Researchers Agree to Collaborate to Accelerate the Rate of Novel Treatments Developed for Patients with Brain Disorders.

BOCA RATON, Fla. -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- An exciting new era of “pre-competitive collaboration” in the development of treatments for patients suffering from brain disorders began when leading enterprises and institutions involved in CNS (central nervous system) clinical trials agreed to collaborate together towards the common goal of developing novel treatments for patients, in an area of medicine with high unmet need.

The agreement to rethink how companies interact and to streamline and accelerate CNS drug development was formed at the CNS Summit 2012, which took place November 15-18. Participants, included scientists working in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and service companies, as well as research investigators.

The guiding principles of the CNS Summit are “collaboration, innovation, acceleration and technology.” Co-Chair of the Scientific Program Committee, Dr. Amir Kalali, stated that this agreement to explore all potential ways to collaborate in the pre-competitive space should lead to a higher success rate of research programs, more efficient use of research funding, and leveraging the collective scientific expertise across the CNS field for the benefit of patients. This shows that scientists are committed to working together across competing companies towards our common goal of relieving suffering in patients.

The CNS Summit is focused on improving the success of researchers bringing new treatments to patients suffering from CNS disorders. It is a meeting by CNS drug developers for CNS drug developers, involving all stakeholders. We are building a community of CNS drug developers who are willing to go beyond competitive issues and work towards our common goals. We aim to collaborate to produce concrete results that shape the future of CNS drug development.