What is Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation?
Established in 2010, Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation (CTI) was founded on the notion that our current scientific and global health challenges are too complex for any one player in the healthcare ecosystem to solve alone. We believe that collaboration is critical to success. CTI collaborates with academic institutions and investigators to push forward great science, using the depth and breadth of the Pfizer enterprise to accelerate concepts into viable therapies with breakthrough potential for patients.
What is Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation?
Established in 2010, Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation (CTI) was founded on the notion that our current scientific and global health challenges are too complex for any one player in the healthcare ecosystem to solve alone. We believe that collaboration is critical to success. CTI collaborates with academic institutions and investigators to push forward great science, using the depth and breadth of the Pfizer enterprise to accelerate concepts into viable therapies with breakthrough potential for patients.
CTI focuses on accessing cutting-edge science and innovative discoveries aligned with Pfizer’s current core research areas of Oncology, Inflammation & Immunology, Rare Diseases, Vaccines, and Internal Medicine with a strategic focus on the highly novel pan-therapeutic areas including RNA, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Biomolecular Condensates, Senescence, Repeat Expansion Disorders and DNA Damage Response.
Pfizer’s Centers for Therapeutic Innovation was born out of the need for a more dedicated collaboration vehicle with academia—recognizing that great science takes place anywhere in the world, both inside and outside the walls of Pfizer. Take a closer look at how this open innovation model supports collaboration between Pfizer scientists and academic investigators, helping to translate promising, early-stage scientific concepts into clinical candidates.
Recent Publications
Lewis Cantley, Ph.D.
Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medical College, Professor of Cancer Biology in Medicine
At CTI, there is a free exchange of information and the ability to bring in expertise from all parts of the company. You’re not just collaborating with one person in a company or even one division. We really shared it all in play – and it was quite unique. I can’t say there’s been any other collaboration I’ve been a part of with that level of accessibility and openness.
Clare Ozawa, Ph.D.
Managing Director, Versant Ventures
CTI’s efforts are synergistic with other models of advancing innovative science such as through venture capital. CTI uniquely progresses therapeutic discovery across numerous diseases by tapping into the breadth and depth of Pfizer’s significant drug discovery and development capabilities.
How it Works
CTI pursues breakthrough science at the earliest stages. We offer industry-leading drug development expertise combined with the infrastructure of a large biopharmaceutical company in an open, collaborative environment. Once we identify promising research, we work with academic investigators to navigate the challenges inherent in early translational science through hands-on support from subject matter experts across Pfizer and through our network in the broader life science community. Our most successful, enduring relationships rely on close collaboration between scientists. CTI assigns a scientific champion for each investigator and project, who understands and manages the project needs, and coordinates access to Pfizer’s global capabilities and scale to deliver optimal outcomes.
This is an exciting moment in R&D as the opportunity for scientific and medical advancement may never have been greater. CTI’s collaborative model deploys Pfizer R&D resources where breakthrough science is happening at the earliest stages, leveraging the full Pfizer enterprise to translate therapeutic hypotheses from academic collaborators into viable therapeutics. Building and expanding upon our visionary model for translational research, we have built a network of ongoing relationships with dozens of top-tier academic institutions globally.
In order to create equitable collaborations, CTI has established a model “Participation Agreement”, developed in conjunction with our early academic collaborators, under which joint drug discovery research programs with an academic institution sits. Projects are executed via Statements of Work that are governed by the Participation Agreement. If a Participation Agreement is not in place with your institution, CTI has several other contracting mechanisms to bring collaborative programs in.
Projects usually commence when a PI proposes a target that is ripe for mounting a drug discovery effort, and then progress collaboratively towards and into the clinic. To date, CTI has progressed 8 drug candidates to the clinic, of which 4 are in Phase II and 3 are in Phase I.
Areas of Interest
Inflammation & Immunology
Inflammation & Immunology
• Novel targets and mechanism to induce tolerance in autoimmunity, e.g. modulation of Mregs, Bregs, tolerogenic APCs
• Novel platforms to modulate undruggable targets, e.g. splicing modifiers, transcription factor targeting
• Novel mechanisms to target therapeutics to the gut
Not actively seeking partnering opportunities in:
• TNFα, IL-1ß targeting biologics
• B cell depleting biologics
• Corticosteroids
Internal Medicine
Internal Medicine
• Novel mechanisms and/or human genetic approaches to target heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), vascular dysfunction and lymphatic dysfunction
• New mechanisms and pathways for the treatment of diabetic nephropathy or chronic kidney disease, founded on evidence from human pathophysiology and/or genetics
• Mechanisms addressing cachexia associated with chronic disease and aging
Not actively seeking partnering opportunities in:
• Nutraceutical approaches to muscle growth and function
Oncology
Oncology
• Alteration of tumor evolution to prevent drug treatment resistance: Seeking targets involved in cancer cell mutagenesis, drivers of lineage plasticity, and the emergence of drug tolerant persister cells
• Transcription Factors: Novel oncogenic transcription factors and their complexes, as well as new mechanisms for their modulation
Not actively seeking partnering opportunities in:
• antibody-drug conjugates, rare tumor indications
Vaccines
Infectious Disease Vaccines
Infectious Disease Vaccines
• Protective cell mediated response to bacterial or viral infections
• Emerging virus threats
• Bacterial pathogens (e.g. Chlamydia trachomatis, Staphylococcus aureus
Not actively seeking partnering opportunities in:
• RNA vaccine strategies for Flu, COVID-19, RSV
Rare Disease
Rare Disease
Novel concepts for the cause and/or treatment of the following therapeutic areas:
Neurological Disease
• DNA repeat expansion diseases.
• Genetic subtypes of: ALS/FTD, DIAD, PD, Epilepsies and Neurometabolic Diseases (e.g., Lysosomal Storage Disorders)
Cardiac Disease
• Rare inherited Dilated, Arrhythmogenic and Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
• Rare Heart Rhythm Disorders
• Peri-partum Cardiomyopathy, shared mechanisms with Eclampsia, Pre-eclampsia
Endocrine/Metabolic Disease
• Inborn errors of metabolism
Not actively seeking partnering opportunities in:
• cell-based therapies
Weining Lu, MD
Associate Professor of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston University Medical Center
CTI embodies the first-of-its-kind industry and academia collaboration model. Working with CTI, I’ve learned significantly more in terms of drug development. I have worked closely with CTI scientists, who have come to my office and helped map out next steps together from the very first step of proposal submission. This collaboration continues to be one of the best in my career.
Our Collaborators
Our Collaborators
Building and expanding on our visionary model for early translational research CTI has built an ever-evolving global network of ongoing relationships with dozens of academic medical centers and investigators. We work uniquely with academic investigators to navigate the challenges inherent in early translational science through hands-on support from industry experts across Pfizer. Our collaborators represent notable academic institutions where pioneering principal investigators (PIs) with promising potential drug programs are based. Most of our collaborating institutions are based near our CTI labs in Cambridge, MA, New York City, San Francisco and San Diego, however we also have successful collaborations with other institutions across the US and across the globe.
Daniel De Carvalho, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre Associate Professor, Department of Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Neoplasms
Academic research and industry research are often disconnected, potentially delaying the translation of fundamental discoveries and novel biology into new medicines and therapies. CTI provides a very unique bridge that allows academic and industry researches to work together. This bridge is based on a clear collaboration roadmap, openness and aligned goals. It is an environment with the best of both worlds, where academic researchers bring new ideas and tools while Pfizer researchers bring their vast expertise in drug discovery. It is also a great opportunity for academic trainees to interact with industry in a very collaborative and hands-on experience. My collaboration with CTI is one of best I ever had.
Benedikt Kessler, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Mass Spectrometry, University of Oxford
Our experience of working with CTI is unique in that our scientific champions at Pfizer are extremely dedicated and passionate about pursuing the feasibility and detailed biology of a potential drug target candidate. I have been very impressed by the professionalism, experimental power and resourcefulness that our CTI collaborators have shown in the course of our joint work, allowing to move forward at a fast pace. Also, there is a high level of trust in sharing novel ideas and scientific concepts between colleagues across this pharma - academia working group . This way of working together is fun - real drug co-discovery collaborative research.
Submit a Proposal
Instructions for Submission:
Before submitting your proposal directly to the portal, please connect with a Pfizer representative for review. When ready to submit on the portal, please click the Register/Log In button on the top right of the screen. Log in using your user ID and password.
If you have not logged in before, select Request an Account complete the information required, and a member of our team will verify your details and provide access to the system. Once logged in, you will have access to the Pre-proposal Dashboard where you can create and monitor the status of submitted pre-proposals.
Please note that investigators must use the approved Pre-proposal Template that can be downloaded here. Once the Investigator has finalized the application, click Create a New Pre-proposal. Fill in all the fields on the page, then attach the completed template at the top of the screen, and select “submit”. If you forgot your password, please select Reset password and an email will be sent to you.
If your institution is not listed or need help connecting with a Pfizer representative, please contact us at [email protected].
Meet the Leadership
Uwe Schoenbeck
Chief Scientific Officer
As Head of Pfizer’s Emerging Sciences & Innovation (ES&I) organization and Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) for CTI, Uwe is responsible for setting the scientific priorities for CTI and driving a strategy of pursuit of breakthrough science through innovative partnerships aligned with Pfizer’s Worldwide Research, Development & Medical goals.
Learn more
Uwe Schoenbeck, Ph.D.
Chief Scientific Officer
Emerging Science & Innovation (ES&I)
Senior Vice President, Pfizer Worldwide Research, Development & Medical
Uwe Schoenbeck leads Pfizer’s Emerging Science & Innovation (ES&I) team. Part of Worldwide Research, Development & Medical, ES&I is charged with enhancing Pfizer’s pipeline through translation of external emerging science into breakthrough therapies for patients. Through the dedicated outreach to academia, consortia and biotech via its Emerging Science Liaisons located around the globe, ES&I works across Pfizer’s Therapeutic Areas to harness external cutting edge preclinical assets and breakthrough technologies applying a broad range of partnering vehicles, including research collaborations, consortia, licensing, acquisitions. With its Pfizer Innovation team ES&I also engages in equity investments as well as seed investments and formation of new companies. Its Target Sciences team is focused on novel target and biology discovery research to introduce differentiated First-in-Class programs with enhanced confidence in rationale into the WRDM portfolio. And through its Centers for Therapeutic Innovation (CTI) ES&I prosecutes cutting edge science sourced from leading academic and medical centers globally, working in close partnership with external PIs and building an exciting pipeline across the range of Pfizer’s core areas. This end-to-end innovation capability aims to strengthen Pfizer’s research engine and provide key drivers for a pipeline of truly differentiated first-in-class assets as well as breakthrough technologies by effectively combining external innovation with internal drug development capabilities.
Uwe brings fifteen years of pharmaceutical drug development experience to Pfizer’s R&D executive leadership team. Prior to joining the company, he served as Vice President, Emerging R&D Innovation for Wyeth and Vice President, Cardiovascular Research for Boehringer Ingelheim. Before joining industry, he held an Assistant Professor of Medicine position at Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. He has served as a reviewer for multiple peer-reviewed journals and has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, review articles, book chapters and abstracts with particular contributions in molecular and cell biology, cardiovascular research, immunology and metabolism.
Sam O’Connor
Head, ES&I Business & Operations
As Head of Business and Operations for ES&I, Sam is responsible for defining and implementing the operational processes, and portfolio and alliance management practices to support the Emerging Sciences & Innovation business and research strategy which includes CTI.
Learn more
Samantha O’Connor, B.Sc (Hons), MBA
Head, Business and Operations
Emerging Science & Innovation (ES&I)
Vice President, Pfizer Worldwide Research, Development & Medical
Sam O’Connor joined CTI in 2014 to lead the strategic and operational functions for CTI at the time it was emerging from start-up phase into its growth trajectory for long term sustainability. In her role she has responsibility for the operational, portfolio and alliance management activities across the CTI network.
Sam trained as a molecular microbiologist prior to commencing her industrial career at Medicines Australia, the non-profit professional and trade association representing Australia's prescription pharmaceutical industry. She initially joined Pfizer to lead its first R&D investment program with the Australian medical research sector, a highly successful collaborative venture between Pfizer, the academic and biotech research community and the Australian Government. During her time in Australia, she also served as a Non-Executive Director on the National Board of Directors of AusBiotech, the non-profit association representing the Australian biotechnology industry.
Sam subsequently held a number of externally-facing roles within Pfizer’s UK and US operations, responsible for partnering efforts across Europe, Australasia and the USA. She has extensive experience in planning, negotiating and implementing license, collaboration and other agreements to acquire, divest or co-develop new therapies and technologies with a diverse range of parties including academia, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, patient-focused foundations, investors and governmental policy makers.
Having worked and studied in the public hospital sector, academia, biotech advocacy and pharma industry, Sam has a passionate belief in the essential and ever-growing role cross-sector and cross-functional partnerships play in driving innovation and the evolution of organizations for the benefit of humankind.
David Shields
Head, CTI
As Head of CTI labs, David leads the scientific teams based in CTI Boston (Cambridge, MA), New York City, South San Francisco, and San Diego and is responsible for the programs these labs lead in partnership with the academic and biotech communities.
Learn more
David Shields, Ph.D.
Head, Pfizer Centers for Therapeutic Innovation
Vice President, Emerging Science & Innovation (ES&I)
Pfizer Worldwide Research & Development
David Shields is the Head for the CTI labs in Manhattan (NY), Kendall Square (MA), South San Francisco (CA), and San Diego (CA) and leads CTI activities across the USA and Canada as well as Europe, and the APAC. Prior to joining CTI in 2017, David was Research Lead for the Pfizer Pediatric Oncology Team and the Director of Oncology Therapeutics Discovery in focus areas such as immuno-oncology, epigenetics and cell cycle biology. David has held Group Leader positions across portfolio stages at Pfizer from Target Discovery to Translational Research, led Combination and Resistance Strategy for Pfizer Oncology Research and directed pre-clinical translational support for assets such as Sutent (sunitinb), Inlyta (axitinib) and Ibrance (palbociclib).
David holds a BSc (Hons) in Biomedical Sciences from University College Cork, Ireland and a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Alberta, Canada. Subsequent to his graduate studies, David conducted post-doctoral training at The Scripps Research Institute and Moores UCSD Comprehensive Cancer Center. He has authored scientific publications in some of the highest impact journals and is the Pfizer Lead for the public/private ITCC-P4 Pediatric Oncology consortium project.
FAQs
CTI uniquely works with academic investigators to navigate the challenges inherent in early translational science through hands-on support from subject matter experts across Pfizer. We offer industry-leading drug development expertise combined with the infrastructure of a large biopharmaceutical company in an open, collaborative environment. Our most successful, enduring partnerships rely on close collaboration between scientists. For example:
- Our joint project teams create focused research plans based on agreed-upon scientific goals and deliverables, supported by complementary expertise of the investigator and Pfizer researchers throughout the length of the project.
- We offer the opportunity to work alongside our researchers in our labs in New York, California (San Francisco and San Diego) and Cambridge, MA to nurture joint decision-making, learning opportunities and relationship-building.
- CTI assigns a scientific champion for each investigator and project, who understands and manages the project needs, and coordinates access to Pfizer’s global resources, expertise and capabilities to deliver optimal outcomes. Our scientists actively engage from project conception to exit, ensuring hands-on support and transparent decision-making.
CTI takes a staged approach to collaboration to alleviate as much of the burden on the academic institution and investigator as possible. The first stage of the process is for a potential collaborator to discuss their potential idea with a Pfizer representative. Once reviewed investigators should submit a brief, two to three page non-confidential pre-proposal to CTI via our portal. Please note that investigators must use the approved Pre-proposal Template.
Pre-proposals pass through an initial triage phase to determine whether they are aligned with CTI’s areas of interest. Those that pass this triage are reviewed by a cross-functional committee represented by experts from across Pfizer’s Research Units and Partner Lines, such as Drug Safety, Chemistry, and BioMedicine Design. This committee will assess the feasibility of mounting a drug discovery program in the proposed research area, working with the relevant academic institution to determine which pre-proposals will progress to full proposal drafting.
Read more about what Pfizer's Chemistry and BioMedicine Design teams look for when evaluating pre-proposals.
Are you a Principal Investigator?
Contact your institution’s business or Tech Transfer Office (TTO) to find out if your institution is part of the CTI network. If so, they will be able to help you submit a pre-proposal for review. If your institution is not a part of the CTI network, please contact us at [email protected].
Are you in the business office / TTO of an academic institution?
In order to submit a proposal on the CTI website please click Register / Log In on the top right of the screen. Log in using your user ID and password.
If you have not logged in before, select Request an Account, complete the information required, and a member of our team will verify your details and provide access to the system. Once logged in, you will have access to the Pre-proposal Dashboard where you can create and monitor the status of submitted pre-proposals.
Please note that investigators must use the approved Pre-proposal Template that can be downloaded from the Pre-proposal Dashboard. Once the Investigator has finalized the application, click Create a New Pre-proposal. Fill in all the fields on the page, then attach the completed template at the top of the screen, and select “submit”. If you forgot your password, please select Reset password and an email will be sent to you.
Non-confidential pre-proposals must be submitted through your business / Tech Transfer Office (TTO) representative who will submit to the CTI portal on your behalf. If your TTO is unable to submit in this way, please ask them to contact us at [email protected]. If you are unable to reach your TTO, please contact us at [email protected]
Funding:
- CTI provides funding for joint research plans to support the activities being conducted in the PI’s lab. Research progression is tied to clear pre-defined go/no-go criteria at each stage, rather than a pre-defined length of time or a pre-defined amount of funding.
Intellectual Property:
- Each party retains ownership of the background IP it brings to the research program
- Each party grants to the other a non-exclusive, non-sublicensable license to use its background IP for the purposes of performing the research program
- Pfizer has the option to acquire an exclusive commercial license to the collaborator’s rights in IP generated during the research program and any background IP contributed to the research program
- For programs that successfully reach certain development milestones, Pfizer may exercise its option to take an exclusive license to any developed IP and background IP.
Confidentiality and Publications:
- During the research term, subject to customary carve-outs, neither Pfizer nor Participant may disclose the other party’s confidential information for the duration of, and for 5 years following the conclusion of, the research program. Confidential information includes a party’s background intellectual property, know-how, or other proprietary information or materials that have not been otherwise disclosed.
- Both parties have the right to publish findings from research programs. Prior to publishing, proposed disclosures must be reviewed by the other party to ensure that no confidential or patentable information is disclosed.
You do not need to have a master agreement in place to collaborate with CTI. However, please reach out to your institution’s business / Tech Transfer Office (TTO) to see if your institution has a CTI Participation Agreement. Otherwise, contact us at [email protected].
Pre-proposals pass through an initial triage phase to determine whether they are aligned with CTI’s areas of interest. Those that pass this triage are reviewed by a cross-functional committee represented by experts from across Pfizer’s Research Units and Partner Lines, such as Drug Safety, Chemistry, and BioMedicine Design. This committee will assess the feasibility of mounting a drug discovery program in the proposed research area, working with the relevant academic institution to determine which pre-proposals will progress to confidential full proposal writing.
Full proposals are co-drafted by the academic investigator and a CTI research leader. These are detailed research plans outlining the goals, activities and ‘go’/ ‘no go’ criteria for the proposed project. If accepted, the full proposal progresses to the execution of a Statement of Work and the project begins.
As with all scientific endeavors, projects may terminate for many different reasons. Should Pfizer decide not to advance jointly developed molecules, the parties can discuss alternatives for those research programs, including the possibility of licensing the IP to third parties. Academic research rights are protected within this collaboration.
Yes, there are multiple opportunities to partner with Pfizer in different ways. To learn more please visit: https://www.pfizer.com/partners.
Jeffrey Bluestone, Ph.D.
A.W. and Mary Margaret Clausen Distinguished Professor of Metabolism and Endocrinology and Director of the Hormone Research Institute in the Diabetes Center, University of California, San Francisco
Sometimes a project might not move forward – for any number of different reasons such as scientific or non-scientific concerns, but the project remains a promising idea and potentially viable, and the PI wishes to continue to explore, generating data that might be attractive to others, including Pfizer, down the road. So what makes CTI unique is that everyone wants to make sure that the investigator who was putting their heart and soul into the project is left with enabling tools to continue to advance the project. That is one of the main reasons I’ve continued to stay engaged with CTI over so many years, the relationship is really a partnership.