The Official Opening Of The Singapore Institute For Clinical Sciences And The Brenner Centre For Molecular Medicine Building

Nobel Laureate, Dr Sydney Brenner,
Chairman, Biomedical Research Council, A*STAR, and
Distinguished Professor, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, USA

Mr Philip Yeo,
Special Advisor for Economic Development, Prime Minister's Office, Chairman, SPRING Singapore, and
Senior Advisor for Science and Technology, Ministry of Trade & Industry,

A*STAR Board members,
and distinguished guests,

Good afternoon.

1. It is my pleasure to join you this afternoon at the opening of the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences and the Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine building.  This opening signifies a significant milestone in the second phase of the Singapore Biomedical Sciences Initiative.  In this second phase, we focus on building the translational and clinical research capabilities that will bridge basic scientific research with improving health and medical care.

2. The first phase of Singapore's Biomedical Sciences Initiative was marked by rapid build-up of scientific research capabilities, talent, infrastructure and industry expansion.  Biopolis was transformed from concept to concrete in 5 years.  Five A*STAR biomedical research institutes are now co-located with private sector R&D labs in Biopolis with all enjoying shared scientific services and resources.  A SCIENCE journal report just two weeks ago described Biopolis as "a scientific Emerald City".  The report also noted: "As one indicator of success, the number of papers produced at the flagship Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology zoomed from 82 in 2000 to 165 in 2006."  Eminent scientists from around the world have joined A*STAR and other labs in Singapore to provide scientific leadership, mentorship and networking.  The research talent pipeline has more than 500 scholars at various stages of their education leading to a PhD and A*STAR is on target to train up to 1,000 Singaporean PhDs by 2015.  Manufacturing output from the BMS sector quadrupled from $6b in 2000 to $23b in 2006.  Companies have expanded manufacturing activities into high-value medical technology and biologics products.  Some 25 companies including pharmaceutical giants and smaller biotech firms have also set up their R&D labs in Singapore.  A key activity in this first phase of the biomedical sciences initiative was also the planning of the second phase.

3.  It has been widely acknowledged that much of this rapid progress in Singapore's biomedical sciences initiative, and the strategic direction towards translational and clinical research, is the product of the vision and leadership of Philip Yeo, and the insight and scientific advice of Dr Sydney Brenner.

4. With this foundation in place, Phase Two of our BMS initiative is now focused on developing translational and clinical research, or TCR capabilities, crucial to linking basic scientific research with clinical applications, whilst deepening our strengths in basic research.  The Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences will be an important part of this TCR effort.

5. The Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, or SICS, is the latest addition to the A*STAR family of research institutes.  SICS will play a key role in developing a strong and internationally competitive clinical science programme in Singapore.  Its focus on clinical sciences will complement and enhance the excellent basic science capabilities at Biopolis.    SICS will add to A*STAR's overall capabilities and support the Ministry of Health in its translational and clinical research objectives.

6. Clinical science is a broad discipline that requires teams of investigators trained in areas such as the molecular basis of human disease, the use of animal models, the methodologies for human studies and medical informatics.  Led by clinician-scientist Professor Judith Swain, SICS will focus on disease-oriented research, as well as in the development of new technologies and methodologies to facilitate clinical research and investigational medicine.

7. SICS will undertake investigator initiated research in focused areas that are relevant to Singapore.  The institute is starting with three disease-oriented intramural research programmes namely: Metabolic Diseases, Infectious Diseases and Genetic Medicine.  Led by clinician scientists at SICS, these intramural programmes will feature collaborative research partnerships with A*STAR research institutes at Biopolis, the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine and Duke-NUS Graduate Medical School, the restructured hospitals, as well as with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.

8. SICS will also actively facilitate extramural outreach programmes to develop a talent pool of clinician scientists, to encourage ground-up investigator-initiated research, and to strengthen the networking amongst clinician-scientists and other researchers.  In this regard, SICS has embarked on a Joint-Fellowship in Investigative Medicine with Lilly-NUS, where clinicians will be trained in clinical research methodology including clinical pharmacology.  We will be able to accommodate two clinician investigators per year in this program, and are now recruiting our first fellows.   SICS has also formed a Metabolic Interest Group together with the Singapore Bioimaging Consortium, and the first meeting of this group last month attracted over 70 investigators.

9. SICS will assist the Health Ministry's National Medical Research Council with grant calls for the Translational and Clinical Research (TCR) Flagship Programmes and the Singapore Translational Research Investigatorship Awards, otherwise known as the STaR Awards.  TCR Flagship grants will integrate, coordinate and leverage on the full spectrum of research capabilities in Singapore from basic science to clinical research in five strategic disease areas including cancer, cardiovascular and metabolic disorders, neurosciences, infectious diseases and eye diseases.  STaR Awards will be given to top clinicians or scientists who are active in translational and clinical research.  SICS will play the central coordinating role in the recruitment of these clinician investigators.  Recipients will be given primary appointments at either NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine or NUS-Duke Graduate Medical School, and will have the option of a secondary appointment in SICS. 

10. For translational and clinical research programmes to succeed, we require close partnerships and collaborations at both the individual and institutional levels.  Clinician-scientists working with clinicians as well as basic scientists.  Research institutes working with hospitals.  A*STAR working closely with the universities and Ministry of Health.  The location of SICS adjacent to university medical school and to the hospital, signals the importance of collaborations.  Similarly, SICS will also have laboratories in Biopolis to maintain close links with basic scientists and to foster collaboration with other A*STAR research institutes.

11. While we are not the only country investing in this new discipline of translational medicine, Singapore has the advantage of being very compact and nimble.  Singapore also has both the potential and capacity to think and act with an integrated strategy.  SICS also has the advantage of being located in a nation that is home to three ethnic populations representing the larger part of Asia's population.  Any discovery and novel technology that is developed for Singapore's population, therefore, will be highly relevant to the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. 

12. SICS will work in concert with the extramural community to help engender a tighter linkage between "bench to bedside", and as Dr Sydney Brenner has been advocating, from "bedside to bench". 

13. Most of you know that Sydney has been instrumental in helping Singapore develop our scientific capability for more than 20 years.   Together with our International Advisory Panel and Board members, Sydney has been advising Singapore to build strong bridges between scientists and clinicians.  In particular, Sydney believed that the medical challenges and unanswered questions faced by clinicians at their patients' bedside should be channeled to drive the basic research that takes place at the laboratory bench to enhance patient healthcare.  It is no coincidence that Phase 2 of our BMS initiative heavily emphasizes translational and clinical research with A*STAR, MOH and the universities all moving in concert towards this goal.  It is therefore befitting that SICS should have its first research labs outside of Biopolis at the Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine which is named after Nobel laureate Dr Sydney Brenner.

14. I believe that today's opening of the Brenner Centre for Molecular Medicine and the Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences will bring us closer to advancing human healthcare through excellent biomedical science.  Our ultimate goal is to reap the benefits of scientific research and move discovery from the lab to the clinic to improve health and patient care as well as the Singapore economy. 

15. Thank you.