Research & Development
The Pharmaceutical Research Institute (PRI) is Bristol-Myers Squibb’s research and development organisation. We invest £1.5 billion in research and development (R&D) annually and dedicate 5,600 staff to the discovery and development of new compounds.

PRI in the UK
Moreton, on the Wirral peninsula, is the base for R&D activities in the UK, where we employ over 100 people (click here to see our locations). Moreton plays a significant role in pharmaceutical development for the PRI. This centre contributes to the formulation, analysis and supply of clinical trial materials for newly discovered medicines, as well as enhancing the use of more established ones through the creation of specialised drug delivery systems. Several dozen new product patents have emerged from the PRI at Moreton over the last 20 years and many new treatments have seen the light of day because of the development work carried out there. Moreton has been involved in the late-stage development of several of Bristol-Myers Squibb’s significant recent launches, including Abilify® and Reyataz®.

Drug development
Moreton undertakes a large amount of drug chemistry, manufacturing and control activities for Bristol-Myers Squibb. This allows the undertaking of clinical trials to ensure compounds have the efficacy and favourable safety profiles to ensure their widespread use by doctors. From an industry standard of 50% in 2000, the PRI now sees 80% of potential medicines entering clinical trials.

Hope for the future
One of the most exciting areas of drug development at the PRI globally is oncology. The introduction of new technologies, combined with advances in genomics and biochemistry, have generated an explosive growth in cancer research. Our hope is that the next few years will yield the fruits of decades of cancer research, with new classes of medicine being created that are able to fight aggressive and previously drug-resistant tumours.

An interesting area of recent investment is our rapidly developing biologics capability. This new generation of medicines consists of large-molecule proteins that are engineered from biological sources rather than chemically synthesised. This field of research is becoming more important for better targeting of diseases and as scientists apply new understanding of disease processes to increasingly tailored treatments.