We have thought and acted entirely by the book “- New Technology

The researchers Joakim Lund Berg and Jonas Frisén say they have made no error when the parallel worked with research and his company Spatial transcriptomics.

“Spatial transcriptomics AB is a wholly normal spin-off companies started and run according to standard model of the interface between research and industry. ”

New technologies have liked to ask questions verbally to Joakim Lund Berg, professor of genetic engineering at KTH and Jonas Frisén, stem cell researchers at KI.

But they wanted to answer in writing via email to questions about the possible mixing of research and company activity – which is now being investigated by KTH.

They say that: “We have thought and acted completely by the book. ” Neither knowledge nor the resources should have been transferred from research to companies improperly.

An example is that in order to separate the businesses have created “an operational company management, separate from the research,” they write.

In order of 20 KTH and KI employees in their research has transferred its intellectual property rights to the Spatial transcriptomics AB, which scientists owns with another three persons, the stock options.

One reason that the company signed agreements with the university staff is that it owns patents on the technology.

“the research is purely academic with the goal of publishing, but if the new IP generated in connection with the already patented / pending technology, it should be owned by the company. This is in line with the teacher’s exemption “, claims scientists.

Christina Engstrom, general counsel at KTH, has spoken in general terms it can be problematic when a supervisor makes such demands on a student. She says, however, that it happens now and then in the academic world.

Do you as a supervisor acted correctly in this regard?

“Yes, this is a very common and completely normal process in the academic world to ensure that we can perform the third task,” replies Lundederg.

The third task is aimed at higher education institutions have the task of contributing to the commercialization of new knowledge.

In contrast, the researchers say they have been careless in its communication about the research and the company.

“the vast majority of the research seems to have completely understood the distinction, but we have failed to make this clear for the iT group, despite persistent attempts,” they write.

Another one of the points brought up in KTH’s investigation comes on KTH employees have worked for the company. Among other things, discussed the development of software to interpret the gene information.

“We are planning not to commercialize visualization services without offering it free to everyone as open source. The software to be developed for academic users and made freely available to all, “writes Jonas Frisén.

Does the software made by KTH employees?

– They have not worked for the company, says CEO Mikael Samuelsson .

While writing the KTH IT technicians on the agreement to assign its IP rights to your company?

– Yes, we had a meeting with everyone in November and offered them stock options in the company. When it comes to IT technicians got it wrong because they constitute technical / administrative staff and not scientists. There is a gray area in this.

In February were canceled the contracts of the company.

Mikael Samuelsson explains that the company will sell is a special glass, called a chip, the coordinate system used to detect active genes (RNA).