A new Paediatric Research Infrastructure (RI) is about to enter into the European scenario of the Paediatric Research. The European Paediatric Translational Research Infrastructure (EPTRI), in fact, was funded within the H2020 – INFRADEV – 01 – 2017 programme and has recently kicked-off its activities. This new RI has been designed with the aim to cover the following main pillars:
- to harness efficiency and delivery of paediatric research activities and services strengthening collaboration within the scientific paediatric community;
- to be a complementary RI in the context of the existing RIs covering the current gaps, while avoiding any duplication;
- to contribute to a one-stop-shop for advice in paediatric drug development;
- to develop a paediatric research infrastructure facility collaborating with already established Research Infrastructures and Common Services.
The challenge is to enhance technology-driven paediatric research in drug discovery and early development phases to be translated into clinical research and paediatric use of medicines. For the first time, the aim is also to provide support to and promote the paediatric research starting from the first phases of the drug development process, by creating a “paediatric common service” that will be complementary in the context of the existing RIs and will try to cover the current gaps in paediatric medicines.
In the context of the paediatric research, many relevant sectors are strongly represented in scientific literature; nevertheless, competencies in paediatric drug discovery and development are not linked and not used to work together. In paediatrics, several islands need to be linked together and require a successful network as bridge between them. For this reason, EPTRI intends to share understanding of patients’ needs and concerted efforts in critical areas of the paediatric research. In this context, TEDDY can give a relevant contribute to the development of the ideas and the actions underpinning the new paediatric infrastructure. It can provide its experience in promoting paediatric research and offer methodological expertise and tools to plan, design, and perform paediatric studies. Moreover, TEDDY’s commitment in encouraging the participation of children in all relevant experimental procedures and in exploiting the knowledge of their needs to improve the paediatric research process could represent an added value for EPTRI activities. Overall, EPTRI represents a new opportunity of cooperation for TEDDY and a new possibility to join the efforts to remedy to the serious lack of medicines for children in EU and worldwide.