Biologics and vaccine development focus of new centre of excellence

Laval, QC – Drug discovery project facilitator NEOMED has announced the launch of the Biologics and Vaccine Centre of Excellence in Laval under a proposed partnership with GSK. The organization says the centre will be the only one of its kind in Canada and GSK has committed $47 million toward its establishment.

“We are extremely happy to announce the creation of NEOMED’s biologics and vaccines division, a centre of excellence that will build on the scientific heritage of GSK and the successful business model of the NEOMED Institute research hub in Technoparc Montréal’s Saint-Laurent Campus,” said Max Fehlmann, NEOMED’s president and CEO.

The new NEOMED biologics and vaccines division is structured around three distinct, but fully integrated, pillars:

• The transformation of the GSK research facility, and its high-tech laboratories and equipment, into a multi-tenant hub of small and medium-sized enterprises focussed on this important area of expertise;
• The creation of a specialized contract research organization (CRO) that will market its biology and clinical immunology services to the business community and to GSK for at least three years; and
• The creation of an exclusive partnership between GSK and NEOMED in order to share risks and benefits on existing biologic and vaccine projects.

“We are very pleased to partner with NEOMED to create a unique Biologics and Vaccine Centre of Excellence,” said Paul Lirette, President, GSK Canada Pharmaceuticals. “It enables GSK to look externally and develop collaborative partnerships to optimize R&D, and represents the dawn of a new and promising era for pharmaceutical research in the Montreal region.”