UK funding boost for early-stage research
pharmafile | October 7, 2011 | News story | Research and Development | NIHR, UK science
The government has established a new research institute to aid public and private groups working on the early stages of drug discovery.
The Translational (early stage) Research Partnerships will allow NHS, university clinical researchers and life science companies to work together to discover and develop new medicines.
They will be overseen by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), which said the move would “usher in a new era for clinical trials – accelerating the development of innovative treatments from the lab to patients, as well as providing a real boost to the growth of the life science sector”.
The Partnerships will primarily focus on finding new treatments for inflammatory respiratory diseases like asthma and joint-related inflammatory diseases like arthritis.
The life sciences companies involved will be able to discuss their early breakthroughs with some of the country’s world-leading scientists as part of a process is designed to accelerate the development of innovative treatments from the laboratory to patients.
This will be achieved by allowing pharma firms to sign just one legal contract with the NIHR Partnerships, rather than having to negotiate with each NHS Trust and university.
Health minister Lord Howe said: “These National Institute for Health Research partnerships are a perfect example of how the government is creating the right environment for life sciences industries.
“They will make the UK much more attractive to pharmaceutical companies to invest in by cutting red tape – accelerating the progress of early-stage health research projects from the lab to benefiting patients.”
The Department of Health said this new approach has been developed as pharma companies “search for an alternative to the traditional model for discovering new drugs and treatments”.
It said that the initial response had been “very positive” and “shows that industry and clinical academia are ready to move towards a more open and collaborative way of working, where partners share the rewards such as intellectual property”.
Dr Neil Weir, senior VP of research at UCB, corroborated this positivity on pharma’s side, saying: “[Early-stage] research partnerships can offer an important new route for companies like UCB to develop potential new treatments in collaboration with the UK’s leading investigators.”
Weir added that he was encouraged by how straightforward it had been to explore potential opportunities for collaboration with a group of expert researchers across multiple university and NHS centres.
As part of this launch, the government is providing £1.3 million to the partnerships to help set them up.
This is one of the key commitments in the government’s ‘plan for growth’ programme that was published in March this year, which saw the life sciences sector as a key driver for economic growth.
Ben Adams
Related Content
NIHR whitepaper claims UK needs High Throughput Centres after Brexit
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) has released a new whitepaper outlining the substantial …
Roche teams with DH for drug repurposing trial
Roche and the UK Department of Health have launched a trial, to explore whether one …
Pfizer partners with NIHR to boosts UK R&D
Pfizer has signed an agreement with the National Institute for Health Research Clinical Research Network …
