Boehringer Ingelheim and China Southeast University to work together on hearing loss treatments

In late November, Boehringer and China Southeast University announced the start of their joint research project to develop new treatment approaches for hearing loss based on regeneration of hair cells from inner ear stem cells. The project will be supported by the expertise of Professor Renjie Chai, one of the leading researchers in the field of hearing loss. Boehringer Ingelheim will bring its expertise in drug discovery and clinical development, with the aim of developing new treatment options for this currently non-treatable condition.

“Professor Renjie Chai and his team are among the world leaders in this emerging research area. We are excited about initiating this collaboration, which is an important next step towards a new focus area for our research and development and our first human pharma research collaboration in China,” said Clive R. Wood, PhD, Senior Corporate Vice President, Discovery Research at Boehringer Ingelheim, in a press release.

He added that the project is in line with one of the focus areas of the company’s Research Beyond Borders initiative. He said that this is a good example of how this initiative will boost the group’s R&D through partnerships with innovative scientists working in various areas of biomedical research.

“Through this joint project with Boehringer Ingelheim, a world leading innovative pharmaceutical company, we wish to further promote scientific development in the field of hair cell regeneration, and to accelerate the translation of basic science into clinical applications. The current collaboration will demonstrate the regulation mechanism of inner ear stem cells, and we hope to develop insights for targeting the key pathways via small molecule compounds together with Boehringer Ingelheim,” commented Dr Wei Xie, Dean of China Southeast University Institute of Life Sciences.