WCMTM-AstraZeneca seminar – a starting point for coming post-doc positions
As part of the joint industry postdoc program, WCMTM and AstraZeneca hosted a collaborative seminar bringing together PIs from both organizations, and postdocs who are part of current projects. The event marked the launch of a new phase in the joint industry postdoc program, paving the way for upcoming postdoctoral positions that will be announced in the coming months for PIs within the WCMTM network and at AstraZeneca.
The seminar focused on networking, idea exchange, and exploring potential research partnerships, as well as presentations by current postdocs who are part of the ongoing joint projects.
Importance of Academic Links
Karin Jennbacken, Head of Cardiovascular Bioscience, who since this spring is leading the collaboration from AstraZeneca, highlighted the importance of connecting with academia:
Having a strong link to academia is very important to AstraZeneca. It allows us to find meaningful collaborative focus areas—such as studying mechanisms and molecular processes, and sharing and accessing cutting-edge technologies, as well as benefiting from the deep expertise and scientific drive that university PIs bring.
From Preclinical Research to Clinical Trials
At AstraZeneca, Karin leads a group within early CVRM (Cardiovascular, Renal and Metabolism). The main part of their research is preclinical research—starting with building strong preclinical data packages.
“Within AstraZeneca, we work closely together with other groups to generate scientific data that supports our various projects, bringing new research into the pipeline and following it through to the clinical phase," Karin said.
A Decade of Evolving Collaboration
With the goal to improve Swedish life science, Johan Zelano, who is director of WCMTM, reflected on the strategic importance of the collaborations and how it has evolved.
"Since the collaboration began ten years ago, our PI network has grown significantly in translational expertise. Many of our PIs are now senior researchers, and their work has matured to a stage where partnering with industry is not only relevant but often essential to take projects to the next level," Johan Zelano said, adding that through this collaboration, WCMTM also aims to strengthen the life science research ecosystem in western Sweden.
Coordination for Success
During the seminar, Professor Maureen McKelvey led a workshop on successful collaboration between academia and industry. Alliance Manager Kaushik Sengupta from AstraZeneca, together with WCMTM Research Coordinator Camilla Skånberg, also emphasized the importance of strong coordination.
“A key component of the WCMTM–AstraZeneca collaboration is strong coordination, visibility, and open communication across all levels—ensuring alignment from strategy to daily research activities involving both PIs and postdocs," Camilla Skånberg said.
“Ultimately, we hope this supports the PIs in their research and leads to successful outcomes and joint publications”, Kaushik Sengupta said, adding that for the postdocs, it is also a great opportunity since they can access the AstraZeneca facilities and the internal postdoc program.
