Boehringer Ingelheim and BioMed X have formed a new research team to conduct research to identify novel approaches for the treatment of patients with psychiatric diseases. The members of this team had submitted the most promising solution approaches in a crowdsourcing competition.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental illness, together with substance abuse disorders, remains the leading cause of disability worldwide. At least 450 million people suffer from mental health problems. The global economic burden of mental illness is larger than for cancer, cardiovascular disease or diabetes and continues to grow, with significant health, social and economic consequences.

“We are excited about applying the innovative approach of crowdsourcing to harness the creativity of the scientific community and combine it with our internal research and development capabilities, to discover the next generation of medicines for patients with psychiatric diseases who currently have insufficient treatment options,” said Clive Wood, corporate senior vice president, head of discovery research, Boehringer Ingelheim. “Our scientists will work closely with the new team we are establishing with our partner BioMed X, thereby further supporting our ambition to be an innovation leader in psychiatric diseases.”

Christian Tidona, founder and managing director, BioMed X, said, “With this new neuroscience research group our center is growing to over 60 top researchers from around the world. We are excited about our strong partnership with Boehringer Ingelheim, which is driven by scientific excellence and mutual trust.”

The interdisciplinary team will focus on the generation of novel therapeutic approaches for psychiatric diseases by developing a highly integrated brain microcircuit model which includes authentic neuronal and non-neuronal cells and supports functional readouts with sufficient robustness and throughput for drug discovery. Michal Slezak will head the research team that will be established in the BioMed X Innovation Center located on the campus of the University of Heidelberg, Germany. The new project follows on the successful establishment of a group to identify novel epigenetic drivers to find new approaches for treating COPD and underscores Boehringer Ingelheim’s long-term sustainable collaboration approach.

The research team will be sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim for two years with the option to extend the funding period up to a total of four years.