Merck Discovering Novel Medicines

Merck & Co., Inc.

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Dennis Choi, M.D., Ph.D. Executive Vice President, Neurosciences Merck Research Laboratories

A scientific revolution is underway-especially in the neurosciences-and it's being driven by an explosion of new information and technology

“I left academia to join Merck because I wanted the personal fulfillment of being part of a drug-development team whose work directly impacts patients.” With those words, Dennis Choi, M.D., Ph.D., describes the desire that prompted him to leave a tenured position as head of the Department of Neurology at Washington University in St. Louis in 2002 to head Merck’s neuroscience research efforts. Dr. Choi joined a Company with a rich history of turning cutting-edge science into novel medicines that represent true advances in patient care.
     Since the founding of Merck Research Laboratories seven decades ago, Merck has discovered and developed more than 100 new medicines and vaccines. From anti-inflammatories to antibiotics and from cholesterol medicines to one of the first protease inhibitors for HIV/AIDS, Merck discoveries often changed the way medicine is practiced. Today, our scientists are working to build upon that tradition of innovation. In our pipeline are potential treatments for depression and HIV/AIDS as well as vaccines against herpes zoster (shingles), rotavirus (which causes infant diarrhea and dehydration) and human papillomavirus (a cause of cervical cancer). We’re also focusing on new therapeutic areas for Merck, including neurological diseases, cancer, diabetes and obesity.
     Innovation is evident not only in our pipeline, but in the profound shift in how we’re developing medicines today. We’re improving our innovation capabilities by harnessing new technologies, including molecular profiling and brain mapping. And we’re expanding our efforts to develop external alliances to access research being done outside the Company. Over the past several years, we have entered into more than one hundred external arrangements, gaining access to new drug prospects and new technologies for discovering and developing drugs.
     Our research capabilities are being expanded further by locating new laboratories in geographic centers of scientific excellence, such as San Diego, Seattle and Boston. When our new research facility in Boston is complete in 2004, Merck will have a global research network spanning 11 major sites in seven countries. That global reach–along with the other enhancements to our research efforts–will help further our ongoing quest to improve patient care worldwide.

'Early clinical testing will help us bring the most promising compounds forward for testing in large-scale clinical trials. The goal is to get new medicines to the people who need them, as soon as possible.' Dennis Choi