Mission

TI Pharma was established to initiate and manage drug development consortia to advance the competitiveness of the Netherlands in the pharmaceutical sector, complementing similar Netherlands-based, public-private initiatives to advance diagnostics (Center for Translational Molecular Medicine, CTMM) and devices (BioMedical Materials program, BMM). TI Pharma consortia aim to improve the efficiency of the drug-development process, with a focus on advancing regulatory science. In addition to research, TI Pharma also has objectives to train and educate scientists in the Netherlands on the drug discovery and development processes, as well as on entrepreneurship. 

The consortia are focused on addressing therapeutic areas that are listed as priority areas by the World Health Organization. These include autoimmune diseases, cardiovascular diseases, cancer, infectious diseases, and diseases of the brain. In addition to therapeutic focus, the consortia are also focused on enabling therapeutic target discovery, validation, and animal models; lead selection and in silico modeling; predictive drug disposition and toxicology; biomarkers and biosensors; drug formulation, delivery, and targeting; and production technologies.  

Consortium History

2005: Twenty-seven projects selected in first call for proposals
2006: Eighteen projects selected in second call for proposals

Structure & Governance

The TI Pharma strategy is divided into two stages. The first stage, which occurred in 2006, coordinated the Dutch universities and pharmaceutical companies in collaborative research programs (each project is required to have at least three research partners, one of which must represent the industrial or academic community). The second stage started in 2007 with an aim to further increase European involvement via the Seventh Framework Programme, while simultaneously incentivizing participation from U.S.-based pharmaceutical companies.

Participants include all Dutch universities and academic medical centers, more than 30 industrial partners, small-to-medium sized companies, and representatives from the Dutch Medicines Evaluation Board (Netherlands regulatory body for drugs).

Financing

The Dutch government provides €30 million in annual funding, which is matched through financial and in-kind contributions by industry and academia (€15 million, each per year), for four to six years.

Intellectual Property

The TI Pharma consortia follow general principles that govern intellectual property agreements. The principles can be summarized as the following:
Each consortium has one patent coordinator.

Patient Engagement

Several Netherlands patient organizations participate in consortia managed by TI Pharma. These include groups interested in metabolic diseases (VKS: Vereniging Volwassenen, Kinderen en Stofwisselingsziekten), muscle-based diseases (VSN: Vereniging Spierziekten Nederland), and Fabry disease (FSIGN: Fabry Support & Informatie Groep Nederland).

Data Sharing

The level and method of data sharing is dependent on the scientific goals of the consortium.

Impact/Accomplishment

TI Pharma was able to start and manage 96 research consortia within its first six years. Results of the consortia are described in the annual report, which can be found here. 

Links/Social Media Feed

Points of Contact

TI Pharma
PO Box 142
2300 AC Leiden
The Netherlands
phone: 071-332-2030
fax: 071-332-2031
email: info@tipharma.com

Sponsors & Partners