To Expedite Biopharma R&D in Russia, CIS and Emerging Markets, VR Foundation Joins Forces With National Leader in Clinical Diagnostics and Health-IT Developer

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Vitiligo Research Foundation

Nov 02, 2013, 03:00 ET

New York (PRWEB) November 02, 2013 -- VR Foundation, InVitro and Carbon Valley today announced a collaborative project to create a nation-wide, federated biobank and medical data collection network in Russia. This will be the largest ever coordinated effort aimed at collection of comprehensive data sets for biomedical R&D.

Dubbed PROJECT 2020, it was presented today to the Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and other high-profile visitors of the “Open Innovations Expo and Forum” at the Skolkovo Foundation pavilion, featured among 18 carefully selected projects in health IT. As one of the central annual events in the sphere of innovative development, the Forum brings together representatives of Russian and international venture capital funds, governmental organizations, key economic institutions, science and specialist communities, between October 31 and November 2, 2013.

PROJECT 2020 is an economically sustainable health-IT platform for clinical and translational research, biobanking and biomarker-based discovery that delivers a holistic view of multiple, large and disparate data sources. It aims to become a platform for a nation-wide biobanking network in Russia, to automatically capture and analyze Real World Data relating to all aspects of healthcare, including diagnosis, medication, treatment, laboratory test results, imaging data and self-reported user data.

InVitro is the largest network of clinical labs in Russia, with 500+ locations nation-wide, delivering over 1,000 types of tests to 5 million patients annually. InVitro has recently established a venture fund to finance experimental technologies and projects. It’s newest subsidiary, “3D Bioprinting Solutions”, has been tasked with exploring 3-D bioprinting, such as kidneys, which promises to revolutionize medicine.

The federated biobanking model was adopted and further developed by the VR Foundation for R&D into the neglected skin disease vitiligo. Its disease-specific biobank consists of the principal location in Moscow and a number of participating biobanks in seven key regions. They hold collections of biosamples along with clinical profiles of vitiligo patients and annotations on the efficacy of vitiligo therapy in combination with different drugs.

Carbon Valley is a developer of software products and SaaS for the worldwide healthcare industry. It will provide its proprietary bio-IT platform CLOUD BANK as the technology solution for granulated clinical data aggregation and patient management. This platform includes a baseline health profile, several disease-specific templates, lab and biosample trackers, and a search interface that enables authorized users to search for biomaterial according to the standardized biobank data set, as defined by ACGT Minimum Data Set.

This collaboration will result in interactive, web-based analytics and assessment tools that integrate and translate the vast amount of health data from the federated biobank, patient-centered EHR, and mobile applications of project participants to support drug development, drug repositioning and biopharma decision making.

Says Yan Valle, CEO VR Foundation: "Collected samples and comprehensive data-sets will be made available to the scientific community and research organizations investigating pathogeneses, and developing diagnostics and new treatments in rare diseases."

Websites:

About the Vitiligo Research Foundation

The VR Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit, disease-specific foundation. As the nation's only organization addressing every phase of vitiligo treatment development, the VRF works with a diverse group of support organizations and individuals to achieve measurable and timely results. When it comes to finding a cure for vitiligo, VRF expects to make a difference in our lifetime.

Contact:
Yan Valle
CEO, Vitiligo Research Foundation
1, Penn Plaza #6205, New York, NY
1-855-966-3555

Yan Valle, Vitiligo Research Foundation, +18559663555, [email protected]