The Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine in La Jolla, Calif., and Takeda Pharmaceutical have agreed to establish a $10 million, five-year innovation alliance that would advance each organization's research missions. Specifically, translational research and proof-of-concepts research projects will be identified and generated with an ultimate goal of delivering innovative therapeutic products to patients.

"UC San Diego and Takeda share a common goal of disseminating discoveries to improve lives," said Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla. "By sharing our talent and resources, our alliance will propel our research and delivery, and ultimately increase our positive impact on our society."

The Sanford Consortium is a nonprofit organization—comprising the University of California San Diego, The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology—principally engaged in translational research in stem-cell-based and regenerative medicine.

Takeda, headquartered in Osaka, Japan, is a multinational company with research capabilities and expertise in the development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products.

"This Innovation Alliance is a promising partnership that will help spark pioneering research and create new opportunities," said Sandra A. Brown, vice chancellor for research at UC San Diego. "Our goal is to move the benefits of stem-cell and regenerative research from the lab bench to bedsides around the world."

Teri Melese, assistant vice chancellor for Industry Alliances at UC San Diego, said the agreement encourages Takeda scientists and the Sanford Consortium members to both propose ideas for research projects, and promotes a rich collaborative effort.

"This partnership of the Consortium with Takeda builds upon the incredible research collaboration already in place between the member institutions, and working together will allow us to better understand and address key obstacles in bringing innovative and transformative therapies to patients," said Melese.

Kristiina Vuori, president of the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, said, "Multi-institutional alliances often produce advancements that transform scientific discovery beyond what each organization could independently accomplish. Takeda's financial support along with the talent and resources of the Consortium will have a catalytic effect on the discovery process and expand our ability to identify new disease targets and produce drug candidates for clinical testing."