Commitment to End NTDs: Eisai, a Founding Member of WIPO Re:Search
January 29, 2021
Eisai Co., Ltd. (Eisai), a leading global research and development (R&D)-based pharmaceutical company headquartered in Japan and a WIPO Re:Search member, discusses its commitment to end the diseases that affect the world’s most vulnerable populations.
Repurposing drugs to end NTDs
Neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) are a diverse group of viral, parasitic and bacterial diseases that mainly affect the world's lowest-income populations in developing regions of Africa, Asia, and the Americas. These diseases put more than 1.7 billion people at risk of blindness, disfigurement and other disabilities, jeopardizing their health, education, financial stability, and social support.
In one of the WIPO Re:Search-supported collaborations focused on NTDs, Eisai shared its novel chemical compound (a novel squalene synthase inhibitor called “E5700”), originally developed to treat atherosclerosis, with the University of California, San Diego, USA. A researcher at the University, Dr. McKerrow, hypothesized that the compound could be a potential candidate for research on novel treatments against Chagas disease and leishmaniasis. Bringing together the expertise needed for screening and repurposing compounds, and the access to new pharmaceutical research results, this collaboration explored potential alternative treatment options for two diseases that collectively infect nearly 22 million people worldwide and result in approximately 60,000 deaths annually.
“WIPO Re:Search is an excellent structure to broker collaborations between research communities, pharmaceutical companies, and biotech, to accelerate pre-competitive activities in specific areas of NTDs,” - says Dr. Takayuki Hida, Senior Director for Sustainability at Eisai.
“With the support of WIPO Re:Search, Eisai has been collaborating with universities worldwide - often with those we would not be able to connect otherwise - to improve the capacity of researchers in low- and middle-income countries. The consortium provided Eisai and the collaborating scientists with access to R&D resources, helped to secure new R&D funding, and improved our visibility and reputation among key global stakeholders.”
Strategic commitment
Having joined WIPO Re:Search as a founding member back in 2011, Eisai has now participated in 15 scientific collaborations across the world, advancing research against NTDs, malaria and tuberculosis. “Our early commitment illustrates our proactive mindset when it comes to improving global access to medicines and ending NTDs,” says Dr. Hida. “In addition, WIPO Re:Search has helped us to unite forces with the world’s brightest minds and to give substance to our global engagements towards the elimination of these diseases.”
Eisai is also one of the first 13 pharmaceutical companies - along with the World Bank, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and others - that pledged support for the London Declaration on NTDs in 2012. “Through participating in this declaration, Eisai reaffirmed its belief in the positive force of public-private collaboration in tackling issues related to drug supply, distribution, development, and implementation programs”, continued Dr. Hida.
“As a human healthcare company, Eisai considers its contributions to the enhancement of health and welfare in low- and middle-income countries as a long-term investment for future growth. Our strategy to improve global access to medicines is built upon five key components: product creations, strategic solutions, capacity building, quality innovation, and long-term investment. By facilitating exchanges with research institutions, WIPO Re:Search has certainly allowed us to take proactive measures on these, especially when it comes to capacity-building activities,” - says Dr. Hida.
Example of collaboration
Capacity building: Eisai and University of Yaounde 1, Cameroon
Since 2019, Eisai has engaged in a collaboration with the University of Yaoundé 1, Cameroon, where a research team led by Professor Fabrice Boyom aims to advance drug development research to treat human African trypanosomiasis, leishmaniasis, and malaria by targeting critical parasite metabolic pathways. The work developed through this WIPO Re:Search collaboration enabled Prof. Boyom to receive funding from the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) and the African Academy of Sciences’ Grand Challenges Africa program. Since then, Prof. Boyom has worked with global and local collaborators and his first years of research have shown promising results.
“Seeing Prof. Boyom obtaining both the MMV and the Grand Challenges Africa awards thanks to our support for his research represented a great achievement for our partnership. It undoubtedly illustrates the benefits of more targeted investment in low- and middle-income countries’ laboratories. Programs focusing on capacity building are an integral part of Eisai’s strategy to address pressing global disease burdens.” Dr. Takayuki Hida, Senior Director for Sustainability at Eisai.
World NTD Day 2021
“Eisai is pleased to work together with various members of the NTD community, and to support the WHO NTD Roadmap. We are particularly excited about collaborations that encourage country ownership of NTDs elimination, such as the empowerment of scientists in NTD-endemic countries through WIPO Re:Search,” - says Dr. Hida.
“We hope that the Consortium and its partners will continue bringing value, not only through their excellent research projects, but also through scientific capacity building activities. Eisai believes that this work can contribute greatly to building a brighter future for NTD-endemic countries.”