We welcome Slovenia's entry into the ERDERA partnership
At the Centre for Gene and Cell Therapy Technologies CTGCT at the National Institute of Chemistry, we welcome Slovenia's entry into the European Research Partnership for Rare Diseases ERDERA. With Slovenia's accession, new opportunities for international cooperation are opening up for Slovenian research institutions and companies, as well as clinical organizations. The development of new drugs is a big undertaking, both scientifically, clinically, financially and in terms of time, and in the field of rare diseases, the possibility of returning investments is smaller than in more widespread diseases, so the only possible way and hope for rare diseases is the cooperation of various actors.
Slovenia's entry into ERDERA was supported with their efforts by various partners, including the National Institute of Chemistry and CTGCT, the Jožef Stefan Institute, the University Clinical Center of Ljubljana, the Association of Patient Organizations of Slovenia, and others. The Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Innovation and the Ministry of Health assumed and carried out the decisive role, with the latter becoming the point of contact for the tenders that are ongoing in ERDERA.
International cooperation is the only platform on which progress can be made in the field of rare diseases. There are not enough patients for each individual disease in any of the EU member states, but cooperation creates a critical mass that enables breakthrough cooperation. New advanced drugs for rare diseases are not only a victory for the individual, their family, their doctor and their hospital, or even their country, but it is a breakthrough that changes this world for the better for an individual group of patients, and based on the acquired knowledge, for other groups as well patients, and so on up to practically 10% of the population, as many as are estimated to be patients with rare diseases.
The first joint transnational funding call, in which research organizations, companies and hospitals can already participate, is already underway, the deadline for pre-applications is February 13. CTGCT believes that due to the exceptional potential and knowledge of Slovenian biopharmaceutical experts, Slovenia can play an important role.
CTGCT is led by Dr. Mojca Benčina, the center was launched and still works in close connection with the Department of Synthetic Biology and Immunology under the leadership of dr. Roman Jerala. With this announcement, CTGCT invites all members of the translational medicine ecosystem, as presented at the conference on October 18, to view the tender documentation and to apply for the ERDERA tender, independently or in association with CTGCT.
For additional information, contact ctgct(at)ki.si, phone: 01 476 0236.
Project: 101059842 - CTGCT - HORIZON-WIDERA-2022
Co-funded by the European Union, this project has received funding from Horizon Europe (grant agreement No. 101059842) and UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) under the UK government’s Horizon Europe funding guarantee (grant number 10069462). Views and opinions expressed are of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Commission nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
