Professor Andrew Porter

Biography

Professor of Medical Biotechnology and Director of the Scottish Biologics Facility (SBF), University of Aberdeen.  The SBF works with academics and companies across the world developing antibodies and other binding proteins for a range of diagnostic and therapeutic targets.  Programs include: anti-microbials, cardiology, liver fibrosis and CNS disease.

Currently helping to commercialising a new SBF biologics platform based on shark VNAR single-domains with a focus in inflammation and oncology.  This new University spin-out is called Elasmogen Ltd (Feb 2016).

I was the Founder and CSO of Haptogen Ltd, acquired by Wyeth Inc in October 2007.  In 2005 I became the Ernst and Young Plc, UK’s Science and Technology Entrepreneur of the Year.  A Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh since 2006 and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology since 2012.

I continue to hold a number of non-executive Board positions within the Scottish biotechnology sector and have previously been part of commercial teams (consultant or NED) that have raised venture and City cash, closed a number of global licensing deals and most satisfying of all progressed protein based drugs into late stage clinical trials including Phase 2 trials in anti-infectives and a Phase 3 trial for lung cancer (August 2012). 

Unusually for an academic I also part own (since 2009) a number of award winning cocktail bars and in 2014 the team behind these ventures launched Langstane Liquor Ltd, Aberdeen's first Gin distillers for 100 years.  Porter's Gin hit the shelves in Dec 2015 to great reviews and can now be found in many of the world’s top bars. I remain embarrassed about the name!

External Memberships

Royal Society of Edinburgh:  

Selection of New Fellows Committee Member; Commercialisation Fellowships Selection Committee Member

Opportunity North East ONE (Life Sciences)

Board Member since 2016

Converge Challenge (Business Plan Competition)

Judge 2017

Burgess of Guild Aberdeen

Elected Summer 2016

Research Overview

Scottish Biologics Facility:   https://www.abdn.ac.uk/sbf/

Director

The Scottish Biologics Facility (SBF) offers antibody and peptide library screening services to academia and industry.  The SBF has a broad capability in translational biology, generating binders suitable for for a wide range of targets including proteins, peptides and haptens.  The SBF is also a training facility utilised by both academic and industry partners.

Elasmogen Ltd:  http://www.elasmogen.com/

Founder, Board Director, Chief Techology Officer

Elasmogen Ltd is discovering and developing soloMER™s for the treatment of auto-immune mediated, inflammatory diseases. Utilising its unique soloMER™ platform, Elasmogen exploits the power of biologics as drugs but in small, simple, and stable formats that are amenable to site-specific delivery.

NovaBiotics Ltd:   https://www.novabiotics.co.uk/

Board Director

NovaBiotics first-in-class therapeutics offer a potential solution to a looming global anti-infectives crisis; one driven by antibiotic and antifungal drug resistance and the rise of emerging pathogens in a number of infectious conditions.

Antoxis Ltd:  http://www.antoxis.com/

Board Director and Chair

Antoxis utilises its Kromex™ chemistry scaffold to generate New Chemical Entities (NCE) targeting a number of clinical indications.  A sub-set of Kromex™ compounds that show rapid mito-targeting, potent mito-activity and long term stability within the cell are in later stage pre-clinical development in regenerative medicine and oncology.

Press Info: 

The most up to date Press Information can be found on company websites' or via my LinkedIn account.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-porter-83613ba/

Current Research

Much of the research we carry out is covered by Confidentiality Agreements.

Teaching Responsibilities

I predominantly teach courses at post-graduate level:

 Biologics Drug Discovery at level 5 (MSc):

https://www.abdn.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-taught/degree-programmes/55/drug-discovery-and-development/  

Bio-Business at levels 1 - 5 (1st Year to MSc)

https://www.abdn.ac.uk/smmsn/undergraduate/medical-sciences/biobusiness-options