The Wisconsin Technology Innovation Initiative (Wi2), a non-profit organization formed to support the School of Medicine and Public Health at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Orion Corporation, a Finnish pharmaceutical and diagnostics company, have formed a strategic collaboration in pursuit of new medicines for oncological diseases.
 
Target proteins (modes of action) identified and initially validated at UW-Madison will be provided to Orion as a first step in establishing a research and development collaboration. The companies will jointly participate in planning and conducting research and development projects.
 
“We are excited about partnering with Wi2 and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which is recognized for its scientific excellence in the field of oncology,” said Reijo Salonen, senior vice president, pharmaceutical research and development and chief medical officer, Orion Corporation. “The university is performing fundamental research and also has excellent capabilities for Phase IIA clinical studies. These competence areas added to our expertise to develop a molecule to medicine are offering us a great opportunity to find, research and develop new treatments for patients suffering from oncological diseases.”
 
“Wi2 is eager to be the bridge that makes this collaboration possible,” said Richard Moss, chief scientific officer, Wi2. “Collaborating with a global partner such as Orion is an important step in making sure that valuable discoveries made at UW-Madison can be developed into potentially life-saving drugs.”
 
In collaboration with Orion, the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s core competence areas are target discovery and validation, biological testing and conducting clinical Phase IIA studies. Orion’s oncology therapy area has been growing and the company has three development projects ongoing in the field of oncology.