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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-05-01 Daily Xml
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MEDICAL RESEARCH

Mr KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (14:21): My question is for the Minister for Health. How will the commercialisation agreement signed between Professor Hopwood of the Women's and Children's Hospital and an American pharmaceutical company advance medical research in South Australia?

The Hon. J.D. HILL (Kaurna—Minister for Health, Minister for the Southern Suburbs, Minister Assisting the Premier in the Arts) (14:21): It is good to see the Deputy Leader of the Opposition has joined us this afternoon. It was regrettable that she was not around for the debate on the Victoria Park development. That was an inconvenience, perhaps, for her.

An honourable member: Vickie-ed off.

The Hon. J.D. HILL: She Vickie-ed off, that is right. Veni, vidi, vici: I came, I saw, I Vickie-ed. A major recommendation of the Shine Young Review released this morning is to build and maintain the South Australian Health and Medical Research Fund.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.D. HILL: It is my fault, Mr Speaker, I must confess. I apologise. The fund—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.D. HILL: An outrage. I am outraged. The fund operates by ensuring that a third of any royalties resulting from the commercialisation of medical research undertaken in South Australia is captured by the fund and is subsequently reinvested in activities which support further medical research. This fund is unique to South Australia and provides us with the opportunity to remain a recognised leader in health and medical research.

To date, the most successful example of how this fund works has been an agreement signed by the Women's and Children's Hospital and the American pharmaceutical company BioMarin to commercialise the intellectual property developed by Professor Hopwood and his team. Professor Hopwood, who is head of the Lysosomal Disorders Research Unit at the Women's and Children's Hospital, and his team have developed a groundbreaking treatment for a rare lysosomal storage disorder known as MPS-6.

Lysosomes break down cellular waste and recycle it. When this process fails because of a missing or defective enzyme, the waste remains stored in the cell which leads to severe and degenerative problems. Symptoms of MPS-6 include bone deformities, heart and respiratory difficulties and a characteristic facial appearance. This is an appalling disorder, and from time to time people will have seen photographs of children who suffer from this.

Professor Hopwood and his team have discovered how to artificially produce the MPS-6 enzyme. The intravenous administration of this enzyme can arrest the development of symptoms of MPS-6, and if the disease is detected early enough in children it could prevent the symptoms altogether. This is a remarkable and outstanding world-class breakthrough achieved here in Adelaide by Professor Hopwood and his team.

Most importantly, Professor Hopwood's discovery offers a treatment for a previously untreatable disease, and the commercialisation contract with BioMarin will mean that the treatment will be made available to thousands of people, both in Australia and around the world. I understand, from talking with Professor Hopwood, that he has the capacity to extend the range of areas that he can treat that are associated with this disorder.

The outstanding work performed by this world-class team has also strengthened the capacity of this state to invest further in our research facilities and structure. A third of the royalties from the commercialisation agreement will be invested in the South Australian Health and Medical Research Fund to support South Australian researchers, and another third has been injected into research and infrastructure directly at the Women's and Children's Hospital. The balance will remain with the 17 inventors, Professor Hopwood and his team, and they deserve the reward that they get from this activity. The commercialisation agreement is bringing tens of millions of dollars in royalties to the Health and Medical Research Fund over approximately 15 years.

Depending on the success of any future research and the success of BioMarin and other pharmaceutical companies in commercialising these products, the amount of royalties flowing into the fund could increase significantly. We are talking about real money here. These royalty returns are amongst the highest ever earned by an Australian research team working in the public sector. Health and medical research is an essential component of the state's economy, an effective health system and ultimately a healthy community. It is crucial to the attraction and retention of high calibre doctors and researchers to our state. This successful venture paves the way for further collaboration with BioMarin and other pharmaceutical companies and shows us that what we can achieve in health and medical research in this state is second to none.

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