The Chinese government has allocated CNY 6.6 billion ($880 billion) to drug discovery and development. The program will select Chinese companies, universities and research institutes to develop drugs for 10 disease areas (malignant tumors, heart disease, cardiovascular systems ailments, nervous system diseases, diabetes, psychosis, autoimmune problems, drug resistant infections, viral infectious diseases and tuberculosis). The program, which will soon announce the recipients of funding, is being administered by the China National Center for Biotechnology Development and funded by the State Council. Organizations with an existing infrastructure for drug discovery will receive $730,000 for each drug candidate they develop. Organizations that establish drug discovery capabilities, including testing for safety and efficacy, will receive $29 million for each integrated project. The government expects to fund preclinical research for 100 compounds and to approve three investigational new drugs within three years.

Source: Chemical & Engineering News