Eli Lilly Announces New Drug Discovery Initiative

Eli Lilly has announced that it will be initiating drug discovery in new and unmet diseases, which includes Alzheimer’s disease, Cancer, Diabetes and Osteoporosis. The company’s goal is to foster open collaboration between Lilly and global laboratory researchers.

The initiative, known as the Lilly Phenotypic Drug Discovery Initiative, or PD2, uses Lilly-developed disease-state assays and a secure web portal, to evaluate the therapeutic potential of compounds synthesized in university and biotechnology laboratories. Findings from this initiative could ultimately form the basis for collaboration or licensing agreements between Lilly and external institutions.

Alan Palkowitz, Vice President of discovery chemistry research and technologies at Lilly, said: Each year, researchers throughout the world design and synthesize compounds in university and biotechnology laboratories that are never fully evaluated as potential drug candidates. There’s an untapped source of ideas and compounds in the greater scientific community that could ultimately impact patients’ lives following further evaluation and development.