News Release

UC San Diego announces collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development

Business Announcement

University of California - San Diego

University of California, San Diego Health Sciences leaders have announced that they have executed a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research & Development, L.L.C. (J&JPRD), with the objective of developing future collaborations in biomedical research and education to advance human health.

The MOU establishes a framework for future research and training efforts between the UC San Diego School of Medicine, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and the UC San Diego Medical Center health system, and J&JPRD, a pharmaceutical research and development company with expertise in small molecules, genomics, bioinformatics, high throughput screening, and structural biology.

"We are excited about this tremendous opportunity to partner with J&JPRD, which is a world leader in the development of new drugs. This collaboration will further accelerate our efforts at UC San Diego to translate the exciting discoveries being made every day in our laboratories into improved diagnostic and treatment technologies that benefit all patients," said David Brenner, M.D., UC San Diego Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences. "The ability to work more closely with colleagues in the private sector will strengthen our translational research program, and enhance the education of our medical, pharmacy and graduate students, in addition to boosting the potential for new product development."

Brenner joined with G. Diego Miralles, M.D., Head and Chief Medical Officer of J&JPRD's Research and Early Development unit based in San Diego, to sign the MOU in ceremonies at the UC San Diego School of Medicine.

Echoing Dr. Brenner's enthusiasm, Dr. Miralles noted that "academia and industry are natural partners since we have complimentary expertise and share the common goal of addressing unmet medical needs. Working closely with our neighbors at UCSD will help us find win-win opportunities and maximize our common capabilities. We are very excited about the potential of this partnership."

The two organizations plan to create education, training and research collaborations in biomedical science, medicine and public health, with a focus on projects that lead to new clinical applications. In addition to signing the MOU, the organizations also signed the first agreement between UC San Diego Health Sciences and J&JPRD under the MOU framework – a contract for UC San Diego Professor of Pharmacology Larry Brunton, Ph.D., to conduct laboratory studies to evaluate the effects of new compounds on heart tissue.

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UC San Diego School of Medicine is one of the nation's top biomedical research medical schools, ranked 14th in the nation by U.S. News and World Report among research medical schools. The new UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences is dedicated to training the pharmacists of the future and to research focusing on drug discovery. UC San Diego has an established history of partnering with industry in order to facilitate the development of drugs and technologies based on research discoveries, and is credited with helping to lay the foundation for San Diego's emergence as a global biotechnology and pharmaceutical hub.


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