Biogen Idec has formed a $30-million strategic alliance with Columbia University Medical Center to conduct genetics discovery research on the underlying causes of disease and to identify new treatment approaches. As part of this agreement, a sequencing and analysis facility and shared postdoctoral program will be established at Columbia to support collaborative genetics studies. The agreement will integrate genomics research conducted at Columbia with Biogen Idec's understanding of disease mechanisms and pathways, and expertise in discovering new medicines.

The collaboration will enable Biogen Idec and Columbia to investigate the genomes of patients showing unusual treatment responses or unique disease presentations and to explore the connections among genes, pathways, and disease processes. The ultimate goal will be to provide multiple qualified targets for new therapeutic approaches, increasing the potential for the development of new treatments.

The new facility will have broad genetic research capabilities and the capacity to launch and complete whole-genome sequencing projects rapidly. It will allow for rapid population-scale DNA sequencing across a broad range of disease areas, focusing on diseases with significant unmet clinical need such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Source: Biogen Idec