IBRI to Host Inaugural 2026 Global Forum on Science, Philanthropy, and Investment

The Indiana Biosciences Research Institute (搜索)搜索该词条 (IBRI) will host the inaugural 2026 IBRI Global Forum on Science, Philanthropy, and Investment on October 29, 2026, at the Eiteljorg Museum in Indianapolis, Indiana. The forum will convene leaders from across scientific research, philanthropy, investment, and innovation to examine how their combined strengths can accelerate translational medicine and drug development, from early discovery to treatments that reach patients.

The event, running from 8:00 am to 10:00 am, is designed as a catalyst for collaboration around one of the most complex challenges in life sciences: translating breakthrough research into therapies that improve health outcomes worldwide. Through a keynote address and moderated panel discussion, internationally recognized experts will explore how aligned funding, rigorous science, and strategic investment can help shorten development timelines, reduce risk, and expand the impact of biomedical innovation.

Nobel Laureate to Deliver Keynote Address

The keynote speaker will be William G. Kaelin, Jr., MD, a recipient of the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine and a leading physician-scientist at Harvard Medical School and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Kaelin's research focuses on understanding how mutations in tumor-suppressor genes contribute to cancer development, and his work has generated fundamental insights into how cells sense and respond to changes in oxygen availability. These discoveries helped establish the scientific foundation for the development of new therapeutic approaches in cancer and other diseases.

Following the keynote address, Dr. Kaelin will participate in a moderated panel discussion with leaders representing science, philanthropy, entrepreneurship, and investment. The discussion will be moderated by Amir Pasic, PhD, of the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Additional panelists will include Laura Grannemann of the Gilbert Family Foundation and Rocket Community Fund, and Vincent Cordero of the University of Chicago Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Bridging the Translational Gap

IBRI, founded in 2013 by a coalition of Indiana's life sciences companies and research universities, was created to bridge the translational gap between early scientific discovery and patient-ready therapies. The institute received philanthropic support from Eli Lilly and Company查看公司主页 and the Lilly Endowment, along with funding from the state of Indiana. As an independent nonprofit research institute, IBRI works across translational science and early-stage therapeutic development.

"An academic lab can identify a disease mechanism but rarely has the infrastructure to turn that insight into a drug candidate. A company can develop a drug candidate but may not have the flexibility to pursue an early, unproven hypothesis," said IBRI CEO Alan Palkowitz. "IBRI picks up where early-stage discovery often stalls, carrying the work forward into an actual drug candidate, until a company or investor is ready to take it on."

IBRI pursues its mission through three avenues: internal translational research teams in core disease focus areas; collaborations with biotechnology, pharmaceutical, and academic teams; and the Future Legends Lab, a purpose-built incubator supporting emerging life science startups. Promising intellectual property can be advanced into new companies through Libris Innovations, IBRI's for-profit subsidiary.

Research Focus Areas

IBRI's current research includes cardiometabolic and neurodegenerative diseases, as well as rare pediatric cancers such as neurofibromatosis (搜索)搜索该疾病 and metastatic sarcomas (搜索)搜索该疾病. The institute's disease focus areas encompass diseases of aging—including cardiometabolic diseases and Alzheimer's disease (搜索)搜索该疾病 and related dementias—and pediatric cancers, including neurofibromatosis types 1 and 2 as well as metastatic sarcomas.

In neurofibromatosis (搜索)搜索该疾病 type 1, mutations disrupt the tumor suppressor protein neurofibromin查看药品详情, which in some patients can lead to malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs). IBRI teams have identified antibody candidates targeting DLK1 (搜索)搜索该靶点, a potential biomarker that could enable earlier detection of MPNSTs and potentially serve as a targeted drug delivery vehicle for DLK1-positive tumors. The institute is also working on a gene-targeted protein therapy to compensate for the NF1 mutation itself.

In pediatric sarcoma research, IBRI focuses on metastasis, as currently available treatments typically target the primary tumor. Researchers have identified the platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR (搜索)搜索该靶点) family of cell surface receptors as an early driver of lung metastasis in multiple pediatric sarcomas, and are developing monoclonal antibodies to block PDGFR activation.

The Case for Cross-Sector Alignment

"Advancing translational medicine and drug discovery has grown more difficult and expensive, and no single sector can carry the work alone," Palkowitz explained. "Philanthropy can fund work that may be too early or not yet proven enough to attract significant traditional investment. Entrepreneurs form companies that provide the structure and resources needed to carry that early-stage work forward. Investment is what allows those companies to scale and ultimately reach the populations in need."

The forum aims to address what IBRI describes as a persistent challenge in biopharmaceutical research and development: the stretch between basic science and private sector investment where projects are most likely to stall. This gap has grown significantly due to multiple factors, including a changing pharma model that has become more development-focused, limited venture investment in early-stage science, and growing uncertainty around federal funding for academic research.

Registration is open for the 2026 IBRI Global Forum, which will offer participants an opportunity to hear from prominent leaders in translational medicine and connect with professionals working to advance discoveries from research laboratories into therapies for patients.