GEROPHARM is going to develop biomedicine and pharmacology in the Russian Far East
GEROPHARM has signed two trilateral cooperation agreements on the IX Eastern Economic Forum, which is taking place from 3 to 6 September in Vladivostok. The first agreement with the Far Eastern Federal University (FEFU) and Tsinghua University (Guangzhou, China) is related to scientific and academic cooperation in biomedicine and pharmaceuticals. The second agreement with FEFU and the Russky Innovation Science and Technology Center (ISTC) focuses on developing a practice-oriented approach in education and technology transfer. Both agreements have been signed at the stand of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation.
GEROPHARM, FEFU and Tsinghua University have expressed their interest in joint personnel training and collaborative studies that might eventually result in the introduction of new drugs in the Russian and Chinese markets. The agreement provides for collaborative research and implementation of projects in the fields of biomedicine, pharmacy and other related sciences. The parties have also agreed to create joint educational programmes and courses in biomedicine and pharmacology that would include intra-company internships to share experiences and develop new competencies. At the end of the training, the top 10 graduates will be employed in GEROPHARM.
“The university-employer cooperation is improving every year, while the higher education system is increasingly adapted to business needs. This allows the pharmaceutical industry to increase its capacity and expand the production. GEROPHARM is developing its own profile modules and university-affiliated training programmes. We will employ our best practices in our cooperation with FEFU and Xinhua University. I believe our trilateral cooperation will not only increase the number of highly qualified specialists, but also result in new developments to strengthen the health of people living in both countries,” comments Petr Rodionov, CEO of GEROPHARM.
“The development of the project to open a branch of FEFU at Xinhua University is primarily aimed at interacting with biomedical technology companies. The cooperation with such industrial partner as GEROPHARM will allow us to take advantage of the synergy of technological and intellectual capabilities of the university and the industry leader. This will contribute to the preparation of highly skilled professionals in biomedicine and the development of new drug products capable of entering the giant pharmaceutical market in China and Russia,” says Boris Korobets, Rector of FEFU.
In order to implement such cooperation, Xinhua University bought one of the largest sites of pharmaceutical raw materials in Guangzhou, the Qingping Market, which encompasses more than 2,000 pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies in China. Qingping has a convenient geographical location and a rich history dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties.
“In March this year, the Pharmaceutical Institute at Guangzhou Xinhua University and Chinese medical technology company Guangdong Hanchao have jointly established the Industrial Institute of Guangzhou Xinhua Hanchao for Traditional Chinese Medicine and Innovations. By joining the project, the Far Eastern Federal University and GEROPHARM will contribute to the integration between the industry and education sectors, the improvement of the resource synergy mechanism and mutually reinforcing benefits to all parties to the agreement, as well as support for talented students to enhance the industrial competitiveness of the two countries,” comments Liu Ronghai, the Chair of Guangzhou Xinhua University.
The agreement between GEROPHARM, FEFU and Russky ISTC adheres to the priorities of scientific and technological development of the Russian Federation, developing a practice-oriented approach in education and technology transfer, and implementing the most promising and commercially attractive research, scientific and technological projects in biomedicine. The Parties are committed to cooperate in training new biomedicine professionals to address actual needs of the real sector of the Russian economy, as well as in informing the medical community about new biosimilars on the market and their features. This new cooperation will open up even more opportunities for science and education in the Russian Far East by laying foundation for the successful development of biomedicine and pharmacy in the region based on Russky ISTC.
“The Fund’s goal is to build the environment and infrastructure for collaborations of scientists and innovative companies, and to provide financial and legal preferences for creating advanced developments and technologies. This joint initiative will make us the key research and technology centre for the development of high-tech industries in the Russian Far East and for the expansion to the Asia-Pacific markets,” said Elena Kharisova, General Director of the Development Fund of Russky ISTC.
Reference information
FEFU acts as a centre for applied oriental studies, whose tasks include comprehensive research in the field of interaction with Asian states, identifying new formats of economic, scientific and technological cooperation. By relying on its unique country-specific expertise, FEFU is capable of becoming an expert “point of entry” in the Asian region for scientific, educational and commercial institutions. As part of scientific activities, scientists from FEFU and Asian countries are conducting joint research in several fields at once, such as medicine, information technologies, and materials science. The Eastern Vector policy of the university involves not only the launch of scientific laboratories and advanced innovation infrastructure, but also the formation of an integrated system for attracting and professionally developing the young scientists from all over the world in the Far East.
Russky ISTC has been established to attract high-tech businesses, entrepreneurs, engineers and researchers from around the world, create a cluster of technology companies in the Russian Far East and expand to the Asia-Pacific markets. ISTC will contribute to higher interest in research and development initiatives among investors, better commercialisation of obtained results, and deeper engagement of individuals and legal entities in the most promising and commercially attractive scientific and technological projects.
Xinhua University in Guangzhou has 23 schools of higher education and offers degree programmes in 54 majors. More than 20 thousand students study at the university.
