Germany-based Grünenthal, Denmark-based Nordic Bioscience and U.K.-based Argenta Discovery 2009, a Charles River company, are collaborating to improve the R&D of therapeutic approaches in multi-organ fibrosis. With a particular focus on fast-progressing patient subpopulations, the collaboration aims to develop new and improved preclinical and clinical assays to optimize the identification of new therapies.

“We believe that in fibrosis, there is ground breaking science occurring that could drive a change in treatment practice. Our Innovative Medicines Unit, based in Aachen (Germany), has been launched with the mandate in mind to bring companies, academic institutions and other experts together do drive innovation forward in novel areas,” said Dr. Klaus-Dieter Langner, chief scientific officer of Grünenthal.

Dr. Simon Read, head of the Innovative Medicines Unit at Grünenthal, said, “There is a high unmet need in this patient subpopulation of fibrosis. This collaboration aims to address two major issues that have hampered the selection and progression of novel therapeutics in the fibrosis area—namely the predictability of preclinical assays and thereafter the subsequent selection of patients that have a ‘progressing or fast progressing’ fibrotic disease. Our hope is to use biomarker signatures developed in clinic to titrate back into preclinical assays and provide a common thread from the research labs to clinic.”