CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Bayer and the Broad Institute have announced a five-year extension of their decade-long research collaboration aimed at developing new precision therapies for cardiovascular diseases. The renewed partnership will continue to leverage cutting-edge genomics research and drug discovery to identify novel therapeutic targets and treatment approaches.
Since its inception in 2013, the collaboration has combined the Broad Institute’s expertise in human genomics and biology with Bayer’s strength in drug discovery and development, particularly in small molecules and biologics. The expanded agreement will build on these foundations by focusing on target discovery using a human cardiomyocyte platform and accelerating the development of treatments for conditions such as dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), a serious disease characterized by an enlarged and weakened heart muscle.
“This partnership enables us to explore novel, disease-modifying treatments for cardiovascular diseases that impact millions of patients,” said Dr. Andrea Haegebarth, Global Head of Research and Early Development for Cardiovascular, Renal, and Immunology at Bayer. “Our first joint therapeutic program has already reached the clinic, and we look forward to continuing this important work with the Broad Institute’s outstanding scientists.”
The collaboration recently reached a milestone with the initiation of a Phase I clinical trial evaluating Bayer’s investigational inhibitor of GIRK4, a potassium channel implicated in atrial fibrillation. The compound aims to regulate the heart’s electrical activity, offering a potential new treatment for patients with the common arrhythmia.
Todd Golub, Director of the Broad Institute, welcomed the continuation of the partnership, saying, “By combining the strengths of both organizations, we can achieve breakthroughs that would be difficult to accomplish independently.”
The collaboration is part of Bayer’s broader commitment to academic partnerships and precision drug development. The company’s Bayer Research & Innovation Center (BRIC), located near the Broad Institute in Cambridge’s Kendall Square, plays a key role in early-stage research across oncology, cardiovascular, renal, and immunology. BRIC also houses Bayer Co.Lab Cambridge, a life sciences incubator supporting scientific innovation.
Financial terms of the extended agreement were not disclosed.
