UC, Fiocruz and ICNAS Pharma expand collaboration to bring antimalarial treatment to market
A new phase of the partnership between the University of Coimbra, Fiocruz and ICNAS Pharma was officially launched this Thursday in the Senate Room
On 24 April, the University of Coimbra (UC), the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), through its Institute of Drug Technology (Farmanguinhos), and ICNAS Pharma entered into a partnership to bring an antimalarial drug to Portugal.
The tripartite collaboration, developed under the 'Research in Science, Technology and Technological Development' protocol, aims to support the validation process in Portugal of a malaria medicine developed by Farmanguinhos/Fiocruz.
The formal ceremony took place in the Senate Room of the University of Coimbra and was attended by representatives of the three institutions involved, namely the Rector of UC, Amílcar Falcão; the President of Fiocruz, Mario Moreira; the Vice-Rector of UC for Innovation, Business Relations and Employability, Nuno Mendonça; the Director of Farmanguinhos, Jorge Mendonça; the Director of ICNAS, Antero Abrunhosa; the Technical Director of ICNAS Pharma, Olga Calado; and the Regulatory Affairs Coordinator of Farmanguinhos/Fiocruz, Soraya Mileti.
The UC Rector emphasised that these are two public institutions that "make things happen" and described the project as "emblematic", representing "opening the market, opening opportunities, opening doors". He also stressed that "we are here to learn and share".
According to Vice-Rector Nuno Mendonça, "this process was only possible thanks to the innovative nature of the four main entities involved (the University of Coimbra, Fiocruz, ICNAS Pharma and Farmanguinhos), which recognised the opportunity to introduce to the Portuguese market the first medicine developed by a Brazilian institute". He also highlighted "the importance and uniqueness of this medicine for malaria-related therapies, particularly within the Portuguese-speaking community", and argued that "once again, UC has upheld its tradition of continuous innovation".
Mario Moreira, President of Fiocruz, underlined the social impact of the partnership. "This is another step in Fiocruz’s internationalisation process, strengthening our ties with Portugal, which are currently expanding rapidly. We hope that providing this strategic contribution, the result of years of work by our institution in Brazil, will also help to cure people suffering from malaria in Portugal," he said.
For Jorge Mendonça, Director of Farmanguinhos, "the launch is a milestone in the history of the institution, as this medicine, which has become a benchmark in Brazil, will be the first to be registered in Portugal. This partnership will certainly enhance our understanding of the specificities of other regulatory agencies. It is also important to contribute to other health systems and ensure access to quality medicines for the population."
According to ICNAS Director Antero Abrunhosa, "ICNAS Pharma, with its experience in marketing innovative medicines, will be responsible for submitting the application to INFARMED and managing the drug’s registration in the national market."
The partnership also seeks to strengthen scientific cooperation between Portugal and Brazil, consolidating historical ties and opening new opportunities for knowledge sharing and innovation in the health field.
