Global drug research and development leaders gather in Edinburgh
More than 150 of the world’s leaders in drug discovery will meet in Edinburgh today for the Global Discovery and Development Innovation Forum (GDDIF).
Now in its third year, the event is being held in Scotland for this first time for delegates to see first hand, the world-class academia, public sector and industry collaborations which have progressed in recent years.
The summit, which is sponsored by Scottish Enterprise, is the only two day gathering dedicated to both innovation and strategy across the entire drug discovery research and development realm and boasts over 40 well renowned speakers from around the world.
A session at the conference will look at the Translational Medicine Research Collaboration (TMRC) which has been hailed as a unique project which demonstrates the benefits from close relationships between research institutes and health services and reflects Scotland’s status as a world class centre for medical and life sciences research.
TMRC partners are the Universities of Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow; the four associated NHS Boards; Scottish Enterprise and Pfizer (formerly Wyeth). The collaboration, which is now in its fourth year, has been held up as exemplar public private collaboration and delegates will hear how the initiative has resulted in investment for more than 67 new research projects covering a wide range of therapeutic areas including metabolic disease, the central nervous system, inflammation and oncology. This unique £50m partnership has had many economic impacts including employment benefits, investment benefits, increased business activity and IP benefits.
Rhona Allison, senior director, life sciences at Scottish Enterprise, said: “We are delighted that the third annual Global Discovery and Development Innovation Forum will be held in Edinburgh. Their decision to host the event in Scotland recognises our position as a global leading location for life sciences and provides the perfect platform for us to reflect on the success of TMRC. Our wealth of scientific leadership, talent, and infrastructure ensures Scotland is the location of choice for translational research providing a fully integrated national platform for world-class translational medicine research enabling a step change in the way new drugs are developed and used. ”