The fourth ORBIS School enhancing international collaboration on pharmaceutical innovations was held in Prague

Between 7th and 9th September, the fourth ORBIS School was held in Prague. The event was co-hosted by Zentiva in close collaboration with the German company Physiolution and the University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague. Many various lectures and workshops were held during these three days and the participants had a great opportunity to share their experiences and knowledge based on their own research. Part of the program was a visit to Zentiva’s R&D department in its Prague site.
Between 7th and 9th September, the fourth ORBIS School was held in Prague. The event was co-hosted by Zentiva in close collaboration with the German company Physiolution and the University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague. Many various lectures and workshops were held during these three days and the participants had a great opportunity to share their experiences and knowledge based on their own research. Part of the program was a visit to Zentiva’s R&D department in its Prague site.
SUPPORTING AN INTERNATIONAL NETWORK TO ENHANCE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Participants from Ireland, France, Finland, Germany, Poland and Ukraine came to Prague for the ORBIS School. Lectures and workshops at the University of Chemistry and Technology and the Czech Technical University were focused on biopharmaceutical principles and novel techniques or modern bioanalytical methods. The goal of the ORBIS project is to strengthen the connection between academic and industry fields, exchange expert knowledge and create international partnerships across Europe, which can move pharmaceutical research ahead. “Innovations are a crucial part of what we do. At Zentiva, almost 200 employees work in the R&D department. We support young talents and work on strengthening the academia-pharma industry cooperation. Joining the ORBIS project was an ideal opportunity to develop this type of cooperation on an international level. We believe that this kind of partnership is the key to success,” says Pavel Šebek, Development Director of Zentiva. “Meeting other experts with different backgrounds is very enriching. It is always interesting to hear about the experience of others and discover new original approaches to R&D. These events are always a great motivation,” says Nikita Marinko, a young and talented scientist from Zentiva who took part at this year’s ORBIS School and was part of the organizational team that took care of all the participants.

Out of all four ORBIS schools which have been held so far, two of them – the second one and this one (the fourth one) – have been co-organized by Zentiva. In September 2019, in collaboration with the University of Helsinki, Zentiva organized the school covering the design of pharmaceutical dosage forms and the manufacturing processes, whereas novel bio-relevant analytical approaches used in the characterization of dosage forms have been covered this September in Prague. Both schools were particularly based on academic findings combined with real-life examples, such applied scientific approaches being appreciated by all participants.

The high number of attendees confirmed the strength of the ORBIS scientific network and focus on innovative approaches to meet currently unmet patient needs.

About ORBIS – Open Research Biopharmaceutical Internships Support (Maria Skłodowska-Curie Actions of Horizon 2020 Framework Programme, H2020-MSCA-RISE-2017)

The overarching objective of ORBIS is to form an international and inter-sectoral academic and industrial network. The action is aimed at improving the preclinical pathway of medicine development concentrating on processes and technologies. The goal is to integrate multidisciplinary research by involving the academia and the industry from EU (Poland, Ireland, Finland, Germany, and the Czech Republic), EU associated countries (Ukraine) and US. The coordinator of the project is Prof. Janina Lulek from Poznan University of Medical Sciences (Poland).