Research Directions has recently moved from the Gardens Point Campus of QUT and established operations in a research laboratory at the Nathan Campus of Griffith University.  The laboratory will be used for research activities and production of API compounds.

The company is pleased to have a Memorandum of Understanding with Griffith University that defines areas of collaboration in research and production of small molecules. It is anticipated that joint research proposals will be submitted to funding agencies and that Research Directions will offer an insight into cGMP manufacture and scale-up production for Griffith students who intend to establish careers in the chemical industry. 

Brisbane Innovation Park is located alongside Griffith at Nathan and offers expandable space for the benefit of the clients of Research Directions.  The company is now able to offer production of small molecules at higher volumes than in the past and is able to look forward to a major expansion of activities including the establishment of a cGMP scale-up production facility.

The support of the University in allowing access to library and instruments is a valuable feature of the collaboration.  In return, the company will be able to bring a commercial focus to some of the research projects that are undertaken by the university.  Research Directions is very pleased to become part of the Griffith community and looks forward to a relationship that offers benefits to both parties.

The recent Informex meeting in Florida (Feb 14-17) was a stark reminder that the custom synthesis industry is a significant global industry in which Australia has very little representation.This can be demonstrated by checking the list of 3,971 registered attendees which includes five from Australia.

China, India, Ireland and Singapore are the more recent participants in an industry that began in Europe and the USA due to the presence of large pharmaceutical manufacturers.Government support has been a key driver in the success of the recent participants and will be required for the industry to grow in Australia.

Research Directions is a private company offering contract research services and developing its own niche products for sale.The company has achieved significant goals in both synthetic method development and commercial sales of generic APIs.This has been accomplished without government grants or the financial support of any research institution.The progress would be much more rapid with support.

There are significant reasons for establishing a scale-up cGMP facility for small molecules in Queensland.Some of these are:-

ØTo offer the research community in Australia advice on synthetic processes that will be suitable for large scale production

ØTo offer a service to Australian research institutes and biotechnology companies requiringcGMP batches of small molecule products for clinical testing thus eliminating the necessity to move offshore

ØAustralia is a lower cost producer of chemicals than Europe or USA

ØAustralia has language and cultural compatibility with major clients in Europe and USA

ØAustralia is well situated to access the collaborative partners and growing markets of Asia

ØTo provide a second supplier service to pharmaceutical manufacturers in Australia.

Research Directions continues its quest to establish a facility for small molecules in Queensland

The CEO of Research Directions recently attended the AusBiotech 2004 conference in Brisbane. This was a three day event attended by biotechnology companies researchers and service providers to the biotechnology industry. A major debate for the attendees is the viability of the biotechnology sector in Australia. The handicaps we face are the well known factors such as - Scarcity of capital - Distance from major markets - A history of failure to commercialize our IP - Lack of supportive infrastructure In our favour we have enthusiasm, scientific excellence and a flexible approach to problem solving. Whether this is enough to ensure success is uncertain given the low hit rate for drug search, our primary biotechnology activity. Perhaps the feeling of most participants is that we will never win the prizes if we don’t enter the race and perhaps the accompanying benefits of participation will be greater than we expect. One of the clear messages for Research Directions from the conference is the need for a local GMP scale-up facility to allow drug search ventures to obtain sufficient amounts of their target for clinical trials. Research Directions has plans for a scale-up facility in Brisbane which will allow for GMP manufacture of small organic molecules. This will be of interest to research institutes and biotechnology companies who have small organics other than peptides as targets. We would be very interested to hear from any groups who have projects in this area.