China Medical Equipment Fair

Plans to expand our Asian market presence took a giant leap forward in April with a visit to China. As the world’s most populous country, and with more than 10,000 public hospitals, it’s an important and growing region for Canterbury Scientific.

Neil Pattinson and Maurice Owen attended the China Medical Equipment Fair in Shenzhen which was the catalyst for the trip. The bi-annual trade show, now in its 30th year, attracts over 70,000 visitors and provided an opportunity to get a better understanding of the local market and key players. It was also a perfect venue to hold meetings with local manufacturers and distributors, including executives from Medconn, Healgen and ArkRay.

Arkray is a fast-growing Japanese developer, manufacturer and distributor of Medical Diagnostic equipment, reagents and support tools for clinical testing. The company has both central and local government support and has been actively promoting an educational programme in Chinese hospital laboratories and clinics to explain the importance of measuring HbA1c in managing diabetes. Recent ArkRay quality control trials on various analysers showcased two of our top customers, Roche and Beckman, among the top performers – and that’s great news for us. This initial conversation led to a formal meeting in Shanghai to discuss a global contract for extendSURE kits and a China-specific contract for OEM kits. We look forward to developing a solid and long-lasting partnership with this important player in the Asian market.

From Shenzhen we moved on to Shanghai and visited Prof Aiwu Zhou and his new laboratory facility at the Shanghai University School of Medicine. Aiwu recently relocated there after spending 14 years at the University of Cambridge researching the structure and function of various proteins including Angiotensinogen under Canterbury Scientific co-founder Prof Robin Carrell. We were introduced to a number of his colleagues including Dr Wenzhong Zhou, Assistant Director of the Clinical Laboratory for Endocrinology where HbA1c testing is done for the University Hospital.

Shanghai is also the base for New Zealand Trade & Enterprise’s Medical Biotech specialist Echo Tan. We met with Echo to outline our Asian market strategy and received some great validation and critical input on everything from partnering and collaboration to intellectual property protection and language translation advice.

It was an extremely fruitful 11 days!

-Dr Neil Pattinson, CEO

Meeting Arkray

Prof Robin Carrell

Prof Robin Carrell, who has recently retired from the Board of Directors, reflects on his time with Canterbury Scientific.

This is the story of how Canterbury Scientific began:

On my return from Cambridge University in 1968 I was soon joined in the biochemistry laboratories of Christchurch Hospital by a number of capable young graduates. Together we set about improving the standards and scope of diagnostic testing, with my own special interest being that of haemoglobin – the oxygen-carrying pigment of blood.

Haemoglobin exists in the circulation in a number of forms and fractions. Slight variations in the proportions of these fractions are diagnostic of various anaemias and similarly changes in other fractions provide a guideline for the management of diabetes. The problem in the 1970s however was that in the absence of defined analytical controls, the accuracy of measurements of these minor fractions of haemoglobin fell far short of that required for medical decisions. The reason for this inadequacy was the lack of the analytical controls needed to provide accurate and reproducible assays. The difficulty in preparing such controls was the inherent instability of haemoglobin in solution. Freshly prepared controls rapidly deteriorated if left on the laboratory bench and had only a limited refrigerated life. My PhD thesis had been on causes of haemoglobin instability and based on that and subsequent findings, a number of approaches were devised with my colleagues, notably David Williamson and Maurice Owen, to allow the preparation of haemoglobin solutions that remained stable for days if left on the laboratory bench and for months if stored in a refrigerator. Requests for these new stabilised controls rapidly grew, initially coming from New Zealand and Australia and then from the wider world.

It soon became clear that charges would have to be levied to cover the costs not only of postage but also of the packaging and presentation in keeping with expectations for reference laboratory reagents. To manage this, my wife’s cousin, accountant Bryce Hawkins, agreed to handle the accounts on a part-time basis. With this, and a part share in an electric calculator and a post-office box, Canterbury Scientific was launched – initially as an enterprise and later as a registered company.

The company name, although somewhat tongue-in-cheek at the time, did have real significance. The Canterbury portion represents an accord with the Chairman and the Medical Superintendent of Christchurch Hospital. In return for allowing the preparation of the controls in the hospital laboratories on a cost-only basis, we pledged that when demand grew beyond capacity the enterprise would be established as an independent entity (to the long-term benefit of biomedical science in Canterbury). The Scientific portion of the name is also significant in representing the aim from commencement that all the endeavours of the company would be firmly based on good science.

Good science is not however a sure route to quick profitability! In 1986 I returned as a Professor to Cambridge in England and observed there, time after time, the rise, fleeting profitability, and subsequent fall of biotech companies founded on fallible science and flawed propositions. Canterbury Scientific meanwhile steadily, year by year, continued to improve its product range and in the process gained the confidence of the equipment manufacturers who remain its prime customers. We know our product, understand the science of its stability and fragility and stand by its performance, not only for the purchasing equipment-manufacturers but also for the customers to whom they sell their own-labelled versions. It is this confidence between manufacturer and supplier that is the basis for the company’s growing reputation as a global leader in its field.

Of course, as a founder, it is good to see the company prospering. But what pleases me most is the way it is fulfilling those old pledges to contribute in a broad way to biomedical science in Canterbury – as an employer of graduates, in research collaborations with academics, and as a forerunner in the development of the local biotechnology industry. There have always been strengths in biomedical science in Christchurch but these have been scattered – with the Universities of Canterbury, Lincoln and Otago all having active research groups and with international strengths in hospital based clinical biochemistry and endocrinology research. Canterbury Scientific is taking a lead in bringing these research groups together, with studentships and other support in a joint effort to develop the next generation of diagnostics. Some innovations will continue to come from outside New Zealand, notably through collaborations with Cambridge and now with Shanghai. But the healthy development is the widening portfolio of Christchurch-originated projects and the prospects they hold for the diversification of Canterbury Scientific’s diagnostic range over the next ten years.

So, now on my retirement from the Board I feel well satisfied at what has been achieved by Canterbury Scientific over the last 30 years. A bonus reward has been the opportunities that associated endeavours have opened for others. What happened to the “capable young graduates’ who commenced with me in the 1970s? Peter George is now the Director of the Canterbury Health Laboratories, Peter Joyce is Dean of the University of Otago Medical School in Christchurch, Christine Winterbourn of Free Radical Research is the Royal Society of New Zealand’s Rutherford medallist, Neil Pattinson is CEO of Canterbury Scientific and Maurice Owen is its Scientific Director. If Canterbury Scientific does as well with its diagnostic products over the next 30 years then it will surely prosper!

The Graduate Team in the 1980's in the gardens of Christchurch Hospital. On left; Robin Carrell, David Williamson and Christine Winterbourn. Far right, Maurice Owen and 4th from right Neil Pattinson now CEO of Canterbury Scientific.

Dr Susie Meade

by Dr Susie Meade, Research Programmes Leader at the Biomolecular Interaction Centre (BIC), University of Canterbury  

Recently Canterbury Scientific Ltd brought more than 30 scientists and clinicians together to consider the research opportunities for innovative biomarker products that could meet clinical needs. The aim was to promote innovation and collaboration between the participants from the Biomolecular Interaction Centre, University of Canterbury, University of Otago, Industrial Research Ltd, and Canterbury Health Labs.

During the first session of this inaugural science symposium, Prof Juliet Gerrard gave an overview of biomarkers in diabetes and shared some project ideas that underlie a MSI project proposal in this area. The format encouraged the scientists and clinicians to discuss and challenge ideas, opportunities, and the need to innovate in this area. The feedback was robust and as such helpful to those honing the project plan, particularly in relation to investigating new oxidative clinical markers and its association with diabetic complications. A crucial part of the fight against diabetes is monitoring modified proteins as early indicators of poor diabetic management.

The next session was centered on Cardio biomarkers. Dr Chris Pemberton shared his research into biomarkers for congestive heart failure, in particular, his innovative work on signal peptides of current cardiac markers such as BNP. One goal is to determine unstable angina, which is currently difficult to diagnose, from other cardiac events. The work irrespective of its immediate clinical implications opens up a whole new area of potential intracellular control.

After a short break, we continued with a session on Preeclampsia. Dr Aiwu Zhou, in collaboration with Prof Robin Carrell, has been investigating a method to identify patients with a high risk of developing preeclampsia. An earlier diagnosis of the condition based on the angiotensinogen trigger could impact treatment methods and improve the prognosis and survival rate for women and their unborn babies.

In the final session, Prof Peter George presented an interesting outline on the difficulties diagnosing patients with acute and more importantly chronic pancreatitis.The development of a better test for pancreatitis could lead to improved clinical outcomes for a large number of patients. Because of promising results, the topic has been selected for further study in a three-way project between Industrial Research Limited, the Biomolecular Interaction Centre and Canterbury Scientific.

Overall the symposium was a fascinating and fruitful opportunity to bring together both clinicians and medical researchers to identify issues and directions for future work in these four key areas. This will provide opportunities for future collaborations within the Canterbury medical science network.

Dr Maurice Owen

by Dr Maurice Owen, Scientific Director

Canterbury Scientific Ltd started in the late 1970s making HbA2 standards for use in β-thalassaemia diagnosis and providing these to hospital and medical laboratories in New Zealand and Australia. These were made for CSL at Canterbury Health Laboratories by Dr Maurice Owen, Dr David Williamson and Prof Steve Brennan following the procedures developed by Prof Robin Carrell in Cambridge UK, prior to his return to Christchurch. During the 1980s the range of products increased with the addition of a lyophilized HbF/A2 control and a haemoglobin stability kitset. The trilevel HbA2 standards were manufactured as both a liquid stable and lyophilized product.

In 1991 the first HbA1c control was produced. This had a number of unique features including making the level 2 or abnormal control by in vitro glycation of non-diabetic blood. As interest and sales of this product grew it became necessary to move the production of the products from Canterbury Health Laboratories to a dedicated facility. This decision was made with the need to meet the strict regulatory requirements for manufacturing products demanded by customers.

In September 2002 Dr Owen resigned as section head of the Molecular Pathology Laboratory at Canterbury Health Labs and with Bryce Hawkins (Managing Director) setup the Canterbury Scientific facility in nearby 14 Pope Street Riccarton, Christchurch. They were joined a month or two later by Richard Fowler (Quality and Regulatory Control) and Fiona Gurevin (Financial Controller). Over those next 8 years a number of new products were developed; notably the liquid stable HbA1c controls which have become CSL’s most sought after product.

In 2010 Bryce retired and another old colleague from the Christchurch School of Medicine days, Dr Neil Pattinson took over as CEO. As we outgrew our premises in Pope Street we designed and moved into state-of-the art purpose built manufacturing, analytical and research laboratories a short distance away in Whiteleigh Avenue. This gave more than three times the floor area and future-proofed growth for the company.

So 2012 is 10 years since CSL moved to setup at a dedicated facility. CSL continues to grow and is now firmly looking to the future by establishing key collaborative projects for new bio markers with the University of Canterbury, University of Otago (Christchurch), Canterbury Health Laboratories and Cambridge and Shanghai Universities.

Press release, 7 March 2012, Canterbury Scientific, Christchurch, New Zealand: Canterbury Scientific has embarked on a major study that could identify high risk pre-eclampsia patients early on in pregnancy and potentially improve the prognosis and survival rate for the 3% of women and unborn babies worldwide that develop the condition.

Pre-eclampsia is one of the top three causes of maternal death, resulting in approximately 70,000 maternal and 500,000 foetal deaths globally each year. It is indicated by high blood pressure as well as protein in the urine – symptoms which resemble many other conditions and make it very difficult to diagnose. Causes are unclear and patients often do not feel ill until it is severe enough to be life-threatening.

Currently clinicians monitor mothers-to-be throughout the term, looking for signs of the condition as it starts to develop – usually around 20-32 weeks – and hoping to catch it early enough to treat it effectively. A new test based on the Canterbury Scientific research may enable much earlier detection and allow doctors and midwives to adjust patient care to improve outcomes for mothers and babies.

Canterbury Scientific’s two-year research project, in partnership with Canterbury Health Laboratories and the University of Otago, Christchurch, follows on from work conducted by Cambridge University Professor and Canterbury Scientific director Robin Carrell who has been mapping the protein ‘angiotensinogen’. Carrell observed that the oxidised form of angiotensinogen was more prevalent in women who were prone to developing pre-eclampsia. The findings were detailed in his paper, “A redox switch in angiotensinogen modulates angiotensin release”, which was published in the journal Nature in 2010.

Prof Carrell hypothesised that the protein contained a pre-eclampsia trigger switch, and saw an opportunity to conduct further study with their Christchurch research partners to investigate whether their suspicions were correct. The team is creating a robust diagnostic test method and confirming its ability to accurately predict cases by comparing diagnosed pre-eclampsia cases against a control group.

The company anticipates that the research may lead to a new product for diagnostic laboratory tests that will be made available through their international OEM customer network, in a similar fashion to their highly successful haemoglobin A1c control for diabetes monitoring. Canterbury Scientific commits 20% of their annual profit to research and development initiatives – and saw this as an ideal opportunity to drive the development of a marketable solution to a long-standing problem.

CEO Dr Neil Pattinson says, “Canterbury Scientific has invested in this research because we saw a real possibility to introduce a unique, high quality biological control product that could dramatically improve outcomes for pre-eclampsia sufferers. The project is perfectly aligned with our model to successfully commercialise new scientific research, and it’s a win-win for the company, for science, for patients.”

“The College of Midwives is strongly supportive of all research that aims to improve the ability of the maternity sector to respond effectively to distressing conditions such as pre-eclampsia. We congratulate Canterbury Scientific on their initiative and are delighted to see New Zealanders leading the way in trying to provide evidence based options for health professionals to access for mothers and their babies in their care,“ says Karen Guilliland, CEO, New Zealand College of Midwives.

Angiotensinogen is created in the liver and secreted into the blood stream, where it reacts with the enzyme renin that releases angiotensin I. This in turn reacts with “angiotensin converting enzyme” (ACE), producing angiotensin II – the molecule which constricts blood vessels and increases blood pressure. Oxidation increases the production of angiotensin I and thus angiotensin II and therefore increases blood pressure – and women with a higher ratio of oxidised to reduced angiotensinogen in their blood will have a higher likelihood of developing pre-eclampsia. Blood pressure medications, commonly referred to as ACE inhibitors, block the production of angiotensin II.

Depending on the circumstances of the pregnancy, including severity of symptoms and foetal maturity, doctors may take steps to control blood pressure with anti-hypertensive medication (such as an ACE inhibitor) and allow the pregnancy to progress, or to intervene with induction of labour or a caesarean section. An early diagnosis can mean better treatment as well as more careful and constant monitoring to ensure the best possible outcome for mother and child.

About Canterbury Scientific

Canterbury Scientific Ltd is a privately owned New Zealand medical device company founded out of the Canterbury District Health Board in 1985 by directors Prof Robin Carrell, Bryce Hawkins and Dr Maurice Owen. The company specialises in the development and production of quality HbA1c controls for haematology and clinical biochemistry tests. In February 2011, Canterbury Scientific opened a new $1.2m facility in Christchurch which has been specially furbished with modern sophisticated systems, including temperature and humidity control, to provide an advanced and sustainable environment comparable to world class manufacturing practices. The company has also been named as one of the Technology Investment Network’s Top 10 Hot Emerging Companies of 2011.

www.canterburyscientific.com

Four specialists have been invited to speak and share their views and expertise in their field of research:

• Pancreatitis: Peter George, Canterbury Health Laboratories
• Diabetes: Juliet Gerrard, School of Biological Sciences, University of Canterbury
• Cardioendocrinology: Chris Pemberton, University of Otago, Christchurch
• Angiotensinogen: Aiwu Zhu, University of Cambridge / University of Shanghai

Peter George, Canterbury Health Laboratories

Juliet Gerrard, University of Canterbury

Chris Pemberton, University of Otago, Christchurch

Aiwu Zhu, University of Cambridge/University of Shanghai

Canterbury Scientific has succeeded in building a fast growing business modelled around haemoglobin test products for diabetes. We are now well underway with research into tests around angiotensinogen which will likely result in the development of similar products to aid in the diagnoses of conditions related to high blood pressure, including pre-eclampsia. Much of our success comes down to the relationships that we have developed with other scientific specialists in Canterbury and around the world – and we look forward to strengthening those local bonds at this event.

The Symposium will kick-off at 3:30 and will run for approximately 5 hours, including dinner and drinks. It is expected the audience discourse between theory and practical applications will keep the evening quite lively!

Dr Neil Pattinson

Ground-breaking New Zealand research could lower the death toll of women hit by pre-eclampsia. Read the article online.

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Dr Neil Pattinson