Date: 2014-04-01
Type of information: R&D agreement
Compound: Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Lupus Nephritis (LN) biomarkers
Company: Merck Serono (Germany) Pfizer (USA - NY) Broad Institute (USA)
Therapeutic area: Autoimmune diseases
Type agreement: R&D
Action mechanism:
Disease: systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis
Details: * On April 1, 2014, Merck Serono, has announced that its U.S. affiliate EMD Serono has signed a research
agreement with Pfizer and the Broad Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S. The collaboration is focused on the genomic profiling of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) and Lupus Nephritis (LN) patients. The research project will be jointly funded by Merck Serono and Pfizer. As part of the collaboration, the Broad Institute will investigate clinical samples obtained from SLE and LN patients, applying biochemical and next-generation
sequencing technologies. They will also analyze immune cell subpopulations. The goal is to identify biomarkers to better define target patient populations for future therapies. In addition, through computational modeling approaches, the project aims to identify key molecular drivers of SLE and LN kidney flares, and thereby to discover potential novel drug targets as the basis for innovative therapies.
Under the terms of the agreement, Merck Serono and Pfizer, as sponsoring members, will receive real-time access to all data and analysis. In addition, both companies will have the ability to send a research scientist to the Broad Institute to foster exchange of technology expertise in the area of computational and experimental genomic profiling.
Financial terms:
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