NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) — Genzyme will join an international public/private initiative to develop malaria drugs, the company said yesterday.
The company will work with the Medicines for Malaria Venture, MIT’s Broad Institute, and Harvard University to develop treatments by identifying compounds that the company claims offer a new approach to treating the disease.
Genzyme said there are four discovery projects ongoing already, but did not disclose their specifics. The company added that any intellectual property stemming from the research will be made available to the MMV for drug development without royalties.
MMV, a non-profit organization aimed at finding new antimalarial treatments, estimates that there are 300 million to 600 million new clinical cases of malaria each year.