Research and Development are the life blood of Novartis. For more than 100 years, the company has pursued top-notch pharmaceutical research to find new treatment options for a broad spectrum of diseases.

Treating diseases has evolved substantially over the last few decades as pharmaceutical companies are increasingly focusing on the development of drug that also help patients to markedly improve their quality of life.

In a world in which scientific knowledge is advancing rapidly, collaboration between different research areas is becoming increasingly important. Hence, nurturing a culture of collaboration is paramount.

Having developed one of the first personalized cancer treatments in the world more than 20 years ago, Novartis is relentlessly investing time and money to develop increasingly efficient treatments to find cures against cancer.

Personalized medicines have come a long way since they first appeared two decades ago. One of the latest breakthroughs are radioligand therapies that can harness nuclear power in the fight against cancer.

Although art and science are often understood as opposites – the one being exact, the other being free in its form – both share a vital touching point as art and science try to reveal the unknown.

The rise of artificial intelligence, which has accelerated around 2015 when Google’s AlphaGo made a massive breakthrough in the gaming space, was the start of an AI frenzy, which has not stopped since. Novartis has embraced this development from the start.

How can research and development be accelerated? This issue of live magazine looks at some of the most recent projects at Novartis in which collaboration and communication between different units have made a big difference.

Even as Novartis is racing ahead in areas such as gene and radioligand therapy and is working on new medicines based on RNA technology, the company remains fully committed to traditional research avenues such as medicinal chemistry and natural products research, two of the fundamental pillars of the pharmaceutical industry.

The first in a three-part series about the key technology platforms of Novartis, this issue of live magazine takes an in-depth look at chemical biology. Among others, we look at research in the kidney organoid space, cryo-EM technology as well as targeted protein degradation.

With the Pavillon, Novartis is opening up to society. The futuristic building was designed as a place of encounter and dialogue. Multimedia exhibitions such as “Wonders of Medicine” make research an exciting experience.

The site of the former French chemical factory Ugine Kuhlmann, which was contaminated with the insecticide lindane, was remediated over a period of around 10 years. Novartis assumed the costs of several hundred million Swiss francs to free the site, which is located on the banks of the Rhine, of toxic chemicals.

From a knight’s residence to an industrial site: Basel’s Klybeck quarter has experienced many changes. With the transformation of the industrial site into a completely redesigned residential and commercial area, another significant step is about to be taken.

The Novartis Campus is a place for new ideas and perspectives. Here, the medicine of the future is being developed to help patients live longer and better lives. Since October 2022, the site has also been open to the public.

Clean energy alone is not enough. Novartis is also working intensively on holistic concepts to avoid waste and develop electricity-saving strategies.

1:1 with the leading voices of Novartis.

Since the founding of its predecessor companies more than 250 years ago, Novartis has continually evolved. From a local trading firm, it developed into a global dye and chemical production company. Today, Novartis is a pure-play pharmaceutical company.

Natural substances such as ergotamine built the foundation of pharmaceutical research at Novartis. Scientist Arthur Stoll built the department and led it to success. Today, natural substances are still of great importance for drug development.

Sickle cell anemia is a hereditary disease, particularly widespread in Africa, triggered by a genetic defect. Affected individuals suffer from anemia, oxygen deficiency and organ damage. Besides a patient program, which aims to provide access to therapies in low-income countries, Novartis is also researching a gene therapy to cure this disease.

Despite being treatable, malaria kills hundreds of thousands of people each year, most of them children. Novartis is leveraging partnership projects, as well as AI and other technologies to combat this disease.

Novartis has been on the forefront of gene therapy research since its creation. Once the domain of a few specialized clinics, these therapies are growing in popularity but are still challenging to discover and develop. With the goal to make them more accessible, Novartis is going beyond gene therapies as treatments for rare or monogenic diseases for just a small number of patients.

Heart disease is one of the world's greatest health burdens, killing nearly 18 million people each year. Innovative medicines are only part of the solution; initiatives and outreach programs are equally important to improve health outcomes.

With many people still lacking access to essential medicines and healthcare, leaning on new technologies, empowering the next generation of healthcare leaders, and partnering for innovative outreach projects are fast-tracking solutions for this global challenge.