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Public - Private Partnerships
Large pharmaceutical companies. Small biotechnology enterprises. Government agencies. For-profit and not-for-profit research institutions. It takes many types of organizations working together to create an environment that fosters pharmaceutical innovation. By working together to build on advances in drug discovery and development, partnerships between public (government) and private organizations are paving the way for a new generation of medicines to help save and improve more people’s lives and, potentially, offer cures where none were available before.
Partnerships between public and private organizations play an important role in getting new medicines from “bench to bedside” by speeding up the translation of basic research into real applications to help patients.
Pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology companies, and government, academic, and research organizations have a long history of working together to get new medicines to patients faster. Changes in government policies have encouraged further cooperation between these groups by making it possible for them to share scientific expertise, research findings, materials, and financial resources.
The continued support of programs that encourage the exchange of ideas, expertise and tools between these research communities will improve patients’ access to innovative treatments.
Below are examples of the roles industry, universities, and government play in supporting biopharmaceutical discoveries.
Biopharmaceutical Companies
Major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies are the primary source of R&D funding for new medicine development. They support research projects in their own laboratories as well as further development of molecules and technologies licensed from smaller biotechnology companies or government.
Smaller biopharmaceutical companies are also important drivers of innovation, conducting basic research, drug discovery, and preclinical experiments. In some cases, these companies conduct clinical trials, but often look for partners to collaborate with when conducting the R&D needed to bring a product to market. In this case, the younger biotech companies often—although not always—look to more mature biopharmaceutical companies, venture capital, and public funding for support.
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
NIH, an agency under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, provides leadership and funding support to universities, medical schools, research centers, and other nonprofit institutions, to stimulate basic research and early-stage development of technologies that enable further targeted drug discovery and development. In addition, about one-third of the NIH budget supports clinical research.
Private/public partnerships are encouraged under special Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADA). These agreements allow for public (NIH and university researchers) and private (pharmaceutical and biotech companies) organizations to formally agree to share resources and knowledge on specific projects. Intellectual property policies for patent rights and technology licensing and transfer, make it possible for these types of partnerships to exist.
University and Medical Researchers
Research laboratories all over the country play an important role in contributing to basic science, preclinical research, and biotechnology discoveries. Industry and government partner with academic and medical research laboratories through a variety of approaches, including funding, consultation, and clinical trials.
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