Biocon Limited invested Rs.200 crore to open up its advanced integrated research and development centre located within the Biocon Park.

The company will now carry out all its in-house drug research activities focusing on chronic diseases like diabetes, cancer and auto immune. The company is now gearing up to hire an additional 300 scientists to deliver affordable innovation solutions.

“Our objective is to pursue world class research on biologics that will address the unmet medical needs, said Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, chairman and managing director, Biocon Limited.

The research centre spread across 200,000 sq. ft houses a molecular lab, biologics process science labs, formulations development lab, molecular characterization lab, functional bioassay lab and pre-clinical and clinical development, is a first-of-its-kind in South East Asia. It is equipped with cutting edge instrumentation for extensive molecular and functional characterization of biologics, she added.

The centre for research excellence will pursue an innovation-led effort to develop advanced yet affordable solutions for several debilitating diseases, said Shaw adding that it would help galvanize the best talent both in India and abroad. It would offer an intellectually stimulating environment combined with an enabling eco-system to conduct path breaking research for biopharmaceuticals. An independent quality group at BRC will ensure compliance to Good Laboratory Practices and international regulatory guidelines to develop ‘best in class’ biologics and biosimilars.

Now the company is emerging as a global biopharmaceutical major focused on innovation to develop affordable products and service for patients. Our strategic research and marketing partnerships will help deliver high value and licensable R&D assets. Present strength of the Biocon Research Centre (BRC) is 300 scientists but the facility has a total capacity for 600 researchers. Therefore massive hiring is on, she said.

According to Dr Abhijit Barve, president, R&D, Biocon, the facility will allow cross pollination of ideas across groups that will breed a new culture of innovation.

BRC will attract the outstanding scientists from the best research institutes and the leaders will participate in technical programmes as an effective way to enable innovation through knowledge sharing.

BRC has also a dedicated a research wing in honour of Prof. CNR Rao, Prof. C N R Rao, FRS, National Research Professor; Linus Pauling Research Professor; honorary president, JNCASR; chairman, Scientific Advisory Council to the Prime Minister of India.

The facility was inaugurated today by Nobel Laureate Prof. Kurt Wuthrich. Others present on the occasion where heads of the Indian Institute of Science, Prof. P Balaram, National Centre for Biological Sciences Prof. K Vijayraghavan and Prof. CNR Rao of JNCSAR.