GSK to create a new Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Chemistry in Brazil

Published: 30-Oct-2013

Will co-fund the centre with FAPESP, investing £400,000 a year over 10 years


GSK is collaborating with the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) to create a new Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Chemistry in Brazil.

The São Paulo-based Centre will focus on sustainable chemistries most relevant to the discovery and development of medicines. It will take a multi-disciplinary approach to exploring all aspects of more sustainable chemistry, including improving synthetic efficiency, sustainable solvents and renewable feedstocks from agricultural waste. This is expected to make a key contribution to reducing environmental impact, while optimising the use of increasingly scarce natural resources.

GSK has agreed in principle to co-fund the centre with FAPESP, investing approximately £400,000 a year during a ten-year collaboration, which will be matched by FAPESP.

GSK is already supporting a Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Chemistry in the UK at The University of Nottingham. Once the new centre in São Paulo is established, it will form scientific links with GSK and The University of Nottingham to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and expertise between Brazilian and UK researchers.

This will be an important enabler towards our goal of reducing the environmental impact of both the discovery and subsequent manufacturing of drugs

Rogerio Ribeiro, Senior Vice President, Emerging Markets & Asia Pacific, GSK, said: 'GSK has a vibrant and growing business in Brazil and, as part of our continued investment in science in Brazil, we are delighted to announce our support for the new sustainable chemistry centre. This will be an important enabler towards our goal of reducing the environmental impact of both the discovery and subsequent manufacturing of drugs to help us meet our target of being carbon neutral by 2050.'

Celso Lafer, President of FAPESP, added: 'FAPESP has formed partnerships to create world class research centres, such as this new collaboration with GSK. By applying interdisciplinary approaches to complex scientific challenges through this collaboration with GSK, FAPESP contributes to a knowledge advance in sustainable chemistry and the development of applications in areas of common interest.'

This latest announcement builds on GSK’s existing partnership with FAPESP to build a sustainable, long-term scientific research presence in Brazil. Through its ‘Trust in Science’ programme, GSK aims to support outstanding scientific groups in Latin America to validate and explore compelling ideas to treat priority diseases, including those that have a substantial impact on the health of Latin America.

A joint steering committee with representation from GSK, FAPESP and The University of Nottingham will be formed to oversee the creation of the centre and set its strategic direction.

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