Pharma Partnerships Boost Research

Led by Dr. Daniel P. Kelly, the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute at Lake Nona works to discover the fundamental molecular causes of disease and identify therapies. Two recent partnerships with pharmaceutical companies will aid that mission.

The Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute at Lake Nona has announced two partnerships with pharmaceutical companies that will not only move high-impact science into new therapies more quickly, but also provide a second funding mechanism to join traditional grants.

Sanford-Burnham, Florida Hospital and Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. have signed a research agreement to form a collaboration to discover and evaluate new therapeutic approaches to obesity. The partnership aligns complementary strengths in biomedical research, clinical research and drug development to identify and validate obesity-related biomarkers and new peripheral molecular targets of mutual interest. Also, Sanford-Burnham has entered into a collaboration with Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. to discover compounds for Alzheimer’s disease and major psychiatric disorders. Under the agreement, multidisciplinary teams from Sanford-Burnham and OMJPI will partner to identify and validate new targets for drug discovery and seek compounds suitable for lead optimization and further development by OMJPI.

Led by Dr. Daniel P. Kelly, scientific director, Sanford-Burnham at Lake Nona is dedicated to discovering the fundamental molecular causes of disease and devising the innovative therapies of tomorrow. The Institute has initiated many research partnerships with organizations throughout Florida, including Florida Hospital and UCF.

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