Pitt is collaborating with a French company to find diagnostic solutions for infectious diseases

From the polio vaccine to the EMT profession, many notable medical advancements have come out of the University of Pittsburgh. With a French biotech company on board, the university’s leadership hopes that will continue to be true.

The University of Pittsburgh and bioMérieux have entered into a strategic partnership with the goal of developing more diagnostic solutions for patients with infectious diseases.

Research and development partnerships, aka R&D, are formed to develop new products and services.

Over three years, the biotech company’s analytical and sequencing team will collaborate with the university’s Division of Clinical Microbiology and Division of Infectious Diseases, creating what bioMérieux EVP of research and development François Lacoste called a “privileged relationship” with Pitt clinicians, researchers and ICU department.

“These interactions are indeed invaluable for shaping future innovative diagnostic solutions for infectious diseases, ultimately contributing to improving patient health,” Lacoste said.

The overarching goal of this partnership is to drive science and develop innovative solutions, Paul-Valentin Pitou, associate director of Pitt’s Office of Industry & Economic Partnerships, told Technical.ly.

Once the project starts, scientists from the university’s faculty will meet with the company’s staff to discuss new experiments and the science behind them until the project reaches its objectives.

For the time being, Pitou said, since this is the first research project involving the Divisions of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, only faculty members are permitted to be involved in the partnership. Yet partnerships can evolve, so there could be room for student involvement down the line.

“If this first collaboration is successful, bioMérieux may be interested in student internships and in locating some of their scientists on campus in a longer-term perspective, if there is enough research activity between our institutions, etc. It’s too early to tell,” Pitou said. “These discussions will start happening naturally as both parties become more and more comfortable with each other.”

Ultimately, the Pitt director said, the relationship between the company and Pitt is a mutually beneficial one that both parties hope can lead to scientific breakthroughs and advancements.

“There is an exchange of knowledge between the industry partner and our scientists [faculty]: They both learn from each other. The collaboration may lead to scientific breakthroughs with real-life impacts,” Pitou said. “And the master agreement with bioMérieux paves the way for additional collaborations in research areas of mutual interest — it’s a signal that both parties are committed to collaborating with each other, in the short- and hopefully long-term.”

Atiya Irvin-Mitchell is a 2022-2024 corps member for Report for America, an initiative of The Groundtruth Project that pairs young journalists with local newsrooms. This position is supported by the Heinz Endowments.