Fred D. Ledley is a physician-scientist, entrepreneur, and educator, who has authored >200 articles on topics ranging from molecular human biology and biotechnology, to STEM education, business, and bioethics. His work has contributed to emerging knowledge and policy related to human gene therapy, personalized medicine, and the translation of science for public value. He is currently Professor of Natural & Applied Sciences and Management, and Director of the Center for Integration of Science and Industry, at Bentley University. He served previously on the faculties of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, and Texas Children’s Hospital. He was a founder of several biotechnology companies, including GeneMedicine, where he served as Vice President Research & Development, and Varigenics, where he served as President & CEO. Dr. Ledley has a B.S. in physical science from the University of Maryland and a M.D. from Georgetown University School of Medicine, trained in Pediatrics and Genetics at Boston Children’s Hospital, and was an American Cancer Society post-doctoral fellow with Dr. David Baltimore at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is the author of a novel, Sputnik’s Child.
Fred Ledley
By this expert
Government as the First Investor in Biopharmaceutical Innovation: Evidence From New Drug Approvals 2010–2019
Amid debates over costs—and profits—from a coronavirus vaccine, a new study shows that taxpayers have been footing the bill for every new drug approved between 2010 and 2019
Big Pharma Wants to Pocket the Profits From a COVID Treatment You Already Paid For
Gilead’s shareholders want exorbitant profits from Remdesivir, even though it was the public that enabled its development.
The Fleming Myth and the Public Sector Contribution to Discovery and Development of New Cancer Drugs
Abstract, “basic science” research is essential to drug discovery. It is also largely funded by the public sector.
Taxpayer Investment Leads New Drug Discoveries
New research points to critical role of public funding in drug discoveries and development for the last decade
Featuring this expert
INET working paper on NIH's funding of new pharmaceuticals is cited
“Third, U.S. taxpayers foot a huge portion of the bill for basic science leading to new drugs. The National Institutes of Health is the single largest source of biomedical research in the world. In fact, NIH funding contributed to research associated with every single new drug approved by the FDA from 2010-2019, totaling $230 billion according to a recent report.”