GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson invest in $100m new Alzheimer’s R&D project

Initiated by the UK Government, the $100m Dementia Discovery Fund will get investment from Alzheimer’s Research UK, together with pharmaceutical companies including GSK, JNJ, Biogen Idec and Eli Lilly.

In this project, GSK and JNJ have made investments of $25m and $10m respectively, with the government donating $22m and Alzheimer’s Research UK to invest $5m over five years.

Dementia is a brain disease that causes a long term and often gradual decrease in the ability to think and remember and it poses a serious threat to public health and healthcare systems across the world.

GSK Pharmaceutical R&D president Patrick Vallance said: "This Fund is a really smart way of bringing together great minds and communally increasing our understanding of dementia.

"It’s also a good way of sharing the financial risk associated with conducting drug discovery research in this field.

"As well as the $25m contribution we’ve announced today, we can bring GSK’s neurosciences expertise to this novel venture, which, combined with that of other partners, puts us in a good position to invest in some potentially exciting new therapies."

Alzheimer’s Research UK head of Policy Dr Matthew Norton said: "The Discovery Fund will bring much needed new money into dementia research, but importantly also represents a new way of doing things.

"It will ensure some of the best minds in commercial drug discovery focus their efforts on dementia, widening the breadth of focus in the area and increasing our chances of success."

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 44 million people across the world suffer from dementia and the number is expected to double by 2030 and more than triple by 2050.