TcLand Expression joins EU rheumatology public-private partnership project

TcLand Expression, a leading company focused on gene expression biomarkers in immunology and personalized medicine, today is pleased to announce its participation in the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) project “Be The CURE”. The consortium is coordinated by academic leaders Pr. Lars Klareskog from the Karolinska Institute and Pr. Tom Huizinga from Leiden University Medical Center, as well as by Dr Neil Gozzard, UCB Pharma SA, on behalf of the industrial partners.

More than 20 prominent research groups across Europe, as well as industrial partners (AstraZeneca AB, Boehringer Ingelheim International GMBH, Bristol Myers Squibb EMEA sarl, CENTOCOR B.V., F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, Merck, NovoNordisk A/S, Pfizer Limited, and UCB Pharma SA), will work together within the consortium to push forward the boundaries of knowledge in the field of Rheumatology.

TcLand Expression, the only SME partner within the consortium, will focus its efforts on “response to therapies”, a key area in which the company is already building expertise through its development of blood-based, transcriptional biomarkers for the prediction of response to biologics in rheumatoid arthritis.

“This is a unique opportunity for TcLand Expression to interact with renowned scientists and clinicians from academia and with the industry in the field of rheumatology. Joining forces in biomarkers and diagnostic development will promote personalized medicine into the clinic”, said Alessandra Cervino, VP of R&D and Biostatistics at TcLand Expression.

The early prediction of response to biologics is a major challenge in autoimmune diseases in general and in rheumatology in particular. This type of decision support will enable treatments to be matched to an individual patient's disease status.