Press release | Brno, Feb. 28, 2023
35 million EUR from EU and Czech Republic to etablishment of research centre focused on the development of
advanced cell and gene therapies
Thanks to €35 million funding from the European Union and the Czech Republic, Central European Advanced Therapy and
Immunotherapy Centre (CREATIC) will start its activities from 1 September 2023. CREATIC focuses on undiagnosed
untreatable rare diseases, paediatric patients with high-risk tumours, and adult cancer patients suitable for Advanced Theraphy
Medicinal Products (ATMP) treatment. The overall aim of CREATIC is to translate research and innovation (R&I) in cell and gene
therapies into clinical practice for the benefit of patients. CREATIC is based on a multidisciplinal approach, which will enable
the centre to navigate and be an leading actor in the paradigm shift from drug development for larger patient groups to
individualized treatment strategies - an approach which falls outside the scope and interests of the traditional pharmaceutical
industry.
CREATIC - the flagship institution in the Central Europe
Progress in biomedical science enables scientists to use a whole new toolbox to treat a significant group of diseases, such as
inherited rare diseases or diverse rare cancers. About 30 million EU citizens are affected by one of over 6000 rare diseases
currently recognised. Significant costs to public health stem in large part from the lack of transparency on R&D expenditures
and access and reimbursement concerns in respective EU countries. Advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), often
called “living drugs”, apply recent advances in genomics, cell biology, and gene editing to deliver truly personalised curative
options such as somatic-cell and gene therapies. Central European Advanced Therapy and Immunotherapy Centre (CREATIC)
will be established at Masaryk University in Brno. Apart from Masaryk University, the centre also includes core partners from
Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI, Leipzig University and University of Copenhagen. Together, they will
ensure that CREATIC becomes a role model and flagship institution in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region, providing
excellent gene and somatic cell research to create personalised ATMP Fair Medicine for the treatment of life-threatening or
chronically debilitating diseases that are currently considered incurable.
CREATIC – changing paradigms towards patients, society, and Fair Medicine
CREATIC will use the existing expertise at Masaryk University Advanced Cell Immunotherapy Unit (ACIU) in the research and
innovation (R&I) of somatic cell therapies, formally established in 2010. By including the expertise of CZECRIN a national node
of European Clinical Research Infrastructure Network (ECRIN-ERIC) and university hospitals, CREATIC will fulfil its vision of not
only delivering ambitious research, but also of delivering research results that directly benefits patients. CREATIC will become
the regional centre introducing the one-site medical services where clinical and scientific institutions work closely together to
reduce costs and geographical distances in the triangle patient–hospital–R&D institution. By detailing the costs and processes
associated with the development and treatment of ATMPs, regional and European policymakers will be able to benefit from
CREATIC to make evidence based regulatory and reimbursement decisions. As a whole, CREATIC will be able to offer patients
and society safer, individualized, unique, and financially sustainable treatments under the concept of Fair Medicine.
CREATIC – EU funding for teaming up with leading European scientific institutions
CREATIC is funded by a grant from the European Commission under the Horizon Europe Teaming for Excellence programme.
The funding scheme supports ambitious projects building European centres of excellence to strenghten EU R&I system where
best practice is disseminated faster across Europe. The total Teaming grant of almost €15 million will fundamentally upgrade
and extend ATMPs innovative breakthrough research beyond somatic cell therapies to gene therapies. Newly established 7
multidisciplinary research programmes will cover the whole ATMP life cycle – from research to treatment. To achieve this vision
over the 6 years of the project implementation, Masaryk University has teamed up with leading European research institutions
Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI, Leipzig University and University of Copenhagen. To accelerate
the translation of R&D results into patient-specific treatments, CREATIC will develop an ecosystem of collaborating institutions
covering national/European policy actors, healthcare payers, regulators, and patient organisations. Collaboration between key
actors will result in proposals for adjustments to legislative and regulatory conditions at national and European level. The
complementary national grant of €20 million provided by the Czech Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports enables the
building of a CREATIC facility within the campus of Masaryk University in Brno and equipping it with state-of-the-art
technology.
For more information about the CREATIC: https://creatic.muni.cz
For further information please contact: Tomas Chladek, tomas.chladek@med.muni.cz and PR specialist Mgr. Andrea
Holomková, andrea.holomkova@med.muni.cz