User:Ctorrear/Fundacion Ciencia Para la Vida



Fundacion Ciencia Para la Vida (FCV) is a private non profit institution that carries out scientific research in life sciences and biotechnology based innovations in Chile.

Founders
Chilean scientists Pablo DT Valenzuela and Bernardita Mendez founded FCV. Pablo DT Valenzuela earned his PhD degree (1970) in Chemistry at Northwestern University, did a postdoctoral training at University of California, San Francisco and held a possition as Professor in the Biochemistry Department of that institution. Bernardita Mendez earned her PhD degree in Biology in Catholic University of Chile and a postdoctoral training at University of California, Berkeley. In 1981 Pablo DT Valenzuela, together with William J. Rutter and Edward Penhoet, cofounded Chiron Corporation,a multinational biotechnology firm based in Emeryville, California. It had offices and facilities in eighteen countries on five continents and in 2006 was acquired by Novartis International. As Research Director at Chiron Corporation Pablo DT Valenzuela developed products in three main areas: biopharmaceuticals, vaccines and blood testing, while Bernardita Mendez was Vicepresident of Intellectual Property.

FCV
In 1997 Pablo DT Valenzuela and Bernardita Mendez cofounded Fundacion Ciencia para la Vida (FCV) aiming to act as a bridge between the productive and academic sectors in Chile and with international players abroad.

Research
Fundacion Ciencia para la Vida has biotechnology oriented research programs both in areas related to main export industries in Chile (aquaculture, forestry, agriculture and biomining) and in basic biomedicine and cell biology.

Export industries related research In XXXX FCV developed a Piscirikettsiosis (SRS) vaccine for salmon industry that was licensed to Novartis for the manufacturing and worldwide marketing rights (Birnagen Forte), and that has been highlighted as one of the 70 success stories of innovation by Chilean Ministry of Economy. This vaccine has alowed chilean salmon industry to avoid losses close to $100 million dollars per year. Actually FCV is engaged in R&D programs with industry, like BHP Billiton in cooper bioleaching, Forestal Mininco in forestry and cellulose biotechnology, Chilean Exporters Association (ASOEX) in fruit cultivation, Novartis and Recalcine Farmaceutical Corporation in vaccines for aquaculture and Microsoft in bioinformatics and genome biology Biomedical research A main biomedical discovery at FCV laboratories described non coding RNAs of mitocondrial origin that characterize as new cancer markers, and have a potential use in treatment and diagnosis of cancer. This research received the AMSUD-Institute Pasteur Award for the most innovative and promising technology in the biomedical area in Latin America in 2005. FCV also homes a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Collaborative Innovation Grant blablabla. Other areas of research are: histone modification, hantavirus biology, neuroimmunology, Unfolded protein response and Autophagy.

Science & Business Park
FCV has a Science & Business Park where foreign companies and local spin off companies have established. These companies are:
 * Ventria Bioscience (Sacramento, California))
 * Medivation Inc.(San Francisco, California)
 * The Tree Lab (Rotorua, New Zealand)
 * Green Pacific Biologicals (San Francisco, California)
 * Grupo Bios S.A. (Santiago, Chile)
 * Bioplanet (Santiago, Chile)
 * Andes Biotechnologies S.A. (Santiago, Chile)
 * Digital Education (Santiago, Chile)
 * Grupo Aranex/RedCiencia (Santiago, Chile)
 * Austral Biologicals (San Ramon, California)

Eureka
Eureka is a scientific communication and educational program. It has developed multimedia education products and services related to teaching science and technology to school and college students. Eureka has an internet streaming channel where it distributes free educational material.

Chile-California
Science and Friendship Program: In 2002, Fundación and the University of California at San Francisco (UCSF) established joint research activities in Santiago. Since then, graduate students and faculty members in biological and chemical sciences at UCSF have traveled to Chile to meet, discuss research and socialize with their Chilean counterparts. The activities have included seminars and technical courses. MBoC V Launch Trip: In 2007 FCV organized a trip to launch 5th edition of the book Molecular Biology of the Cell in South America. The authors, Bruce Alberts, Peter Walter, Julian Lewis, Keith Roberts, Alexander Johnson, Martin Raff and Tim Hunt were invited to a trip that included Santiago, Patagonia and Antarctica in Chile, Buenos Aires in Argentina and Montevideo in Uruguay.

Awards

 * In 2002 the Director and Cofounder of FCV Pablo DT Valenzuela won the Chilean National Prize in Applied Sciences.
 * In 2010 Fundacion Ciencia para la Vida won the Avonni Prize for its trajectory in innovation.