Grünenthal Opens Innovation Hub in Boston

Grünenthal announced it opened a new Innovation Hub in the Greater Boston area. Through this Innovation Hub, Grünenthal aims to identify promising projects in pain, inflammation, orphan diseases, and devices & technologies from the large number of projects in late discovery and early development in the region.

Grünenthal will drive these projects through research and development in order to address the need for innovation. The opening of the Greater Boston Innovation Hub is part of Grünenthal's strategy to build relationships in geographic areas with a high number of potential research, development and licensing partners. The Hub will be driven by the company's Innovative Medicines Unit (IMU), a group tasked with building Grünenthal's late discovery and early development pipeline through strategic collaborations with external partners.

"We are thrilled to be a part of the Boston science hot spot. One of the most vibrant environments with a culture and track record of innovation," Gabriel Baertschi, CEO of Grünenthal said. "As a worldwide leader in pain, we are looking for strategic partnerships in research and development to bring innovative solutions to patients in indications with high unmet medical need. Innovation is at our core and as a fully integrated pharmaceutical company, we can offer support along the whole value chain - from Drug Development to Commercialization."

Boston is home of the first officially designated Innovation District in the U.S. It has over 100 colleges and universities, five of the top six National Institutes of Health-funded independent hospitals in the U.S., and over 250 biotech companies. Through two partnering days with MassBio and an independent networking event in Boston, Grünenthal has already signed ten collaborations, and since 2015 has worked with the Boston Children's Hospital on neosaxitoxin, a novel anesthetic for local anesthesia and post-operative pain management. Beyond its activity in Boston, Grünenthal has recently announced a joint study with 23andMe - its first step into Big Data - to advance understanding of how genes influence pain, and to identify starting points for the development of innovative, highly effective medicines.

"We are looking forward to helping Grünenthal join the Massachusetts life sciences ecosystem," Travis McCready, President & CEO of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, said. "As Grünenthal puts collaboration at its core, we can't wait to see the exciting projects borne out of their presence in Greater Boston."