Standing Committee of Health invited us to attend another meeting to provide feedback on Pakistan's legislation on clinical trial regulations... I look forward to advancing future clinical trials in the region.” Read more about how a clinical program manager at Novartis Vaccines Institute for Global Health (NVGH) in Siena, Italy worked to bring a clinical trial to his home country.

Physician-Scientist Donald Ganem takes the reins in Infectious Disease
NIBR cements its position as a hub of innovative research in the Bay Area by establishing Infectious Disease (ID) Headquarters in Emeryville, led by Don Ganem.

NIBR Scientists Trade Jobs
With ever increasing data, scientists can maximize success by interacting with peers in different disease areas and disciplines. NIBR allows scientists to walk in each other's shoes by catalyzing formal exchanges, such as the Job Discovery Program.

Capturing the Right Image Takes Scientific Collaboration
Imaging specialists can be found in many areas at Novartis. They support research and development by helping to identify and select targets for drugs more quickly in close collaboration with experts from the disease areas.

Overcoming Great Obstacles...and Helping Others Do the Same
The NIBR Developing World Mini-Sabbatical Program combines a scientific sabbatical combined with social impact. Grazia Piizzi, a NIBR investigator in Global Discovery Chemistry- Oncology and Exploratory Chemistry, demonstrates the program's exponential value.

NIBR Recruits Job Candidates via Twitter
"A 2010 survey conducted by Jobvite, a social search platform for recruitment, showed that 83% of recruiting professional are now using or are planning to use social media for recruiting; social network recruiting is gaining momentum," said Harold Mellor, associate director of staffing and NIBR Jobs Tweeter.

See the feed here.

The Scientist features Novartis among best places to work in industry
“By forging new relationships and finding novel uses for existing technologies, (Novartis) is among this year's top companies that are finding creative ways to advance science,” according to The Scientist.

Read more: Best Places To Work in Industry

Addressing Disparities in Health Research and Delivery
Dramatic shifts in the size of global, ethnic and regional populations are expected during the next 50 years.

The Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR) is holding its inaugural Health Equity Symposium May 3-4, which will gather scientists, clinicians and policymakers to discuss what industry, academia and government can do to help shape the way biomedical research is conducted. The goal is to better serve the unique needs of each group and ensure a more equitable delivery of health care.

Leading researchers and policymakers, including Dr. Julio Frenk, Dean, Harvard School of Public Health and Mexico's former Minister of Health, are among the speakers. The symposium will be webcast live, then archived for later viewing.

Watch the the webcast

Pathways to success
At the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), the primary objective of a Proof of Concept (PoC) study is to test hypotheses of how a drug may work in the body and to expedite the generation of clinical evidence regarding patient benefit. NIBR had 12 PoCs in 2010. Several outlined here illustrate NIBR's pathways approach to drug discovery.

Download the story

The Scientist Best Places to Work survey cites postdoctoral program
Offering health, retirement, relocation and many other benefits, Novartis' postdoctoral programs around the world consistently rank among the Best Places to Work.

White House Appoints Bill Sellers to National Cancer Advisory Board
Bill Sellers, Global Head of Oncology since 2005, has been named to the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB). Previously with Harvard Medical School and the Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Bill was named, February 24th by the White House.

NIBR Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation
GNF in La Jolla, California, USA was founded in 1999 on the back of the genomics revolution. At that time, sequencing the human genome was a hot scientific goal, and GNF was created to develop genomics-based technology and associated basic research. In 2002, the GNF Board of Directors made the decision to apply the tools and expertise developed there to exploit the human genome effort in the pursuit of drug discovery. The Institute still has a commitment to basic research and technology development, and it is focused on identifying pathways and targets that are relevant to human disease. All technologies that are developed are done with an eye toward enabling biological discovery or accelerating the drug discovery process.

Director Martin Seidel typifies GNF’s pioneering spirit.

Epigenetics Postdoctoral Opportunities in Basel
The Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR) in collaboration with the Friedrich Miescher Institute (FMI - a research institute of NIBR) in Basel, Switzerland has a variety of postdoctoral positions in the area of epigenetics, focusing on the interface with regenerative medicine, neuroscience, etiology of cancer and immune disorders, and structural biology.

Science TM details behavioral improvement exhibited by some Fragile X patients treated with AFQ056
Initial findings of a small Proof of Concept trial testing AFQ056 in Fragile X patients appeared to be negative until scientists looked more closely at a subset of patients who exhibited behavioral improvements.