Elan and Cambridge University form new research centre
Based at Cambridge University\'s Department of Chemistry
Dublin-based Elan Corporation is to contribute at least US$10m in a five-year collaboration between the UK’s University of Cambridge to create the Cambridge-Elan Centre for Research Innovation and Drug Discovery.
Based at the University’s Department of Chemistry, the new centre will focus on the discovery and development of new compounds capable of altering the behaviour of proteins associated with neurodegenerative disorders that can be developed into new treatments for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.
The Centre will bring together Elan’s two decades of experience in Alzheimer’s research and its depth in biology and model systems with the University of Cambridge’s contributions to improve the understanding of biophysical and biochemical aspects of protein folding and misfolding, and to explore unique approaches to modulate these processes in an effort to discover new therapeutics.
‘This agreement is a natural next step in the existing working relationship between our scientists in South San Francisco and scientists at the University of Cambridge,’ said Dale Schenk, executive vice president and chief scientific officer at Elan.
‘This collaborative effort complements our portfolio of programmes in neuroscience and supports the process of discovery which we believe may lead to a class of therapeutics that no one has thought possible before.’