Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a critical challenge to global health, requiring urgent action to raise awareness and drive collaboration between researchers, industry leaders and policymakers.
Addressing AMR is essential to safeguarding the effectiveness of modern medicine and ensuring sustainable healthcare solutions.
This meeting will explore the societal importance of combating AMR and discuss alternative solutions, including the role of the gut microbiome in resistance development, the potential of entirely new classes of antibacterials and rapid diagnostic tools to improve treatment decisions.
We will also examine how microbiome research can inspire new approaches to bacterial defense mechanisms, the importance of responsible antibiotic use in agriculture and ongoing global initiatives to combat AMR.
Join the MVA R&D Network to gain insights from leading researchers and industry experts and engage with key stakeholders dedicated to tackling one of the most pressing healthcare challenges of our time.
We look forward to welcoming you to an insightful and engaging discussion on AMR and the search for alternatives.
Date: Thursday 24th April 2025
Time: 14:00 – 18:00
Venue: Malmö University, Niagara, Hörsal B2, Nordenskiöldsgatan 1, Malmö, Sweden
(5 min. walk from Malmö C station)
Program:
| 14.00 | Registration and networking |
| 14:30 | Welcome Anette Steenberg, CEO, Medicon Valley Alliance |
| 14:40 | Introduction Kristine Koppelhus, Medicon Valley Alliance |
| 14:50 | Antimicrobial Resistance and Plasmid Diversity in the Early Life Gut Microbiome Søren Johannes Sørensen, Professor, University of Copenhagen |
| 15:10 | A completely new class of antibacterials – Is the timing right? Markus Thor, CEO, Quretech |
| 15:30 | Innovative Rapid Test for Urinary Tract Infections: A High-Impact Solution to Combat AMR Line Vigga Kristensen CEO and Winnie E. Svendsen CTO, Uvigga |
| 15:50 | Coffee break |
| 16:20 | Utilizing global microbiome datasets to harness the power of bacterial offensive and defensive inventions Patrick Munk, Associate Professor, DTU National Food Institute |
| 16:40 | Title TBA Ghadeh Norberg, Secretary General, PAR Foundation |
| 17:00 | Antibiotic use in pigs – How to reduce it? John Haugegaard, Den Danske Dyrlægeforening |
| 17:20 | Title TBA Speaker TBA |
| 17:40 | Networking and light snack |
| 18:00 | End of Meeting |
Speakers
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Søren J. Sørensen, Professor at University of Copenhagen, earned his Ph.D. from the University of Copenhagen in 1993. He has held positions in the US and Australia, while maintaining a tenured role at the University of Copenhagen, where he became Professor in 2005 and Head of Section for Microbiology in 2008. He leads a team of > 20 scientists studying microbial communities, focusing on community assembly and horizontal genetransfer. |
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Markus Thor, CEO at QureTech Bio, has 30 years of experience from the pharma/biotech industry and roles within R&D, business development and executive leadership functions. Previous positions include VP & Head of Business Development at Biovitrum, Chief Business Officer at Kancera and Chief Business Officer at XNK Therapeutics. Markus has a M.Sc. in Chemistry from University of Umeå and an MBA from Stockholm School of Economics. |
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Line Vigga Kristensen, CEO/Founder of Uvigga Technologies, holds a master’s degree in public health and has more than 15 years of experience as an innovator within the Danish healthcare sector. Since 2022, she has led the development of a new test for urinary tract infections in close collaboration with Professor Winnie E. Svendsen (DTU) and MD, PhD Kristian Stærk (Odense University Hospital). She is now the CEO of Uvigga Technologies working full time on the project. |
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Winnie E. Svendsen, CSO / Founder Uvigga Technologies, is professor at the Department of Biotechnology and Biomedicine at the Technical University of Denmark and leads the Nano Bio Integrated Systems (NaBIS) group. Trained as an experimental physicist in Dublin, Ireland, her research focuses on developing advanced nanotechnological systems for improved diagnostics and monitoring, including novel binders for enhanced analytical sensor performance. Winnie has vast entrepreneurial experience being the founder of seven companies |
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Patrick Munk, Associate Professor at DTU National Food Institute is a computational biologist with a MSc from University of Copenhagen and a PhD from DTU. He is an associate professor at the National Food Institute and is externally funded to lead both research, network and communication projects on the subject of AMR. He represents the institute in the Danish AMR alliance and is a member of the national young academy, where he represents the science dissemination committee in the leading council. Copyright photo: ”Det Unge Akademi / Lars Svankjær” |
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Ghadeh Norberg works as the Secretary General of the PAR Foundation since February 2025 where the focus is on funding research and initiatives to combat and prevent antibiotic resistance. With over 15 years of experience in marketing, she brings a strategic approach to raising awareness and driving action on this critical global health issue. |
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John Haugegaard has been a veterinarian since 1985. He has worked with advisory service in swine farms and has been leading an animal health industry department in the Nordics. Currently he is head of the Danish Swine Veterinarians organization and a member of the board of Danish Veterinarian Organization. Besides that he is working as health advisor in pig practice. |
Deadline for registration is 22 April 2025
The MVA R&D Network
Joining the MVA R&D Network is free of charge but is limited to Medicon Valley Alliance members. Non-member organizations and companies are welcome to attend one network event to evaluate the relevance in joining the network.
For more information please contact Katrine Brems Olsen kbo@mva.org
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