 Artist: Sally Baker Keller |
Prof. Dr. Hans Peter Schwarz, M.D.,
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Dr. Hans Peter Schwarz is Vice President, Global Preclinical R&D BioPharm in the BioScience Division of Baxter Innovations. Dr. Schwarz received his MD degree from the University of Vienna, Austria. He worked as Research Associate at the Department of Immunology of the Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, and at the Division of Hematology/Oncology of the University of Tennessee in Memphis, USA. In 1988 he joined Immuno AG (later to become Baxter AG) where he has since held various positions with increasing responsibilities. Dr. Schwarz’s team was responsible for the first implementation of nanofiltration into Baxter products. He and his team developed important Baxter products, amongst them GAMMAGARD LIQUID, FEIBA NF, ARALAST NP, CEPROTIN.
Dr. Schwarz was a member of the Board of Directors, Consortium for Plasma Science, LLC in Charlotte, NC and is a member of the Scientific-Industrial Advisory Board, “Life Sciences” Austrian Research Centers GmbH. He served on the advisory boards of congresses of the International Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis and is a member of the advisory board of the Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis. Dr. Schwarz is inventor of more than 60 patents and has over 145 publications in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Schwarz is a Baxter Distinguished Scientist and has been on the Board of Directors of Baxter AG since 2006.
Q: |
What are Baxter’s core strengths in the research and development of BioTherapeutics products? |
A: |
Baxter has a long history in the development and manufacturing of therapeutic proteins derived from human plasma. The expertise in Baxter’s R&D organization covers the entire range from basic science, preclinical development to clinical trial execution. In particular, Baxter is a leader in plasma collection and fractionation technologies and protein purification and characterization. Pathogen safety is another hallmark of Baxter’s scientific leadership, with the support of a BioSafety Level III lab. |
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What are some of the recent R & D accomplishments in BioTherapeutics? |
A: |
This year, the Phase III trial was started for IGIV with recombinant human hyaluronidase enzyme (rHuPH20) for the treatment of primary immunodeficiency (PID). |
Q: |
What steps are being taken by Baxter to ensure a robust pipeline? |
A: |
Baxter continues to invest in the BioTherapeutics portfolio. Each year, the level of investment has been increasing and covers both new products as well as life cycle projects to support the sales of our existing portfolio. In addition to internal programs, Baxter also collaborates with world-class researchers, academic institutions and biotech firms. |
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Immunologist |
Dr. Schiff is Global Medical Director for Immune Therapy at Baxter’s BioScience business. His research interests include inheritable immune disorders, bone marrow transplantation, and treatment with intravenous gammaglobulin. Before coming to Baxter, Dr. Schiff served as Director of Clinical Immunology at Miami Children’s Hospital and was an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Duke University School of Medicine.
Q: |
What are the greatest challenges that remain in the treatment of Primary Immunodeficiency (PI)? |
A: |
We have to do a better job at diagnosing patients. Even today, it takes an average of more than 9 years from onset of symptoms until a patient is diagnosed with PI. It is estimated that only 50% of the moderate/severe patients are being diagnosed in US & Western Europe and in the developing countries diagnosis and treatment levels are far lower. Those that are diagnosed are treated, but may not be receiving the optimal treatment. |
Q: |
What steps is Baxter taking to support increasing the current level of diagnosis? |
A: |
Baxter is working with the Jeffrey Modell Foundation to establish a network of JMF Centers of Excellence to help educate local physicians regarding immune deficiency and to improve referral rates. We also are working with the JMF and the Immune Deficiency Foundation to increase awareness of PI among the general population as well as health care providers. We provide grants for educational symposia and Immune Deficiency Schools such as that organized by the Clinical Immunology Society (CIS). |
Q: |
What is the number one challenge from a treatment perspective in PI? |
A: |
There is a lack of understanding of the proper dosing schedules and levels of IgG that are required to provide optimal care for PI patients. Such studies are difficult to do and require large multicenter studies that are too large for one investigator or one company to support. |
Q: |
What is Baxter currently doing to enhance treatment outcomes with IGIV? |
A: |
Baxter is supporting pilot studies to help determine optimal dosing and the diagnosis of subtle, yet clinically important, immune deficiencies. In addition, we are discussing ways that Baxter can work with the NIH and physician groups to help support multicenter studies that are needed to answer the critical issues that persist despite the improvement in care that has occurred over the past 20 years. |
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Thomas R. Kreil, Ph.D. |
Dr. Kreil has directed the activities of the Baxter BioScience Global Pathogen Safety group for almost a decade. He has widely lectured and published on the safety of biological medicinal products versus virus and prion concerns as well as anti-viral immunology. In appreciation of his contributions, he has been elected Chairman of the Plasma Protein Therapeutics Association (PPTA) Pathogen Safety Steering Committee, and announced Associate Professor of Virology by the Medical University Vienna, Austria.
Q: |
Why is safety so important for plasma-derived products? |
A: |
All medicinal products that require material of biological origin for its production are potentially exposed to our volatile microbiological environment. As a consequence, continued vigilance of emerging agents and, when necessary, experimental confirmation, regarding the behavior of these agents, are an obligation. |
Q: |
What is Baxter doing to make sure that their IgG products are safe? |
A: |
All of Baxter’s plasma products go through processes to reduce pathogens. Baxter has the capability to incorporate various dedicated virus reduction steps. Our modern IGIV manufacturing process incorporates 3 of these dedicated steps and represents another “first” in safety for Baxter. |
Q: |
Are the safety measures implemented for your IGIV products going to be effective against new emerging pathogens? |
A: |
While we have designed our IGIV process to be particularly robust with respect to reducing pathogens, like viruses and prions, the potential impact of every newly emerging agent is carefully assessed. When necessary, our significant virology expertise and biosafety laboratory capacity is put to use to experimentally verify our assumptions about the new agent. |
Baxter BioScience Grants Program
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