An Irish pharmaceutical firm has secured over €5.6m in funding for research into treatment of critically ill newborn babies.
BrePco Biopharma secured the €5.66m in conjunction with a consortium of research centres led by Cork University Maternity Hospital.
The research will be into the treatment of hypotension, a condition which affects premature babies.
The aim of the trial is to develop a ready-to-use, licensed and approved treatment designed specifically for premature babies.
'As this is a European and North American project being sponsored by an Irish company, it speaks volumes about the strength of our indigenous pharmaceutical industry and what we can offer to a global audience,' said BrePco chairman Paul Breen.
'Just to add to this, of the eight clinical trial sites, four of them are based in Ireland - more proof of that strength.'
The trial's lead doctor stressed the importance of developing a treatment for premature babies.
'There is a pressing need to develop an appropriately licensed medical treatment for the paediatric population and in particular for the most vulnerable, the preterm infant,' said Dr Eugene Dempsey, consultant neonatologist in the Cork University Maternity Hospital and chief investigator for the trial.
'The current treatment that is available presents challenges within the intensive care unit and so, together with a consortia of experts including neonatologists, pharmacologists, neurophysiologists, developmental specialists we are seeking to bridge that gap in medical care.'
The programme is being funded in part by the European Commission's Healthcare FP7 Programme.
If successful the company will be eligible for a 10-year regulatory exclusivity in the European Union.
Dosing in the trial is expected to start in the autumn.
