novo nordisk foundation magazine 2014

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NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION

WHY AND HOW?

HOW?The ambition of the Novo Nordisk Foundation is that our companies will create world-class business results. This will be achieved by gen - e rating research-based products and services that improve how disease is combated and how natural resour ces are used.

The Foundation uses its income for grants that advance and promote research at universities and hospitals within the health sciences and biotech nology. The perspective is long term, and the objective is to continue to develop a know ledge environment in which innovative and talented people can carry out research of the highest quality.

This is how we contribute to developing solu -tions for the pressing challenges of the future – to benefit both individuals and society as a whole.

WHY?The world is facing major challenges. The global population is increasing, growing numbers of people have lifestyle-related diseases, natural resources are being depleted and carbon dioxide emissions are rising.

More research and new solutions are required to improve the combating of disease and the more intelligent use of scarce natural resources. Denmark and the other Nordic countries must make a special effort to retain and expand their strong position within biomedical and bio - technology research. This is necessary, especially because the international competition is intensifying.

WHAT IS THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION?

INTRODUCTION

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is an independent Danish foundation with corporate interests. Its history goes back 90 years.

Through its wholly owned subsidiary, Novo A/S, the Foun-dation owns a controlling interest in Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S. Together, Novo A/S, Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S comprise the Novo Group, which is committed to follow a common set of values – the Novo Group Charter.

The Foundation has two objectives – one commercial and one societal:

1: to provide a stable basis for the commercial and research activities conducted by the companies in the Novo Group; and

2: to support scientific, humanitarian and social purposes.

The vision of the Foundation is to contribute significantly to research and development that improves the health and welfare of people.

INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVEThe Foundation’s commercial ambition is for the companies in the Novo Group to position themselves as inter-nationally recognized and significant actors for improving how disease is combated and natural resources are used.

In awarding grants, the Foundation aims to use its inde-pendence and flexibility to promote world-class research at universities and hospitals in Denmark and the other Nordic countries. In so doing, the Foundation strives to ensure that the region develops and is recognized as an international powerhouse in the health sciences and bio-technology. This is achieved by providing long-term fund-ing for the development of a knowledge environment in which top researchers and innovative talents can carry out research of the highest quality. The Foundation’s research grants also support education and innovation activities.

ALL COMPANIES IN THE NOVO GROUP MUST DEMONSTRATE THAT THEY ARE WILLING AND ABLE TO MAKE A TARGETED EFFORT TO MEET THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA.

COMPANIES IN THE NOVO GROUP THEREFORE COMMIT TO:

THE NOVO GROUP CHARTER

Company products and services make a significant difference in improving the way people live and work.

The company is perceived to be an innovator – in technology, in products, in services and/or in market approach.

The company is among the best in its business and a challenging place to work.

The company delivers competitive financial performance.

Value-based management

Open and honest dialogue with their stakeholders

Continuous improvement of: • financial performance • environmental performance • social performance

Reporting in accordance with relevant, internationally approved, conventions

As a result of the positive trend in the financial results of the companies in the Novo Group, the Novo Nordisk Foundation has been able to increase its annual grants substantially – to benefit research and society. In 2013, the Board of the Foundation decided to gradually in-crease the annual payout from the current DKK 800 mil-lion (€107 million) to DKK 1.5 billion (€200 million) by 2018.

In organizational terms, the Novo Nordisk Foundation awards grants, while Novo A/S manages the Foundation’s commercial activities. Novo A/S is responsible for manag-ing the Foundation’s assets and its controlling interests in Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S with a view to achieving a long-term return.

4 NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION

NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION 5

STEN SCHEIBYE, CHAIR, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION AND NOVO A/S

We want to contribute to strengthening the research and development within bio-medicine and biotechnology in Denmark and the other Nordic countries to benefit people’s health and welfare and to drive value creation in the Region . "

ORGANIZATION

NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION GROUP


The Novo Nordisk Foundation and the companies in the Novo Group comprise the Novo Nordisk Foundation Group.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation receives dividends from Novo A/S comprising:

• Dividends from companies • Returns from other investments


NOVO A/S

NOVO NORDISK A/S NOVOZYMES A/S

Investments

Grants

THE NOVO GROUP

DIVIDENDS ON CAPITAL INVESTED




The Board of the Novo Nordisk Foundation has nine members. In addition to the Chair and Vice Chair, the Board has four members elected under the Foundation’s Articles of Association, two of whom must have insight into research in the medical or natural sciences, and three employee representatives from Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S.

The Chair and Vice Chair of the Foundation also serve on the Board of Novo A/S. The majority of the members of the Boards of Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S are independent of the Novo Nordisk Foundation and Novo A/S.

KarstenDybvad

BoAhrén

LarsFugger

BirgitteNauntofte

CEO

StenScheibye

Chair

SteenRiisgaardVice Chair

GöranAndo

SteenRiisgaard

JeppeChristiansen

Per Wold-Olsen CEO

Chair

StenScheibye

MariannePhilip Anne Marie

KvernelandEmployee

representative

Lars BoKøppler

Employeerepresentative

Karen L.LauritsenEmployee

representative

Eivind Kolding

BOARDS

THE FOUNDATION’S GRANTS

HOW THE FOUNDATION AWARDS GRANTS


The Novo Nordisk Foundation awards funds in areas that are specified in its Articles of Association – and especially for research within biomedicine and biotechnology.

The Foundation supports research of the highest calibre. The Foundation’s ambition is that the grants facilitate the emergence of new, original frontline research and that dynamic international research environments develop that can attract and retain the very best researchers.

Grants are awarded in four main categories.

1: SCHOLARSHIPS, RESEARCH LEADER PROGRAMMES, PROJECT GRANTS AND SYMPOSIAThe Foundation awards grants for research based on applications submitted to the Foundation’s scientific committees in open competition.

2: RESEARCH CENTRESThe Foundation supports a cluster of prominent interna-tional research centres in and around Copenhagen.

3: STAND-ALONE GRANTSThe Foundation awards funds to a range of important research-related stand-alone activities. The themes are broad based – including diabetes, bioinformatics and cancer rehabilitation – and cover research, education and communication projects.

4: HUMANITARIAN AND SOCIAL CAUSESThe Foundation funds the Steno Diabetes Center as well as recognized charitable organizations.

The decisions on research grants are decided based on expert assessment. This applies both to decisions taken by the Foundation’s scientific committees and by the Board of the Foundation.

FULL PUBLISHING FREEDOMAll grants are awarded such that researchers have full publishing freedom and can decide their research pri - o rities. No company in the Novo Nordisk Foundation Group has preferential access to the research results funded by grants from the Foundation. The Foundation’s

THE FOUNDATION HAS FIVE OVERALL STRATEGIC OBJECTIVES FOR AWARDING RESEARCH GRANTS.

WE WANT TO:

OBJECTIVES IN AWARDING RESEARCH GRANTS

strengthen biomedical and biotechnology research in selected fields;

fuel cross-disciplinarity;

advance individual scientific excellence;

spur imagination, inspiration and knowledge about science and technology; and

build bridges between scientific discoveries and commercial applications.

active support of free and independent research should be viewed as supple men ting government-funded re-search at public research institutions.

The Foundation, together with Novo A/S, also supports the development of application-oriented research dis-coveries that have commercial potential.

The Foundation bases its grants on a set of values ex-pressed in four cornerstones: commitment (we believe that research benefits the development of society); professionalism (we consult experts to ensure that the research we support is of high international quality); respect (we respect free and independent research); and trust (we have confidence in the researchers and their ambition to make the results of their research benefit as many people as possible).

The Foundation will inform every recipient of a research grant about these. Further, grant recipients agree to abide by the Foundation’s standards for good research practice and thus to use the funding responsibly.

BIRGITTE NAUNTOFTE, CEO, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION

We support free and independent research of the highest quality. The research results belong to the researchers and the research institutions for the benefit of society".


With roots stretching back to the 1920s, the Novo Nord-isk Foundation has a long history of awarding grants to high-quality researchers and research projects through its scientific committees. The funds are awarded based on applications in open competition. Over the years, the Foundation has increased the number of grants and funding areas so that, today, the Novo Nordisk Foun-da tion has 10 committees on which 45 experts from Denmark and the other Nordic countries serve.

The committees receive about 1100 applications per year. The Foundation awards grants to a large number of research projects, scholarships and research leader programmes. In 2013, the Foundation’s committees awarded nearly DKK 320 million (€42 million) allocated in 238 grants.

The committees serve as the Foundation’s window to the research communities. Committee members are experts in their fields: active researchers with a valuable overview of a research field, often supplemented by experience gained as members of research councils or academic assessment committees. The various committees are therefore very qualified to assess the quality, originality and feasibility of projects. The assessment process thus ensures high-quality grants.

SCIENCE AT THE CENTREResearch in the health sciences is the Foundation’s most important grant area. One main committee in this area, the Committee on Medical and Natural Sciences Research, awards grants for projects, scholarships for basic biomedical and clinical research in Denmark. The Committee on Nursing Research and the Committee on General Practice and Family Medicine Research also award grants for research projects and scholarships.

The other main committee, the Nordic Research Com-mittee, awards grants for research projects, scholarships and symposia in experimental physiological, endocrino-logical and metabolic research in the Nordic countries.

The Foundation’s newest committee, the Committee on Novo Nordisk Foundation Laureate Research Grants, awards substantial, long-term grants to prominent in-ternational researchers who want to establish a research group in Denmark within biomedicine or biotechnology.The Foundation also supports research in biotechno logy and innovation and research on art history and art. Spe-cific expert committees award these grants.

The Foundation awards five honorary prizes each year, for which no applications are solicited, to reward researchers for outstanding research efforts. The Novo Nordisk Prize is the largest of these prizes. The Novo Nordisk Prize Committee decides on the recipient.

GRANTS AWARDED BY THE FOUNDATION’S COMMITTEES

AN OPEN WINDOW TO THE WORLD

The Foundation awards research money in open competition through its special expert committees.



COMMITTEE ON NOVO NORDISK

FOUNDATION LAUREATE RESEARCH

GRANTS

COMMITTEE ON NURSING

RESEARCH

COMMITTEE ON GENERAL

PRACTICE AND FAMILY MEDICINE

RESEARCH

COMMITTEE ON MEDICAL AND

NATURAL SCIENCES RESEARCH

COMMITTEE ON EXPLORATORY

PRE-SEED GRANTS

COMMITTEE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY-BASED SYNTHESIS AND PRODUCTION

RESEARCH

COMMITTEE ON ART HISTORY

RESEARCH

COMMITTEE ON ART HISTORY

RESEARCH – MADS ØVLISEN SCHOLARSHIPS

NOVONORDISK

PRIZE COMMITTEE

NORDIC RESEARCH

COMMITTEE

A successful project may create new opportunities within both research and industry."

JAKOB RAHR WINTHER, PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN


If we want our industrial production to be more sustainable, one possible solution is to use enzymes that can break down the waste prod-ucts from industrial production and convert them to useful materials. One example is keratin, which is present in the hair, hooves and horns of slaugh tered livestock. Discovering an enzyme that can break down keratin would allow this waste product to be converted into feedstock.

Jakob Rahr Winther and his team at the University of Copenhagen are currently researching how to develop a method that will make it easier to dis-cover such an enzyme.

In 2012, Jakob Rahr Winther, a professor at the Department of Biology of the University of Copen hagen, received a project grant of DKK 1.8 million (€241,000) for research in biotechnology-based synthesis and production. The Novo Nord-isk Foun dation awards grants to about 10 pro-jects per year from a total funding pool of DKK 20 million (€2.7 million).

"The project funding means that we can develop a screening method that will make it easier to dis-cover new enzymes and variants of enzymes with new properties. The method has resulted in vastly increasing the number of enzymes we can screen. The equipment is also more compact, making it easier to operate, and much fewer materials are used," explains Jakob Rahr Winther.

FROM HUGE TO TINYThe key to the method Jakob Rahr Winther and his team are researching is the use of tiny pellets as a medium to form the enzymes. This signi-ficantly benefits the subsequent screening pro-cess, in which the enzymes are tested for various properties.

"The method can be implemented using equip-ment that most laboratories already have. In the future, the method may become the standard in every laboratory. Who knows? It may open up new avenues for research – not simply in relation to enzymes. The method can be used for many other types of proteins and therefore also has potential for developing medicine and for protein research in general. This is really exciting," says Jakob Rahr Winther.

"This is exactly the type of research that we want to promote," explains Henrik Callesen, Chair of the Committee on Biotechnology-based Synthe-sis and Production Research, which assesses the applications and awards the grants.

"The aim of the project grants is to make bio-technology-based production more sustainable. This is why we support research into methods for improving the use of energy, reducing waste products, increasing efficiency and improving the use of resources," says Henrik Callesen.

MEET A GRANT RECIPIENT

BENEFITS OF LARGE-SCALE PRODUCTION

RESEARCH IN BIOTECHNOLOGY-BASED SYNTHESIS AND PRODUCTION

The grant supports fundamental and applied research projects that are aimed at generating products in improved and more sustainable ways.



The problem with research is that it goes very, very slowly – and I am actually very impatient."

CHARLOTTE LING,ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, LUND UNIVERSITY, SWEDEN


THE SMALL ADVANTAGE


Charlotte Ling and her research group hit the headlines in 2013 when they became the first to prove that exercise results in epigenetic changes in human adipose tissue and changes in the genes that code for both obesity and type 2 diabetes.

"We researched a group of middle-aged men who were not very physically active. We got them to exercise twice a week for six months. One third of their genes had undergone epigenetic changes in their adipose tissue," says Charlotte Ling, PhD and Head of the Epigenetics and Diabetes Group at Lund University in Sweden.

"The fact that the changes were so great was com-pletely unexpected. Here was the ultimate proof: lifestyle actually makes a difference," she says.

This pioneering research was enabled by a 2011 Excellence Project grant of DKK 5 million (€670,000) over 5 years from the Novo Nordisk Foundation. Every year, the Foundation awards four Excellence Project grants for basic, trans-lational or clinical research of an internationally high standard within endocrinology and experi-mental physiology. The projects must be carried out in a Nordic country.

"Excellence Project grants are given to young promising researchers at the sensitive start-up phase of their research careers when they may need either more time or more money than more established and experienced researchers. It is really

exciting to see their work take off," says professor Bo Ahrén, Chair of the Novo Nordisk Foundation’s Nordisk Research Committee, which awards the Excellence Project grants.

COMPLEX RESEARCHCharlotte Ling’s research is definitely about to take off. Now halfway through her Excellence Project, Charlotte Ling is investigating the extent to which epigenetic mechanisms play a role among people with type 2 diabetes by carrying out comparative studies between healthy and ill people.

"This grant really helped me in the transition from young to senior researcher. I could not have carried out this research without the Excellence Project grant. Today, medical research is extremely complicated, and no individual can provide all the knowledge needed for this research. The grant has enabled me to recruit people with the right competencies to my group. That gives me a bit of a head start over the competitors," says Charlotte Ling.

Charlotte Ling has been a researcher for 18 years and loves her work.

"I love research – even though I am very im-patient. But I believe that my impatience helps me somewhat because it makes me work really hard to get the job done. The problem is that, although I have 10 collaborators, it still takes a long time. So you know – a lifetime is not that long."

NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION EXCELLENCE PROJECT

The aim of the grant is to help talented young scientistsdevelop into top international researchers.


As a researcher, it is healthy to move. It opens up new avenues and produces new ideas."

MAIKEN NEDERGAARD, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER MEDICAL CENTER, UNITED STATES


SLEEP CLEANSES THE BRAIN


Most people love pulling the covers up to their ears, closing their eyes and settling in for a good night’s sleep. But sleep can also be considered a waste of time – and even dangerous when people slept in the savanna with wild animals prowling in the dark.

"Sleep is a dangerous activity when you are out in the open," says Maiken Nedergaard, a professor at the University of Rochester Medical Center in the United States. She has been leading a research project on the function of sleep."Sleep must have a basic evolutionary purpose, because otherwise it would have been eliminated."

Maiken Nedergaard is one of the most renowned names in neuroscience. One of her discoveries is that, similarly to the lymph system helping the body to eliminate waste products after physical exertion, the brain has a system in which glial cells ensure that cellular waste products are elimi nated. Maiken Nedergaard has recently demonstrated that this waste clearance is far more effective during sleep, thereby revealing a possible essen-tial function of sleep: keeping the brain in tip-top condition.

"The next step is to determine how important this transport system is for disease. We already have data showing that waste clearance from the brain is dramatically reduced after minor strokes or brain injury. This might explain how these diseases promote dementia," she says.

In 2013, Maiken Nedergaard is one of three re-searchers receiving a Novo Nordisk Foundation Laureate Research Grant for DKK 40 million (€5.5 million) over 7 years. These grants are awarded to excellent researchers who want to move their research to Denmark.

FROM THE UNITED STATES TO DENMARKThe grant means that Maiken Nedergaard is moving from the United States to Denmark and will be employed at the University of Copen hagen. Her research will focus on further exploring the functioning of glial cells, with the goal of devel-oping new diagnostic and therapeutic methods of treating diseases of the nervous system.

"The grant from the Novo Nordisk Foundation will allow me to pose questions of even greater importance in the projects that are most exciting," says Maiken Nedergaard.

One remaining question is whether the function of sleep can eventually be understood so well that it can be mimicked in a waking state, thereby eliminating the need for sleep. However, Maiken Nedergaard says that this is simply – well, a dream.

Lars Fugger, Chair of the Committee on Novo Nord- isk Foundation Laureate Research Grants, says:

"Denmark benefits by being able to attract re-searchers of the calibre of Maiken Nedergaard. The presence of the best international researchers will raise the quality of Danish research and will also develop and inspire young talents."

NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION LAUREATE RESEARCH GRANT

The grant aims to attract excellent international researchers within biomedicine and biotechnology to Denmark, thereby strengthening research in Denmark in both the short and long term.


SØREN K. MOESTRUP, PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF BIOMEDICINE, AARHUS UNIVERSITY

New discoveries provide renewed energy to withstand the adversity and dead ends that research also brings."


PATHWAYSTHROUGHTHE BODY

MEET A PRIZE WINNER

The human body is an ingenious construction that selectively absorbs certain substances and eliminates others. But what determines whether essential nutrients pass through the armoured wall of the intestine and further into the body? And how does the blood eliminate harmful toxins that can potentially kill the blood’s owner?

These are some of the questions to which Søren K. Moestrup of Aarhus University has found an-swers. The 52-year-old professor has identified and characterized numerous transport receptors that play an important role in the body’s uptake of vitamins, haemoglobin, enzymes and medi-cines and thereby its ability to keep the blood in balance.

"Identifying receptors and mapping what they transport can explain the mechanisms of disease, which can spawn new ideas for pharmaceu - ti cal treatment and diagnostics," says Søren K. Moestrup.

Søren K. Moestrup was awarded the 2013 Novo Nordisk Prize for his research. The Prize of DKK 1.5 million (€201,000) includes DKK 1 million (€134,000) for research and a personal award of DKK 500,000 (€67,000). The recipient of the Prize also receives up to DKK 300,000 for holding an international symposium within his or her field.

"This is not simply a pat on the back for me but also recognizes my laboratory team and my closest collaborators as well as the research field

as a whole. It means a lot for us that some people think that this research is important and has made a difference," he says.

TESTING MEDICINEOne of Søren K. Moestrup’s most important dis-coveries is identifying the receptor that helps the body to excrete toxic haemoglobin. Haemoglobin is a vital protein that binds oxygen to red blood cells, but if it escapes from the cells it can be toxic, leading to kidney damage and irregular blood pressure. He has also explained how a defective receptor among children inhibits the absorption of the crucial vitamin B

12 from the intestine.

Despite his distinguished career, Søren K. Moes-trup does not intend to rest on his laurels.

"We are making efforts in several areas. Inflam-mation will be strongly emphasized in the coming years. We have discovered some new inflamma-tion mechanisms in relation to the receptor for haemoglobin uptake. We are also developing and testing a new type of antibody-based medicine that uses receptors as an entry point to target and suppress a specific type of immune cells."

Professor Jan Fahrenkrug, Chair of the Novo Nord isk Prize Committee, says:"Søren K. Moestrup has in the most notable way contributed to bridg-ing basic research and clinical practice. The Prize is both a personal recognition and helps to raise awareness of this research field and thereby strengthen research in the future."

NOVO NORDISK PRIZE

The Prize is awarded in recognition of unique medical research or other research contributions that benefit medical science.

SCHOLARSHIPS, RESEARCH LEADER PROGRAMMES, PROJECT GRANTS AND PRIZES

A BROAD RANGE OF OPPORTUNITIES

PROJECT GRANTSProject grants are provided for carrying out a research project and cover such expenses as operating costs, equipment and salaries for scientific and technical staff. The funds are awarded based on assessment of the project’s quality and the merits of the applicant.

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RESEARCH LEADER PROGRAMMESThese grants are awarded to researchers at the managerial level – to both young researchers, who are about to establish their first research group, and established researchers at the professor level. The grants are awarded based on the merits of the researcher and an assessment of the research project that the applicant intends to carry out.


The Novo Nordisk Foundation wants to promote individual excellence through its grants. The Foundation’s focus is therefore to identify and support the best research projects and to reward the best research efforts. This is carried out through a range of grants that the Foundation’s scientific committees award annually to individual researchers.

PRIZESThe Foundation awards prizes to researchers in recognition of an outstanding research effort. The Foundation awards prizes independently or in partnership with scientific societies in Denmark and the rest of the Nordic countries.

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SCHOLARSHIPS AND FELLOWSHIPSThe Foundation’s research scholarships and fellowships are awarded primarily as salary to the applicant. They are awarded based on the merits of the researcher and an assessment of the research project that the applicant intends to carry out.


GRANTS FOR RESEARCH CENTRES

Pulsating synergy and success Since 2007, the Foundation has awarded DKK 3.1 billion (€420 million) for establishing four large research centres and the Danish National Biobank in Greater Copenhagen. The centres’ respective fields of research are proteins, stem cells, meta b-olism and biosustainability.

The Foundation aims to create a cluster of research centres that comprise outstanding knowledge en-vironments with world-class infrastructure and re-search. This will make Greater Copenhagen an in-ternational beacon within bioscience research by developing and strengthening scientific compe-tencies, attracting the best researchers and sow-ing the seeds for pioneering research results. The vision is that the centres can contribute to solving some of the challenges threatening global health and welfare such as diabetes and the depletion of natural resources.

The grants for the centres extend over 10 years, and this long-term perspective combined with sub-stantial funding are vital in realizing the ambitions.

The cluster of centres has been established in partnership with public research institutions that confirmed in their applications that they would

co-fund establishment and ongoing operation. The Board of the Foundation decides whether to award these grants.

GEOGRAPHICAL PROXIMITYThe cluster of research centres is located in Greater Copenhagen, where the University of Copenhagen, the Technical University of Denmark and several university hospitals are located and where several biopharmaceutical and biotechno-logy companies are headquartered. This provides opportunities for interaction and collaboration.

One objective of the centres’ geographical proximity is that this will lead to a dynamic and innovative environment capable of creating fruit-ful interdisciplinary collaboration based on the centres’ closely related scientific fields. The result is synergy in the form of mutual inspiration and knowledge sharing, which neither the centres nor the individual research groups could otherwise achieve on their own.

In 2012, as part of its strategy of making Copen-hagen a hub for research in the biosciences, the Foundation established the Copenhagen Bio-science Conferences.

The Foundation supports a cluster of research centres with the purpose of making Copenhagen an international hub for bioscience research.


STEN SCHEIBYE, CHAIR OF THE BOARD, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION

The aim of awarding these very large grants is to create a cluster of research centres that can attract and retain the

world’s best researchers, thereby creating the basis for an internationally oriented

and innovative research environment of the highest quality to benefit society."


JIRI LUKAS, PROFESSOR, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION CENTER FOR PROTEIN RESEARCH, UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research will become a beacon for advanced research into proteins, and we hope that all ambitious researchers in this field would consider a position at the Center to be attractive."

In-depth insight into the biology of disease is required to develop new treatment methods. Cell behaviour is largely determined by which proteins the cell produces, how these proteins are modi-fied and how they functionally interact with each other.

The vision of the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research is to understand the protein-based mechanisms of disease. The Center strives to achieve this by using and developing highly innovative protein technologies, thereby elucidat-ing the mechanisms of disease and contributing to developing new treatment methods.

INSUFFICIENT TREATMENTThe ultimate goal of this research is to benefit people affected by serious diseases for which treatment is currently not available or not very effective.

Researchers at the Center collaborate with various partners in Denmark and the rest of the world in both the public and private sectors.

Jiri Lukas, Executive Director of the Center, says: "Tomorrow’s medicine will become increasingly individualized, and proteins will play a key role in understanding, diagnosing and treating disease. There are no easy solutions. This is why the long-term funding provided by the Novo Nordisk Foun-dation is extremely important. It enables us to launch ambitious – and risky – projects that can produce new paradigms and take our knowledge to a higher plane."

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Protein Research was established in collaboration with the University of Copenhagen. In 2007, the Novo Nordisk Foundation awarded a 10-year grant of DKK 600 million (€80.7 million) to establish and operate the Center. The Center opened in 2009 and currently has 140 employees, many of whom have been recruited from outside Denmark.

Combinations and consequences

RESEARCH CENTRE


RESEARCH CENTRETORBEN KLEIN, MANAGING DIRECTOR, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION CENTER FOR BASIC METABOLIC RESEARCH, UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN

We are not here to deliver the ordinary or confirm the familiar. We are here to be innovative and create the unexpected – preferably the knowledge that can revolutionize the battle against global threats such as diabetes and obesity."

Mysterious lifestyle-related diseasesDiabetes and obesity are among the most rapidly growing global health problems of our time. About 370 million people worldwide have type 2 diabetes, which can lead to incapacitating dam-age to such parts of the body as the eyes, kidneys, heart and brain, and this number is expected to rise to more than 550 million in 2030. Nearly 275,000 people in Denmark have been diag-nosed with type 2 diabetes, and it is estimated that almost as many have the disease without knowing it.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research aims to generate basic know-ledge about human metabolism as a basis for developing new methods of diagnosing, prevent-ing and treating type 2 diabetes and obesity. The Center primarily focuses on:

• developing models for identifying individuals at high risk of developing hyperglycaemia, obe-sity and cardiovascular disease and for predicting disease onset and progression;

• identifying how diet, weight loss and physical activity can contribute to preventing and treating type 2 diabetes;

• characterizing the hormone system of the gastrointestinal tract (enteroendocrine system) to develop better treatment for type 2 diabetes and obesity; and

• developing new innovative magnetic reso n - an ce imaging methods for studying insulin resist-ance and type 2 diabetes in the liver and muscles.

STRENGTH IN DENMARKResearch on metabolism and diabetes is one of Denmark’s strongest fields. Through its work, the Center seeks to propel research and educa-tion related to metabolic diseases to new heights, with the aim of establishing itself as a leading global centre for basic metabolic research.

Torben Klein, Managing Director of the Center, says:"The Center collaborates with other research groups within this field and has established im-portant research alliances with leading research groups at universities around the world with the aim of optimizing knowledge-sharing and gen e rating synergy on an international scale to re inforce our research in the future."

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research was established in collabora-tion with the University of Copenhagen. In 2010, the Novo Nordisk Foundation awarded a 10-year grant of DKK 885 million (€119 million) to estab-lish and operate the Center. It opened the same year and today has 205 employees.


Over the years, Denmark has built up unique nationwide registries with detailed information about all residents. At the same time, Denmark’s health care system has routinely collected biologi-cal material from many individuals.

The Danish National Biobank at Statens Serum In-stitut gives scientists a comprehensive overview of and access to about 15 million biological samples in Denmark’s health care system for the first time. In addition, these can be linked with information from the nationwide registries. This will give re-searchers new opportunities for investigating why disease occurs and how to prevent and treat it.

DETAILED INFORMATIONThe Danish National Biobank is a project with three strands: the Danish National Biobank Reg-i stry, a large physical Biobank and a coordinating centre.

The Biobank Registry contains detailed informa-tion on samples consisting of blood, tissue and DNA. For example, a researcher can find blood samples from people with multiple sclerosis – taken before they developed the disease – and can use the samples to study markers for the later development of the disease.

The ultramodern 2400-m² physical Biobank is one of the world’s largest and includes a gigantic freezer room in which robots store, retrieve and deliver the biological samples. The coordinating centre staff are experts at managing and proces s - ing the biological material and will advise and as-sist researchers on issues arising from the use of the Biobank Registry and the physical Biobank.

Mads Melbye, Professor and Executive Vice Presi-dent, Statens Serum Institut, says: "The Danish National Biobank will strengthen Denmark’s re-search infrastructure and create new perspectives for health science research and international re-search collaboration. Denmark’s system of com-mittees on health research ethics and the Danish Data Protection Agency will assess all research projects before they permit the biological material from an individual to be linked with information from the nationwide registries."

The Danish National Biobank was established in collaboration with Statens Serum Institut. In 2009–2010, the Foundation awarded a 10-year grant of DKK 118 million (€15.9 million) to establish and operate the Biobank. It opened in 2012. Other contributors to establishing the Biobank include Denmark’s Ministry of Science, Innovation and Higher Education and the Lundbeck Foundation.

Home to the entire Danish population

MADS MELBYE, PROFESSOR AND EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, STATENS SERUM INSTITUT AND DIRECTOR OF THE DANISH NATIONAL BIOBANK

The Danish National Biobank will become the mother of all freezers in Denmark, with the capacity to store 15 million biological samples consisting of blood, tissue and DNA. This will lay the foundation for many important future research results related to preventing and treating disease."

BIOBANK


RESEARCH CENTRE HENRIK SEMB, PROFESSOR AND MANAGING DIRECTOR,DANISH STEM CELL CENTER, UNIVERSITY OF COPENHAGEN

Pluripotent stem cells can develop into any type of cells in the human body, such as brain, blood and skin cells. Because many serious diseases result from conditions in which cells are absent or mal-functioning, considerable thera peutic potential can be harvested if researchers can understand and mimic the development from stem cells into specialized cells.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Section for Basic Stem Cell Biology is one of two sections of the Danish Stem Cell Center (DanStem). The Section conducts basic research within developmental, stem cell and molecular biology. Research topics include how to induce stem cells to differentiate into certain types of cells and the specific role of cancer stem cells in developing different types of cancer. The ambition is to generate knowledge that will form the basis for developing more targe ted and efficient therapies for diabetes and cancer.

The Section comprises nine internationally re-nowned research groups, including five recruited from Sweden, Switzerland, Scotland, England and the United States. All these groups have well- established global networks and participate ac - ti vely in numerous international research projects.

DanStem’s other section, the Section for Strate-gic Translational Stem Cell Research and Therapy (TransStem), is supported by the Danish Coun-cil for Strategic Research and industry partners. TransStem’s overall aim is to translate promising new research results into the active development of new therapies.

INTERDISCIPLINARITYHenrik Semb, Professor and Managing Director of DanStem, says: "We have a unique opportu-nity to improve basic stem cell research and to create synergy in research within developmental and cancer biology. The Center is also actively educating the next generation of clinicians and developmental and stem cell biologists, whom we hope will challenge the current scientific dogmas and become the future leaders within the field."

The Foundation established the Section for Basic Stem Cell Biology in collaboration with the Uni-versity of Copenhagen. In 2010, the Foundation awarded a 10-year grant of DKK 350 million (€47 million) to establish and operate the Section. Of this grant, DKK 30 million is reserved for national research collaboration. The Center opened in 2011.

Cells revealing their destiny

What attracts me is the enormous challenge involved in developing a stem cell centre that has a real potential to compete with the rest of the world."


RESEARCH CENTRE

Plastic bags, toys, food ingredients and many other products are manufactured from chemical materials based on oil or extracted from plants. Nevertheless, this depletes natural resources and is not sustainable.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Bio-sustainability is the world’s first interdisciplinary research centre within biosustainability. The Cen-ter’s ambition is to develop new knowledge and technology that can support the transformation from a petrochemical industry to a more sustain-able biobased industry, in which chemicals are produced biotechnologically using microbial pro-duction hosts: cell factories. However, the deve l-opment costs for the design of cell factories need to decline for this to become a real alternative to conventional production methods. The Center also investigates how to develop robust cell factories for the efficient production of biopharmaceuticals.

Overall, the Center has two goals: 1) to identify the spectrum of chemicals that can be manufac-tured biologically and 2) to accelerate the process of designing and developing the next generation of cell factories.

The Center collaborates with the world’s lead-ing researchers in this field and has established satellites and entered into strategic alliances with universities in the United States, Sweden, South Korea and Denmark. The Center offers a

unique international research environment with the research depth and breadth that is essential to achieve its goals. Because innovation is a high-priority area for the Center, it therefore collabor-ates with biotechnology companies and industry to promote knowledge exchange and application of the Center’s results.

FOCUS ON EDUCATION Further, the Center emphasizes educating and deve loping the talents of a new generation of scien tists within this field. It has also initi-ated a new PhD programme that will train future researchers to become leaders and pioneers with-in sustainable industry.

Bernhard Palsson, Professor and CEO of the Center, says: "Humanity needs to find ways of living more sustainably to slow the depletion of natural resources. Using cell factories is a fundamental aspect of this process. Denmark has a strong posi-tion in industrial biotechnology, and ultimately we want to strengthen this position in the biologically based society of the future."

The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Bio-sustainability was established in collaboration with the Technical University of Denmark. In 2010–2012, the Novo Nordisk Foundation award-ed grants totalling more than DKK 1.1 billion (€150 million) over 10 years. The Center opened in 2011 and has 198 employees today.

A biobased perspective on the world

BERNHARD PALSSON, PROFESSOR AND CEO, NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION CENTERFOR BIOSUSTAINABILITY, TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY OF DENMARK

Biosustainability represents a major socioeconomic driver in the coming decades. The design, construction and optimization of cell factories are fundamental issues. The Center will be able to rapidly become a global leader in this field."


SPACE FOR SCIENTIFIC DEBATE

The Copenhagen Bioscience Conferences are a series of scientific conferences within biomedicine and bio-technology. Over four days, they bring together top researchers and young talent from all over the world to discuss the latest scientific results and exciting ideas within a particular field. The purpose of the Confe rences is to enable participants to build and expand their inter-national network and to exchange knowledge and ideas in order to strengthen their future research.

The Conferences are open to researchers at all career levels. Attendance is by application, and the primary criteria are scientific accomplishment and a willingness to participate actively in discussions and activities during the conference.

To promote a relaxed, trusting and open atmosphere, each conference limits the number of participants, in-cluding the speakers, to 150–250. The Conferences are held less than 1 hour north of Copenhagen Interna-tional Airport in surroundings specifically reserved for conference participants.

No commercial activities or products and services are promoted.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation has initiated the Confer-ences and pays for all accommodation, transport and meals during the Conferences. Participants cover their own travel expenses. Delegates from low- and middle-income countries may apply for a travel grant.

Each of the centres in the Novo Nordisk Foundation’s cluster of research centres takes turns in arranging and hosting a conference together with the Foundation. The individual centre chooses the theme of the conference. The Foundation is planning two conferences annually; the first took place in June 2012.

COPENHAGEN BIOSCIENCE CONFERENCES

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCES

By hosting the Copenhagen Bioscience Conferences, the Foundation strives to organize some of the world’s best conferences within bio-medicine and biotechnology.


CONFERENCE FEEDBACK

"The location of the conference is just fantastic. The conference centre is so nicely done, and it helps people to be creative."

JAY KEASLINGProfessor, Joint BioEnergy Institute, Berkeley, United States and Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, speaker, third Conference

"It has been a great researchenvironment to socialize, discuss and learn new things. The environment here has beenprobably one of the best I have seen at a conference."

KRISTIN I. STANFORDAssociate Professor, Joslin Diabetes Center, United States, participant, fourth Conference

"You really do feel that even if you are not too experienced you still have a place, and people are interested in what you have to say. I take home new contacts and I take homenew ideas."

ELISABETH M. STORCK PhD Fellow, Imperial College, London, UK, participant, second Conference

"The talks were really amazing. The scientists were discussing their newest research in a very open way, and that allowed us to think in new directions that we had not thought about before."

ELLY TANAKA Professor, Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, speaker, first Conference


STAND-ALONE GRANTS

INSPIRATION, INNOVATION AND EDUCATION In addition to the Foundation’s regular annual grants decided by its committees, the Board of the Foundation has given priority to awarding grants to numerous major projects with a specific theme the Foundation considers important. These are called stand-alone grants.

The topics for the projects are extremely broad, inclu-ding bioinformatics, diabetes research and rehabilitation of people with cancer. Each project is funded for up to 5 years. These grants are often awarded in collaboration with both private and public partners.

The Foundation’s largest stand-alone grant so far is DKK 201 million (€27 million) over 5 years for establishing the Danish Diabetes Academy at Odense University Hospital in 2012. The Academy aims to generate new knowledge on diabetes and new ways of treating and preventing it and thereby contribute to helping people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes to achieve a normal quality of life and life expectancy. The Academy offers PhD, postdoc-toral and professorial scholarships and is open to all dia-betes researchers in Denmark and elsewhere. One of the Academy’s most important tasks is to create a collabora-tive platform across faculties and frontiers through such means as courses and conferences. The vision is that this collaboration will create synergy that will strengthen research in Denmark and globally.

SUPPORTING THE WHOLE RESEARCH CHAINAlthough most of the Foundation’s grants are allocated directly to research, it also supports other activities that take place earlier in the research chain. In this way, the

Foundation helps inspire and enthuse young people and students at primary and lower-secondary schools, upper-secondary schools and at universities and contributes to promoting interest in the natural sciences and research among the general public.

In 2013, the Foundation awarded special one-off grants to co-fund the construction of two international schools that especially emphasize languages, science and health. The Foundation awarded DKK 100 million (€13.4 mil-lion) to Copenhagen International School for building a new school in the Nordhavn district of Copenhagen that is expected to accommodate 1200 students attending nursery school and grades 0–12. The Foundation also awarded DKK 88 million (€12 million) towards building the European School Copenhagen on the site of a former Carlsberg Brewery in Copenhagen. The School expects to attract 900 students attending grades 0–12. In addi-tion, the Foundation awarded DKK 100 million (€13.4 million) to co-fund the construction of a new Natural History Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen.

The Foundation awarded these grants to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the first insulin production in Denmark with the aim of making Copenhagen an inter-national and attractive metropolis.

Overall, the distinctive feature of the Foundation’s stand-alone grants is that they are ambitious and have promis-ing potential. The Foundation awards grants based on the applications received and after peer review of the relevant research activities.

The stand-alone grants of the Novo Nordisk Foundation support numerous projects within various fields, including diabetes and cancer.



A CONDUIT BETWEEN RESEARCH AND PRACTICE

EXAMPLE OF A STAND-ALONE GRANT

“In Denmark’s health care system, we know a lot about how cancer appears and how cancer can be treated. There are many talented people who are extremely knowledgeable about the whole cancer process. Our real problem is that the health care system has not really been able to create coherent care pathways," says Peter Vedsted.

For the last four years, Peter Vedsted has headed up the Research Centre for Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care, which was established at Aarhus University in 2010 with grants of DKK 15 million (€2 million) each from the Novo Nordisk Foundation and the Danish Cancer Society. The remit of the Centre is to elucidate the reasons for the long waiting times that people with cancer experience from the first symptom until treatment starts, includ-ing how to create the best possible collaboration in the health sector around people with cancer. Despite being new, the Centre, which has 25 researchers connected to it, has delivered significant research results that, in some cases, have changed practices in the health care system.

“Our most important contribution has been to docu-ment why progressing from the first symptom to treat-ment took too long in Denmark. Half of a patient cohort waited 3 months to be treated, and one quarter waited for more than 6 months. The reasons for this included how the health care system is organized and how people collaborate across the system," says Peter Vedsted.

“Lung cancer is one example of this development of collaboration and organization. Typically, when a person goes to a general practitioner (GP) with a symptom of lung cancer, the GP refers to a specialist who, after an examination, orders a CT scan. We set up a controlled trial in which GPs referred the people in one group to a specialist for examination and sent the people in the second group directly for a CT scan. The direct referral saved 22 hours of specialists’ time for every 100 patients

referred – without negatively affecting treatment. These hours could be used to treat people who are ill."

“The research has resulted in the referral programme for lung cancer in Denmark deciding to recommend that GPs refer people directly for CT scanning," says Peter Vedsted.

FOCUS ON COMMUNICATIONThe research by the Centre has also documented that the cancer care pathways launched in Denmark neglected some groups of people.

“Initially, some people present symptoms that are not typical for people with cancer. They were not included in the specific cancer care pathways, which state that if a person has certain specific symptoms, then they must be examined in very specific ways. Based on our research, diagnostic units were established across the country," says Peter Vedsted.

Peter Vedsted spends a large part of his time communi-cating the research results of the Centre.

“We spend a lot of time engaging in dialogue with doc-tors, patient organizations, scientific societies, politicians and other stakeholders. In this way, we act as a conduit between research and practice."

“Our overall goal is to contribute to giving people with cancer a better and longer life. Together with those carrying out cancer research and making new discover-ies, we also need to ensure that the focus remains on combating cancer coherently," says Peter Vedsted.

“And I suspect that what we learn about the organiza-tion of the health care system based on cancer can be transferred to other fields. In this respect, this type of research has considerable potential," he concludes.


PETER VEDSTED, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF AARHUS

The mission of the project is to create knowledge that can be used as an underlying argument for how health services should be organized."

IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE

GRANTS FOR HUMANITARIAN AND SOCIAL CAUSES

The Novo Nordisk Foundation awards most of its grants for health science research but also provides funds to-wards the operating costs of the Steno Diabetes Center and humanitarian and social causes.

The Novo Nordisk Foundation grants DKK 27.9 million (€3.7 million) annually towards co-funding the operating costs of Steno Diabetes Center, the research hospital of Novo Nordisk A/S. This responsibility of the Foundation was laid down in the Articles of Association and origin-ated in the Foundation’s historical responsibility for Steno Memorial Hospital.

John Nolan, Director and CEO of Steno Diabetes Center: "The Steno Diabetes Center aims to become a global lead-er within diabetes treatment and translational research focusing on prevention and the early stages of diabetes. We are organized in four centres that cover treatment, research, education and prevention, so we cover the en-tire spectrum of diabetes. This makes the Center a unique place with considerable international impact."

RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONIn addition to funding the operation of the hospital, the Foundation also awards annual grants for research and education projects under the auspices of the Steno Diabetes Center. In 2013, the Steno Health Promotion Center was awarded DKK 10 million (€1.3 million). The Steno Health Promotion Center is an integrated part of the Steno Diabetes Center and works based on the motto "participation creates action competence". The Center focuses on the greatest diabetes-related chal-lenges: lifestyles and attitudes. Novo Nordisk A/S and the Novo Nordisk Foundation co-fund the Center, which is headed by Bjarne Bruun Jensen:

"The goal of our work is to develop an international cen-tre of excellence that, by focusing on lifestyle changes, creates new knowledge to both help people with dia-

betes to improve their lives and help other people to avoid getting diabetes."

In 2013, the Foundation awarded DKK 11.8 million (€1.5 million) to the STAR education programme, which edu-cates health personnel in low- and middle-income coun-tries about diabetes, and a further DKK 10.7 million (€1.4 million) to cover the start-up cost of the REACH education programme.

The Foundation awards smaller grants annually to sup-port humanitarian and social causes. In this respect, the Foundation ensures that the organizations it supports focus on people’s health and welfare, are recognized and file publicly available audited accounts. The Foundation awards grants for social causes to projects that promote the welfare of people in Denmark. In 2013, the Foun-dation awarded grants of DKK 3 million (€400,000) to these causes.

IN 2013, THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION AWARDED GRANTS TO THE FOLLOWING HUMANITARIAN AND NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS:

DKK 435,000

DKK 400,000

DKK 400,000

DKK 400,000

DKK 400,000

DKK 350,000

DKK 350,000

DKK 150,000

DKK 75,000

DKK 40,000

Every year, the Novo Nordisk Foundation supports a range of humanitarian and social causes as laid down in the Articles of Association. These include the Steno Diabetes Center and several charitable organizations.


RED CROSS

ACTIONAID DENMARK

DANISH REFUGEE COUNCIL

RED CROSS YOUTH

SAVE THE CHILDREN DENMARK

CARE DENMARK

UNICEF DENMARK

ENGINEERS WITHOUT BORDERS

DENTAL HEALTH WITHOUT BORDERS

CHILDREN'S WELFARE

P.D. Dorphy, MD runs a small practice with seven employ-ees on the outskirts of Cochin in southern India.

"I see about 50 patients per day, and 30–35 of them have diabetes. It is a very great problem," explains P.D. Dorphy.

"People who develop diabetes have to spend a lot of money on hospital visits, and their ability to work is re-duced. So it not only affects them – it affects the whole family," says P.D. Dorphy.

China and India top the list of the countries with the most people with diabetes, and about 80% of all people with diabetes live in low- and medium-income countries. The health systems in most of these countries are not geared to handle the rapidly increasing demands for treatment, and the need for training and education of health care professionals is critical.

To counter this development, the Novo Nordisk Foun-dation provided funds in 1999 to the Steno Diabetes Center for launching its STAR education programme, which involves Steno staff educating health care profes-sionals in low- and medium-income countries about how to prevent, diagnose and treat diabetes as well as dis-seminating the latest knowledge about the disease.

"Our mission is to improve the knowledge of treating dia betes among health care professionals, thereby im-proving the quality of life of people with diabetes," says Ulla Bjerre-Christensen, Head of Education of Steno Diabetes Center.

100 COURSESSince launching the programme, the Novo Nordisk Foun-dation has awarded more than DKK 110 million (€14.8 million) to the STAR programme. The first course was held in New Delhi in 2000. Since then, more than 8000 health care professionals have attended more than 100 courses. Participants do not pay to attend the courses, and there is no commercial content.

P.D. Dorphy has specialized in foot care – an interest he acquired from attending the STAR course Practical Dia-betology in Cochin in 2006.

"I had a very great learning experience during the course. We learned about all the things we can do as basic physicians. Frankly speaking, I did not know much about preventing and screening for foot complications until I attended the course. The course gave me detailed knowledge into these problems. Now I am able to save a large number of feet that otherwise were at risk of being amputated," he explains.

CHANGING TREATMENT METHODS THROUGH EDUCATION

EXAMPLE OF HUMANITARIAN AND SOCIAL SUPPORT

STAR (STENO TRAINING AND APPLICATION OF RESOURCES)

The STAR programme teaches health care professionals in low- and medium-income countries how to treat diabetes and disseminates the latest knowledge about the disease.


P.D. DORPHY, GENERAL PRACTITIONER, COCHIN, INDIA

The course definitely changed the treatment methods that I follow. I believe my patients are getting better treatment after I attended the STAR course."


DRIVING INNOVATION

DYNAMO AND BRIDGE-BUILDER


One strategic objective of the Novo Nordisk Foundation is to con tribute to building bridges between the exciting discoveri-es researchers make in biomedicine and biotechnology and their commercial application. The purpose is to accelerate the use of new research-based knowledge and thus create ad-ded value by establishing new life-science and bioindustrial companies and associated jobs to benefit society as a whole.

Different stages of the innovation value chain require diffe-rent types of support because the technical and commercial activities change and develop throughout the process. The Foundation therefore supports a range of initiatives – either directly or through its subsidiary Novo A/S – and thus covers the entire innovation value chain from research discovery to commercializing new diagnostic methods, therapies, assistive devices and technologies.

THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION SUPPORTS RESEARCH

COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION AND NOVO A/S

RESEARCH

GRANTS

EXPLORATORY PRE-SEED

GRANTS

PRE-SEED

GRANTS

SEED

INVESTMENTS

VENTURE

INVESTMENTS

2 3 4 5

NOVO A/S INVESTS IN COMPANIES

1


1. RESEARCHThe Novo Nordisk Foundation

supports high-quality biomedical

and biotechnology research. The

Foundation catalyses the creation

of strong research environments

that focus on creativity. This is

intended to create favourable

conditions for making application-

oriented discoveries with commer-

cial potential.

2. EXPLORATORY PRE-SEED The earliest stage involves testing

whether the discovery will work

in practice and can be commercial-

ized. Funding is required to both

test and develop a good idea

and to investigate the potential

for patenting and marketing.

Research ers based at a university

or hospital in a Nordic country

may apply to the Foundation’s

Com mittee on Exploratory Pre-

seed Grants for funding for this

purpose.

3. PRE-SEEDResearchers may apply for a pre-

seed grant from the Foundation

once the scientific and commercial

potential has been further inve st-

i gated.

For both pre-seed programmes,

the Foundation, in partnership

with Novo A/S, supports the inno-

vation process on the same terms

as it supports research – by awar-

ding grants to the applicant. Up

to DKK 32 million (€4.28 million)

is awarded annually for pre-seed

activities, with DKK 12 million

(€1.6 million) allocated for ex-ploratory pre-seed grants and

DKK 20 million (€2.68 million)

for pre-seed grants.

4. SEEDIf an idea is sustainable and pro -

mising enough to advance to

the next stage, which involves

more extensive technical and

commer cial activities, Novo A/S

may decide to specifically invest

in a seed-stage company. At that

stage, Novo A/S will exercise

in fluence in the expanding com -

pany by appointing members of

the board.

5. VENTUREIf the expanding company turns

out to have promising commercial

potential, Novo A/S may make a

substantial venture capital invest-

ment to further develop the con-

cept and the company. Although

the pre-seed and seed stages focus

on the Nordic countries, venture

capital investments are also made

in other European countries and in

the United States.

The opportunities for investments

to pay off in the form of new

products and financial returns

especially increase at the later

stages of the innovation value

chain, but this is far from certain

and also requires a long-term

perspective.

However, neither excellence in

research nor the opportunities

to fund idea development inher-

ently lead to innovation. This

also requires an innovation

culture, with entrepreneurs and

researchers capable of moving

research discoveries and ideas

forward, thereby enabling the

innovative and commercial

potential to unfold. Developing

and operating a small biotech-

nology company requires energy,

commitment and a belief in sus-

tainability.


THE HOLDING AND INVESTMENT COMPANY

NOVO A/SA STABLE BASIS

Novo A/S is wholly owned by the Novo Nordisk Founda-tion and is the holding company for Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S. Novo A/S was established in 1999 and is responsible for managing the Foundation’s assets with a view to achieving a long-term return.

A key task of Novo A/S is to act as a stable basis for the commercial activities of Novo Nordisk A/S and Novo zymes A/S. Novo A/S also invests in both financial assets and in application-oriented companies in the life sciences. The aim is to consolidate the Novo Nordisk Foundation’s assets to achieve a return to cover the Foundation’s grant obli-gations for scientific, humanitarian and social purposes.

"Novo A/S has been entrusted with an important task: managing the assets of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, which have significantly appreciated in value over the years. The unequivocal aim is to achieve a satisfactory financial return within the risk profile specified in the Articles of Association," says Eivind Kolding, CEO, Novo A/S.

When Novo A/S was created, the combined assets of the Foundation and Novo A/S not linked to Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S comprised about DKK 600 million (€80.4 million). As of the end of 2013, these assets have increased to about DKK 43 billion (€5.76 billion), com-prising:

• Long-term investments in the life sciences and bio-industrial companies of about DKK 19 billion (€2.54 bil-lion). The investments are: companies in the seed phase; companies in the venture phase; and well-established companies in biomedicine and the bioindustry.

• The financial investments are primarily placed in equi-ties and bonds (about DKK 24 billion (€3.22 billion)) that can be sold quickly if necessary.

GROWTH AND CAPITALThe Novo A/S Finance Division manages the investments in financial assets with the aim of making a return and creating diversity in the overall investment portfolio of Novo A/S. The money not invested in companies and the grant money not yet paid out by the Novo Nordisk Foundation is invested in a portfolio of well-diversified assets in shares and bonds. This ensures that sufficient liquid funds are always available in situations in which it may be necessary to provide support: for example, if a company in the Novo Group needs to raise capital or pursue new investment opportunities. In addition, some of the financial investments are realized continually to be available for grants awarded by the Foundation but not paid (DKK 2.8 billion (€375 million) at the end of 2013).

Novo A/S manages some financial investments itself but also appoints carefully selected international investment managers to invest on its behalf. In 2013, Novo A/S achieved a 14.8% return of DKK 3.1 billion (€415.5 mil-lion) on its financial portfolio.

"We invest long and purchase cost-effectively but only if the investment is considered to have growth potential and provides a suitable return. Our investment philosophy tends to be conservative, but we are ready to act when a good opportunity arises," says Thorkil Kastberg Chris-tensen, Chief Financial Officer, Novo A/S.

It is the substantial growth in both the current dividends from Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S and the return on the investments made by Novo A/S that has opened new potential for the Novo Nordisk Foundation in awarding grants.

EIVIND KOLDING,CEO, NOVO A/S

We have a solid basis for creating value through investing in meticulously selected companies based on our leading competencies within the life sciences combined with active and long-term co-ownership."


NOVOZYMES A/S

Novozymes A/S is the world leader in bioinnovation. Together with customers across a broad array of industries, Novozymes creates tomorrow’s industrial biosolutions that enhance customers’ businesses and safeguard the world’s resources. Novozymes develops and produces industrial en-zymes, microorganisms and biopharmaceutical ingredients. Companies use these products to manufacture such pro-ducts as biofuels, detergents, foodstuffs and feedstock and enable customers to save energy and raw materials and to reduce the waste produced.

Headquartered in Denmark, Novozymes has more than 6000 employees worldwide. The company markets more than 700 products in more than 40 unique end-user markets worldwide. In 2013, Novozymes A/S had revenue of DKK 11.7 billion (€1.56 billion).

Of the 9 members of the Board, 6 are elected at the annual general meeting, with a majority being independent external members. The employees elect the remaining 3 members.

NOVO NORDISK A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S is a global health care company with 90 years of innovation and leadership in diabetes care. The company also has leading positions within haemophilia care, growth hormone therapy and hormone replacement therapy. The company’s primary focus is to discover and develop innovative biological medicines and make them accessible to patients throughout the world.

Headquartered in Denmark, Novo Nordisk employs approxi-mately 38,000 employees in 75 countries and markets its products in more than 180 countries. In 2013, Novo Nord-isk A/S had revenue of DKK 83.6 billion (€11.2 billion).

Of the 11 members of the Board, 7 are elected at the annual general meeting, with a majority being independent exter-nal members. The employees elect the remaining 4 mem-bers.

THE COMPANIES

CONTROLLING OWNERSHIPNovo A/S is obligated to maintain a controlling interest in the Novo Group’s two large publicly listed companies, Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S. The A (multiple voting rights) shares in the two companies are unlisted and are not traded. In both Novo Nordisk A/S and No-vozymes A/S, the A shares have voting rights that are 10 times greater than those of the B (ordinary) shares.

At the end of 2013, Novo A/S owned A and B shares in Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S equivalent to 25.5% and 25.9%, respectively, of the ordinary share capital of the companies and 73.0% and 70.5%, respec-tively, of the voting shares. This special structure with multiple voting rights shares defends the companies in practice against any hostile takeover and ensures that the companies can plan their activities on a long-term basis and remain in Danish ownership. The role of Novo A/S is to manage its controlling shareholding in the best interests of the companies and with due respect for the interests of the minority shareholders.

"We have the majority of the votes in Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S, but we also invite minority share-holders to participate. This is reflected in us being a minority on the boards of both companies, with the in-dividual boards making the decisions by majority," says Sten Scheibye, Chair of the Boards of the Novo Nordisk Foundation and Novo A/S. Most of the income of Novo A/S comes from its share-holding in Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S. Novo A/S receives income from its ownership of Novo Nordisk A/S and Novozymes A/S in the form of annual dividends and from participating in the companies’ share buybacks. In 2013, dividends received by Novo A/S from the two companies amounted to DKK 2.8 billion (€375 million). Income derived from share buybacks amounted to DKK 2.5 billion (€334 million).


MORTEN GRUNNET, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER, AND ULRIK SØRENSEN, CEO, ACESION PHARMA


Novo Seeds helps to develop new innovative biotechnol-ogy companies by providing opportunities to researchers at universities and early-phase life-science companies to test the commercial potential of the most promising dis-coveries. The aim is to contribute to developing a dyna-mic and successful biotechnology environment in Den-mark and the Nordic countries.

Novo Seeds, a division of Novo A/S, was established in 2007 and focuses on three important areas: awarding Foundation-funded exploratory pre-seed grants; award-ing Foundation-funded pre-seed grants; and making seed investments. The two pre-seed programmes aim at the earliest stage on the way to establishing a biotechnol-ogy company. This stage involves testing and developing the commercial potential of an application-oriented re-search discovery. In addition to providing financial back-ing, Novo Seeds also advises and supports companies in developing their projects commercially.

Once sufficient positive commercial potential has been shown, Novo Seeds may consider a seed investment. The seed programme invests in projects on commercial terms and is used for starting up or for developing a new bio-technology start-up company. In addition to the capital, Novo Seeds also provides management, strategic and op-erational support to the companies. Novo Seeds invests up to DKK 130 million (€17.4 million) annually.

At the end of 2013, Novo Seeds had a portfolio of 14 active pre-seed projects and 14 seed companies in the Nordic countries.

"We aim to generate value based on research and prod-uct development. We achieve this by developing ideas and projects that both have commercial potential and provide important new knowledge. We want to catalyse the commercialization of discoveries and innovation," says Søren Carlsen, Managing Partner in Novo Seeds and Novo Ventures.

LONG TIME FRAMEAcesion Pharma, headquartered in Denmark, is one of the companies in which Novo Seeds has a stake. Novo Seeds has invested DKK 4 million (€536,000) so far in Acesion, which is developing treatments for artrial fibrilla tion.

"The disease often results in impaired quality of life, in-creased rate of hospitalization and increased risk of a stroke and death," says Ulrik Sørensen, CEO, Acesion Pharma.

"Existing drug therapies have a limited effect and side effects. We are in the process of developing a more effi-cacious and safe new treatment that blocks the ion chan-nels in the heart. We have demonstrated that, by doing this, we can re-establish the normal heart rhythm and contribute to reducing the risk of recurring atrial fibrilla-tion," adds Morten Grunnet, Chief Scientific Officer of Acesion Pharma.

Ulrik Sørensen continues: "In our experience, Novo Seeds is a robust and committed investor. Apart from having a farsighted investment horizon, without the time restric-tions characterizing most venture funds, Novo Seeds uses its solid network and reputation to raise awareness of the company and to help it to attract new investors. In addi-tion, Novo Seeds has a network of experts in developing drugs, which is extremely valuable to a small company such as Acesion Pharma."

NOVO SEEDS

CATALYSING COMMERCIALIZATION


ULRIK SØRENSEN, CEO, ACESION PHARMA:

Novo Seeds has playeda decisive role in Acesion Pharma’s start-up and subsequent development".


Novo Ventures aims to invest in life-science companies that have substantial commercial potential based on original product development.

Since 2000, Novo Ventures, a division of Novo A/S, has invested DKK 5.1 billion (€683 million) in 89 companies with pioneering new products and technologies that can potentially improve the lives of thousands of people worldwide. After a development stage, some com panies are sold to pharmaceutical and medical technology companies. In some cases, the returns have been so sig-ni fi cant that, today, Novo Ventures is one of the most respected venture teams in the business, investing up to DKK 1.2 billion (€120 million) annually.

In addition to financial support, Novo Ventures provides strategic support and works actively to develop the com-panies by serving on the boards of directors. Companies can also draw on the extensive network and experience of Novo Ventures as well as its commercial and scientific expertise within the life sciences.

As an investor, Novo Ventures has a long-term, flexible time horizon and can therefore support companies un-til the time is right to sell them onward. Novo Ventures has staff in Copenhagen, London and San Francisco and invests in companies in both Europe and the United States.

"We are looking for international life-science companies that focus on the development of drugs and equipment to benefit people and research and that, with our finan-cial and management support, will be able to create financial value. We believe that value is created best through close cooperation between the investor and dedicated entrepreneurs," says Søren Carlsen, Managing Partner i Novo Seeds og Novo Ventures.

EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGEOne of the companies in which Novo Ventures has in-vested is Alios BioPharma, which develops novel medi-cines aimed at treating serious viral diseases. Novo Ven-tures has invested DKK 41 million (€5.5 million) in the company, which is headquartered in South San Francisco.

"Our most advanced product candidate is a small molecule nucleoside that is a specific inhibitor of the respiratory syncytial virus, which causes serious respira-tory diseases. There are currently no effective treatments available. The Alios therapy works by specifically blocking a vital step in the replication cycle of the virus. Phase 2 clinical trials are currently underway, and it is believed that this novel approach will provide benefit for the mil-lions of people worldwide. The company is also devel - o ping antiviral treatments for other respiratory infec-tions, including those caused by the influenza virus and rhino virus," says Lawrence Blatt, CEO, Alios BioPharma.

"The Novo team has brought a wealth of experience and wisdom to our company. They have helped lead the com-pany through some challenging technical and business circumstances, resulting in significant progress towards the corporate objective of becoming a world leader in anti–respiratory virus therapies," says Lawrence Blatt.

NOVO VENTURES

BRINGING INNOVATIVE PRODUCTS TO PEOPLE

LAWRENCE BLATT, CEO, ALIOS BIOPHARMA:

The input from Novo Ventures has been invaluable to the strategic considerations surrounding our corporate development."


PHOTO: ALIOS BIOPHARMA

LARGE INVESTMENTS

CREATING VALUE IN THE LONG TERM

Novo A/S has made significant long-term investments in large, well-established companies in the life sciences and bioindustry.

The companies selected must be resilient and profitable and must have a promising future and excellent growth potential.

The aim of these large investments is to ensure an at-tractive financial return in the long term and to create diversity in the overall investment portfolio.

Whereas venture investments by Novo A/S mostly gene r-ate financial returns by exiting the companies, value crea - tion from the large investments will also be generated through dividends and long-term asset growth.

"The companies in which we want to invest must be competitive within their field and must value our commit-ment as a significant, long-term and actively contributing shareholder. The companies’ values and activities should also be compatible with the Charter for Companies in the Novo Group," says Michael Shalmi, Senior Partner, Novo A/S.

GROWTH AREASIn 2013, Novo A/S, together with the company’s manage-ment, acquired all the shares in the Xellia Group. Xellia is a specialized pharmaceutical company with many years of experience in developing and producing drugs for treating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. Another recent large-scale investment was the 2012 acquisition of a 25.7% stake in Chr. Hansen A/S, the global bio-science company that has developed natural ingredient solutions for the food, pharmaceutical, nutritional and agricultural industries for the past 140 years. Xellia and Chr. Hansen A/S represent initial investments of about DKK 4 billion (€536 million) each.

The investments in these two high-technology and knowledge-based companies are contributing to devel-oping and retaining jobs and value-creating production in Denmark.



ULRIK SPORK, MANAGING PARTNER, NOVO A/S

Through its large investments in well-established companies,Novo A/S wants to create valuethrough long-term ownership."


READ MORE

IT BEGAN WITH A JOURNEY

HISTORY OF THE NOVO NORDISK FOUNDATION

In 1922, August Krogh, a professor at the

University of Copenhagen who had received

the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

in 1920, went on a lecture tour of universities

on the east coast of the United States.

During this visit, the recognized Danish

scientist took a detour to Toronto in

Canada. This not only changed the

lives of himself and his wife Marie

but also became the starting-point

for a unique scientific odyssey.

novo nordisk foundation magazine 2014

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