Ellen de Brabander on R&D: ‘What we do is complex and experience matters a lot’

At the recent Animal Health, Nutrition and Technology Innovation Europe conference in London, I took to the stage to interview Ellen de Brabander about her work leading Elanco’s R&D and regulatory affairs team. Below is a transcript of our fireside chat.

Joseph Harvey: Could you tell us a bit about your background up until you joined Elanco?

Dr Ellen de Brabander: I’m a chemist by training. I earned my doctorate in bio-organic chemistry from Leiden University in the Netherlands and completed my post-doctoral work in molecular biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with Nobel laureate Professor HG Khorana. For nearly 35 years, I have worked in industry, holding various R&D leadership roles in life sciences, food and beverages and animal health. Prior to Elanco, I led the R&D for Intervet – currently part of Merck – and also for Merial, which is now part of Boehringer Ingelheim. I’m currently the executive vice president of research, development, external Innovation and regulatory affairs at Elanco.

JH: So, that’s three of the big four. If you take into account your career history up until Elanco, what really stood out for you in R&D or innovation that particularly excited to you?

EdB: I joined Elanco and the animal health industry due to my passion for high-impact, science- based innovations and that is precisely why this role is so attractive to me. We address key unmet needs, from saving puppies from deadly parvovirus to developing needle-free administered drugs for diabetic cats to offering farmers innovative solutions that open up new revenue opportunities and improve their environmental footprint.

The animal health industry rewards science-based innovations, despite its complex regulatory landscape with regional approval requirements. New technologies, like the monoclonal antibody platform, enable innovations previously not within reach. Conducting first trials directly on target animals gives us a higher success probability compared to the human pharma drug development process. Nonetheless, strict regulations in animal health mean achieving product approval remains a complex, lengthy and complex process.

JH: So, three-and-a-half years ago you joined Elanco. What was the mission statement and the task ahead?

EdB: It was all about delivering new, high-impact innovations. Elanco has a 70-year history in the industry. After becoming an independent company in 2018, we created ‘OneElanco R&D’ based on two pillars and leveraging the best of the legacy organizations – functional excellence and project leadership. We rebuilt our innovation pipeline to make sure it is balanced across development phases, species – both pet and farm animal – and across geographies. Equally important was to make our high-priority projects clear for the entire organization. These get the resources needed to progress at optimal speed. This clarity enabled the teams to stay focused on the projects that matter most. We implemented a way of working where effective teamwork and streamlined processes drove impressive progress in multiple dimensions. Not only progress of the key innovation projects but equally important has been the continued year-over-year growth in team engagement. In the end, our progress is only possible through capable, experienced and engaged talents.

JH: It’s very interesting to see the progression and evolution of Elanco, and now seeing the delivery of approvals and new brands coming to market. What you’re doing at Elanco, can you compare it to anything else you’ve done in your career previously?

EdB: Like my assignments at Intervet and Merial, joining Elanco involved building a new R&D organization capable of timely delivery of product approvals. The main difference between leading the previous R&D organizations and Elanco R&D is that Elanco is an independent company rather than a division within a large pharmaceutical organization. This allows us to take decisions that are best for the animal health business quickly. At the same time, it comes with the responsibility to deliver and communicate predictable results to our external stakeholders on a quarterly basis. That includes innovation updates, which attract a lot of attention from the investor community.

Another change since I left the animal health space in 2014 has been the growth of the space driven by science-based innovations and catalysed by a growing start up community. Given our ambition to deliver a consistent flow of innovations, the refill of the pipeline is a key priority. Since we no longer have direct access to a human pharma R&D parent organization, we have stepped up our external innovation focus and capability to effectively search and partner in areas of interest to us.

JH: I know it’s an ongoing series of launches and then growing or creating new markets. What’s your assessment so far?

EdB: Last year was truly a highlight for us – getting five new product approvals in the US and even more outside the US. We implemented a new, parallel regulatory filing strategy enabling us to accelerate the product approvals outside the US. For example, within a period of six months, Zenrelia was approved and launched in the US, Canada, Japan and Brazil, and more countries will follow this year. The real highlight – seeing the impact these innovations are having in the market and receiving feedback from our customers. It’s the cherry on the cake after many years of cross-functional teamwork.

JH: Is there anything in the pipeline or something that you’ve launched that particularly interests you?

EdB: Getting a product approved is a 10-year journey involving substantial effort, time and resources. Therefore, it's crucial that the approved product meets real needs and delivers on safety, efficacy, convenience and manufacturability. We focus on areas of high unmet need and preferably build technology platforms that can bring us multiple innovations, e.g. monoclonal technologies. In companion animals, we target parasiticides, dermatology, oncology and pain management. Similarly, in farm animals, we focus on economic sustainability, unlocking new revenue streams for farmers. In some of these spaces currently only first-generation products are in the market and similar to what we have seen with the iPhone – there will be a need and an opportunity to come with next generations, providing more specific efficacy, better safety or improved convenience.

JH: Do you continue to work alongside the commercial teams or are you already back in the lab creating the next product?

EdB: After the initial product approvals, there is a strong role for the R&D and regulatory teams – from ensuring geographic approvals, to studies to improve the product label through targeted clinical studies to managing pharmacovigilance. So yes, for potential blockbuster products launched last year like Zenrelia, Credelio Quattro and Bovaer, our teams are still working hand-in-glove with manufacturing and commercial colleagues.

JH: You’ve done really well in signposting what’s coming in the next nine or 12 months but what areas is looking at beyond the near term?

EdB: Apart from our focus on the core spaces, we also have started to widen the focus to new areas of unmet needs and to breakthrough technologies. This will mainly happen via selective partnering, using different partnering models. As an example, recently we announced a partnership that will focus on several high potential programs using targeted gene therapy to treat chronic kidney disease in cats and explore emerging spaces to increase healthy lifespan for pets.

JH: Can you tell us something that audience might not know about Elanco’s pipeline?

EdB: Our ambition is to deliver a consistent flow of high-impact innovation. Last year marked the first wave. Completing these projects did provide us valuable learnings that we apply to the current projects. Capability to deliver innovation is like a muscle – if you don't use it, you will lose it. We aim to keep that momentum.

Following the 2024 product approvals, we have a strong, balanced innovation pipeline with assets that target best-in-class and first-in-class innovations. For us the best is yet to come. We have the pipeline, the talent, the culture and a proven track record of delivering projects at speed and continue to refill the pipeline.

JH: So, last year was the first wave. Are we still surfing the first wave? I think there are few more approval to come, aren’t there?

EdB: Our innovation-driven strategy is working, with a durable, diverse portfolio across geographies and industries. We have six potential blockbuster products now in global markets. We are now one of two companies to offer a comprehensive pet health portfolio that covers four key markets – parasiticides, dermatology, vaccines and pain/other therapeutics – offering a complete solution set for veterinarians and pet owners. And we hold a leading market position in farm animal as well, with products like Experior on the market that just became the first farm animal blockbuster in over a decade. This year, we expect to continue to receive new product approvals in key markets. One of the most exciting ones will be our differentiated IL-31 monoclonal antibody – expected to be approved by the USDA in the fourth quarter of 2025.