BMS and Tsinghua University enter clinical research collaboration

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and Tsinghua University, have entered into a collaboration to discover therapeutic agents against novel targets for autoimmune diseases and cancers. The collaboration brings together Bristol-Myers Squibb and Tsinghua University’s respective scientific expertise and capabilities with a focus on validating new targets and generating early drug candidates for clinical development.

Under the collaboration, The Innovation Center for Immune Therapy of Tsinghua University will conduct research on projects and Bristol-Myers Squibb will have an option to exclusively license therapeutic agents discovered by Tsinghua University.

Professor Chen Dong, director of the Institute for Immunology at Tsinghua University, said, “As an immunology-based research institution in China, Tsinghua University ICIT continues to explore an innovative technology incubation model to transform basic research results into therapeutic drugs through strategic cooperation. We believe that our strengthened collaboration with BMS will combine our respective distinguished expertise in the field of immune diseases, helping transform research discoveries into new treatment options as soon as possible.”

“Bristol-Myers Squibb and Tsinghua University have built a long-term strategic collaboration and have a shared focus on advancing science and research to help patients,” said Carl Decicco, senior vice president and Head of Discovery at Bristol-Myers Squibb. “Tsinghua University is a highly respected research institution with leading capabilities and scientific talent focused on accelerating basic research into potential new therapies. We look forward to bringing projects forward that will benefit from their innovative research in immunology and autoimmune disease.”

“BMS is committed to addressing the urgent unmet clinical needs in China through leading scientific development, diversified collaborations and an innovative portfolio. This collaboration with Tsinghua University is another proof of our strategic alignment with China’s innovation-driven healthcare development, as well as our commitment to accelerate delivering of innovative treatment options to Chinese patients,” said Shirley Zhao, general manager and president of Bristol-Myers Squibb in mainland China and Hong Kong.

The collaboration is an expansion of an existing relationship between Bristol-Myers Squibb and Tsinghua University that began in 2012 which focused on autoimmune target discovery, structural biology research as well as the science of mapping the 3D protein structure of biological molecular targets.