OUR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Everyday, GlaxoSmithKline scientists strive to discover new ways to treat illness and disease. We are one of the largest research investors in the industry, collaborating with academic institutions, governments, and other pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to help people live healthier lives.

 

THE NATIONAL COMMITMENT

• GlaxoSmithKline invested more than $178 million in Canadian research and development (R&D) in 2007 alone, and is one of the top 15 contributors to R&D in Canada, across all industries.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline maintains research facilities in Mississauga, Toronto and Oakville, Ontario as well as in Laval, Quebec. 
  
  

• Globally, GlaxoSmithKline spends close to $6.5 billion every year on R&D.

 

CLINICAL STUDIES

• In 2007, GlaxoSmithKline invested close to $45 million in clinical trials in Canada, conducting more than 80 trials and enrolling well over 2,900 patients. This represents approximately six per cent of the company’s worldwide clinical trial program. The Clinical Development Group typically works on more than 35 different chemical compounds varying from phase I to phase IV trials.
  
  

• GSK supported 60 academic research proposals in 2007 with physicians across Canada.

 

PHARMACEUTICAL DEVELOPMENT

• In Canada, GlaxoSmithKline has a global R&D pharmaceutical development capability within the company’s technical manufacturing and product facility in Mississauga, Ontario.
  
  

• The GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceutical Development Division focuses on improving the quality of human life through the development of new drugs for use throughout the world. Through technology and automation, GSK’s Pharmaceutical Development Division specializes in the development of controlled drug delivery, oral liquids and dermatological products.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline’s Canadian Pharmaceutical Development Division has developed and patented novel drug delivery systems, including PROCISE^TM technology, which provides programmable oral drug release based on the therapeutic needs of the patient.

 

RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS

• GlaxoSmithKline is conducting research in Canada to identify genes associated with serious medical conditions – obesity and other metabolic diseases, Alzheimer’s disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and psychiatric disorders. For example, GlaxoSmithKline is collaborating with the Ottawa Heart Institute to identify genetic associations related to obesity.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline invested $5 million over five years to fund asthma research at the Firestone Institute of Respiratory Health (St. Joseph’s Healthcare, Hamilton). Scientists are contributing to a better understanding of the physiological and environmental causes of asthma and developing innovative treatment strategies for patients with the disease.
  
  

• As part of a global academic network, GlaxoSmithKline has engaged in a multi-year partnership with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Ontario to study new psychiatric medicines using PET Imaging Technology.
  
  

• GlaxoSmithKline is contributing $3.75 million to the Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), a three-year project led by Dr. Aled Edwards at the University of Toronto. In partnership with the U.K.-based Wellcome Trust and four of Canada’s leading research funding agencies, the research will provide important structural information for over 350 proteins that will be made available to scientists worldwide. The SGC will contribute to the discovery of new products for unmet medical needs, and represents the largest international health research project ever funded in Canada.
  
  

The Pathfinders Fund

• GlaxoSmithKline’s $22 million Pathfinders Fund for Leaders in Canadian Health Science Research was established to help Canada become a world leader in R&D. This initiative encourages health science research and fosters medical innovation in Canadian medical schools.

 

Fellowship Research Studies

• GlaxoSmithKline funds a number of research fellowship positions to advance the understanding and treatment of a variety of diseases, including:
  
  
  • $90,000 a year to support research fellowships in respiratory medicine in partnership with the Ontario Thoracic Society
    
    
  • Up to $60,000 annually to support one to two fellowships for research in respiratory medicine in partnership with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Canadian Lung Association
    
    
  • Up to $60,000 each year for fellowships for research in respiratory medicine in partnership with CIHR and the Canadian Asthma, Allergy and Immunology Foundation
    
    
  • A $50,000 fellowship position at the Movement Disorders Clinic in London, focusing on the study and treatment of patients with neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s Disease
    
    
  • $50,000 to fund a fellowship position at the Foothills Medical Centre, in affiliation with the University of Calgary, to conduct research into the central mechanisms and root causes of migraine
    
    
  • $50,000 a year to support a research fellow in the area of Type 2 diabetes in partnership with CIHR; and
    
    
  • GlaxoSmithKline supports the Canadian Thoracic Society and Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology to conduct The Canadian Resident Competition in Respiratory Research.

 

For further information, please contact:
    Corporate Communications
  GlaxoSmithKline Inc.
Tel: 905 819-3000
www.gsk.ca