BioMed X GmbH

Heidelberg, Germany-based BioMed X isn’t the only European institution seeking to support U.S. scientists.\n As scientists across the U.S. face increasing uncertainty due to funding freezes and mass layoffs at health agencies, German research institute BioMed X is stepping in to offer a lifeline. The institute has opened a matchmaking program to align threatened NIH grants with potential new funders from the pharmaceutical industry.Through the XBridge Program, researchers can submit their NIH grants into the Heidelberg-based institute’s global crowdsourcing platform, where the grants can then be viewed by the institute’s network of pharma partners, according to an April 7 release. Should a partner express interest, the grantee will be invited to attend a pitch day hosted by BioMed X to make the case for their research to interested funders.The institute’s industry partners include pharma giants like Roche, Merck KGaA, Johnson & Johnson, AbbVie, Boehringer Ingelheim and Sanofi, among others, according to BioMed X’s website.The program covers human disease research, including the identification of potential new drug targets and the development of new therapeutics, BioMed X said in the release.“The purpose of our new XBridge Program is to open a new door for researchers facing the abrupt loss of NIH support,” Christian Tidona, BioMed X’s founder and managing director, said in the release. “This is not a substitute for government funding—but it is a way to help scientists stay active and visible in the global research ecosystem, while we match them with new funding partners who may be willing to support their work.” BioMed X isn’t the only European institution seeking to support U.S. scientists.In late March, the government of the Netherlands set up a fund to attract American researchers, with a plan to start financing as soon as possible. Next door in Belgium, the Free University Brussels unveiled 12 postdoctoral positions specifically intended for American scholars.And 12 European countries recently got together to brainstorm ways to snatch up talent set adrift from the U.S.Those countries—Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain—want to appeal to scientists \"who might suffer from research interference and ill-motivated and brutal funding cuts,” according to a letter to the European Commission viewed by Politico.The Trump administration has sought to dismantle science in the U.S. since the January inauguration, firing thousands of employees from the Department of Health and Human Services, terminating grants that have already been awarded and targeting elite universities for funding freezes.

The Barbados government believes a new initiative could position the country as a leading hub for biomedical research in the Caribbean.\n The BioMed X Institute is teaming up with the Barbados government in an effort to accelerate cardiometabolic treatments for people of African descent.The pact starts off with a two-year research pilot focused on molecular characterization of patients in Barbados, according to a Feb. 20 press release.Researchers will run an epidemiological study, collecting samples and clinical histories from individuals both with and without cardiometabolic conditions. The samples will be profiled using molecular technologies and will be integrated with publicly available data from age- and gender-matched Caucasian individuals. BioMed X then plans to develop AI models that can optimize available treatment regimens for the Black population.The initiative is financed by the European Commission and the government of Barbados, with the partners hoping to pull in more money from global pharmas, banks and foundations, according to the release.Heidelberg, Germany-based BioMed X underscored its commitment to diversity in biomedical research, pointing to a broader global mission to bridge healthcare gaps for underrepresented groups.The Barbados government believes the initiative could position the country as a leading hub for biomedical research in the Caribbean, according to the release.Though the prevalence of cardiometabolic diseases—such as Type 2 diabetes, hypertension, obesity and certain cardiovascular conditions—continues to climb globally, individuals of African descent are still underrepresented in clinical trials and treatment optimization efforts.  The new partnership comes nearly a month after U.S. President Donald Trump rolled out a string of orders designed to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion practices. Since then, several biopharmas have begun reconsidering their DEI strategies, including Roche\'s Genentech.“We are taking time to understand any potential implications of executive orders and other actions by the new administration, and we will continue to watch the legal and regulatory landscape to ensure we remain compliant with all laws,” a Genentech spokesperson told Fierce Biotech on Feb. 13 after the company archived prior diversity reports.

Tokyo: Japanese pharma major, Daiichi Sankyo , has established a state-of-the-art research laboratory in San Diego, California, US, dedicated to the development of robotics, automation and sophisticated software to improve and expedite its overall drug discovery efforts. The new facility will automate drug discovery tasks that generate data for downstream analysis; develop a comprehensive collection of software and hardware tools to collect massive amounts of data necessary to generate potential drug candidates faster and to support AI-based approaches in drug discovery. “By leveraging the extensive data collected by our autonomous robotics that operate continuously and cutting-edge software for automated orchestration and data management, the laboratory is set to revolutionise our research processes as it will not only achieve unprecedented levels of repeatability and productivity,” said Ken Takeshita, MD, global head, R&D, Daiichi Sankyo. Daiichi Sankyo currently operates in more than 30 countries/regions around the world, over the last few years the drug maker is specifically eyeing the cancer therapeutics market with its advanced biologics and has inked couple of multi-billion dollar transfer deals including two with UK pharma giant AstraZeneca . Recently, it has also partnered with a Germany based research institute ‘ BioMed X ’ to develop bi-and multi-specific biologics for cancer, however the transaction terms of the contract has not been disclosed yet. By Online Bureau ,