Boehringer Ingelheim and BioMed X extend collaboration to discover novel therapeutic concepts for the treatment of psychiatric diseases
Heidelberg, Germany, November 2, 2015 – The BioMed X Innovation Center announced today that they have extended their current collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim in the field of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) to establish a second team of outstanding scientists from around the world to discover novel therapeutic concepts for the treatment of psychiatric diseases.
In a joint crowdsourcing approach, Boehringer Ingelheim and BioMed X are inviting early career neuroscientists from leading academic institutions world-wide to submit original project proposals that explore the complex circuit biology at the interface between projection neurons, interneurons and non-neuronal cells for the generation of novel therapeutic concepts.
The best ideas and life science talents will be jointly selected by Boehringer Ingelheim and BioMed X to form a new research group within BioMed X’s open innovation lab, which is part of the vibrant life science campus of the University of Heidelberg.
“We are excited about Boehringer Ingelheim’s decision to double their commitment after such a short period of time”, said Christian Tidona, founder and Managing Director of BioMed X. “It clearly indicates that our new model is perceived by the pharmaceutical industry as a truly promising external innovation tool.”
BioMed X will be responsible for recruitment of the new research group, the operation of the innovation center facility and enabling access to the Heidelberg scientific community and research facilities.
Further details of the agreement and financial terms are not disclosed.
About BioMed X Innovation Center
The BioMed X Innovation Center is an exciting new collaboration model at the interface between academia and industry. At our center, distinguished early career scientists recruited from all over the world are working jointly on novel pre-clinical research projects in the fields of biomedicine, molecular biology, cell biology, diagnostics and bioinformatics. These interdisciplinary project teams are conducting groundbreaking biomedical research in an open innovation lab facility on the campus of the University of Heidelberg, under the guidance of experienced mentors from academia and industry while expanding their scientific network and receiving an intensive entrepreneurship and leadership training. Each team is typically sponsored by a corporate pharma or biotech partner of BioMed X. After a fully funded project term, successful projects are either internalized into the development pipeline of the respective pharma or biotech sponsor or spun off into an independent startup company.
For more information please visit www.bio.mx.