BioSim is a Network of Excellence established by the European Commission under its 6th Framework Programme. BioSim was initiated on December 1, 2004. The BioSim Network includes a total of 40 partners, of which 26 are academic research groups from various universities throughout Europe and 9 are small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).

Novo Nordisk is the only large industrial partner, and the Network also includes the regulatory agencies from Denmark, Holland, Sweden and Spain. The SMEs are involved in a wide range of different activities, from the development of modeling software to the test of new drug candidates.

Among the academic groups, half are primarily experimentally oriented, and the other half cover a broad range of modeling experiences.

The biological oriented groups represent insights into genetics, biochemistry, cellular biology, pharmacology, and various specialities of endocrinology and physiology, and the Network also encompasses hospital departments that perform experimental treatments of depression, various forms of tremor, and cancer.

Among the theoretical expertises that the Network covers are bioinformatics, systems biology and network theory, complex systems theory, pharmacokinetics, and trial planning.

This composition underlines the importance that the Network ascribes to a close collaboration between experimentally and theoretically working research groups. At the same time, several of the academic groups and of the SMEs individually maintain close collaborations with large pharmaceutical industries.

Fact-Sheet:

• Acronym: BioSim
• Scope: Biosimulation - A new Tool in Drug Development
• Location: Europe
• Coordinator: Prof. Erik Mosekilde
• Home Page: biosim-network.net
• Approx. budget: 10.7 million Euro
• Main Sponsoring Institution: European Commission