Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI)
A unique public-private partnership
The European Commission and EFPIA have jointly established and launched in 2008 a new, non-profit European Community body. This joint undertaking called the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) has a legal mandate to award research grants to European public-private collaborations conducting innovative research projects that focus on implementing the recommendations of the IMI Research Agenda.
IMI is a pan-European collaboration that brings together large biopharmaceutical companies, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), patient organisations, academia, hospitals and public authorities.
Its aim is to restore European leadership in R&D investments and boost the competitiveness of European life science R&D by directly addressing the challenges facing the biopharmaceutical sector in Europe.
During the past 10 years, global R&D expenditure in the biopharmaceutical sector has steadily increased, without a corresponding increase in the output of new medicines. The high attrition rate of candidate medicines is a major cause of this declining productivity worldwide. Furthermore, attrition is even more costly since it occurs late in the development cycle, when major investments have already taken place.
Scope of IMI:
The IMI agenda identifies the principal research bottlenecks in the biopharmaceutical R&D process and sets forth recommendations to overcome these bottlenecks by focusing on four areas:
- Predicting safety: this addresses bottlenecks related to accurately evaluating the safety of a compound during the preclinical phase of the development process, but also impacts the later phases in clinical development.
- Predicting efficacy: this addresses bottlenecks in the ability to predict how a drug will interact in humans and how it may produce a change in function.
- Knowledge management: this addresses the more effective utilisation of information and data for predicting safety and efficacy.
- Education and training: this closes existing training gaps in the drug development process.
Knowledge management and education & training impact the different phases of the overall drug development process and aim to improve the information flow between phases.
IMI benefits patients, small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), academics and biopharmaceutical enterprises.
Expected effects of IMI:
- Modernise the development of medicines.
- Expand European expertise and know-how in new technologies to attract bio-medical R&D investment to Europe.
- Anchor R&D jobs in Europe and reverse the brain drain.
- Enhance Europe's economy by strengthening the competitive position of smaller companies, enabling them to collaborate with a multitude of stakeholders.
Brief overview of the IMI Application Process:
- The Office of the Executive Director publishes calls for research proposals that address the topics included in the IMI Research Agenda.
- Groups of partners form Public-Private Collaborations submit research proposals for IMI funding. Depending upon the proposal, the groups may be composed of universities, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), public authorities, patient groups or large biopharmaceutical companies, although the latter will not receive any funding.
- Proposals are selected for funding via a peer review process, on the basis of stringent scientific criteria and their potential impact on the bottlenecks identified in the IMI Research Agenda.
- A Public-Private Collaboration consists of at least two academic institutions or SMEs, plus two biopharmaceutical companies which are members of EFPIA.
For more information on how to apply for a research grant, please visit: http://imi.europa.eu, www.imi-europe.org
The Second IMI Call was launched on 27 November 2009.
Downloads
- IMI brochure.pdf
(1933.546 KBkb) Download - Joint Technology Initiatives, a new EU Research initiative: FAQs
(105.581 KBkb) Download - Faster access to better medicines: the Innovative Medicines Initiative
(85.839 KBkb) Download - Commission Proposal for a Council Regulation for the set up of Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking
(299.91 KBkb) Download - IMI Fact Sheet
(85.961 KBkb) Download - IMI Strategic Research Agenda
(1570.532 KBkb) Download