Pfizer launches new competitive grants programme to advance cardiovascular disease research

Pfizer has launched a new competitive grants programme to support research projects investigating the role of Proprotein Convertase Subtilisin Kexin type 9 (PCSK9) in health and cardiovascular disease.

This competitive grants programme, which is an extension of the Advancing Science through Pfizer Investigator Research Exchange (ASPIRE) Cardiovascular programme, is part of Pfizer’s ongoing commitment to translate scientific discoveries into innovative medicines for patients with cardiovascular disease.

Pfizer currently is studying bococizumab, an investigational PCSK9 inhibitor, in a Phase 3 clinical trial program, known as SPIRE (Studies of PCSK9 Inhibition and the Reduction of vascular Events), for its potential to lower low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and improve cardiovascular outcomes.

Cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death worldwide, remains a global, public health issue despite many advances in treatment. The first annual ASPIRE Cardiovascular competitive grants programme will fund multiple grants of up to $100,000 each to support research designed to uncover new insights about the role of the PCSK9 protein/gene in health and disease.

ASPIRE research projects will contribute significantly to the next generation of potential therapies targeted to cardiovascular disease

“One of the most exciting new areas for scientific exploration in cardiovascular disease is focused on PCSK9,” stated Professor John Chapman, director emeritus of the Dyslipidemia and Atherosclerosis Research Unit of the National Institute for Health and Medical Research at the Pitié-Salpétrière University Hospital in Paris, France. “It is our earnest desire that the research projects selected will advance the current understanding of PCSK9 biology and in this way, contribute significantly to the next generation of potential therapies targeted to cardiovascular diseases.”

“Our development of the ASPIRE Cardiovascular competitive grants program aligns with a key area of focus for Pfizer: advancing the science, finding and developing new medicines that will treat – and ultimately may prevent – cardiovascular disease,” said Rory O’Connor, senior vice president, Global Medical Affairs, Global Innovative Pharmaceuticals Business, Pfizer Inc..

For more information about the ASPIRE Cardiovascular competitive grants programme, please visit www.aspireresearch.org.