Sechenov University and AstraZeneca to launch joint GMP Cell Technology Laboratory at SPIEF‑2026
On 4 June, at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF‑2026), Sechenov University and AstraZeneca signed a cooperation agreement in education and science. The partnership is aimed at achieving technological leadership in healthcare through the joint development of novel drug classes, launching cutting‑edge educational programmes, and building infrastructure and talent pipelines for the development, production, and application of innovative therapeutic solutions.
As part of the agreement, Russia’s leading medical university and the global biopharmaceutical company will open a joint educational and production GMP laboratory for cell technologies. The laboratory will be based at Sechenov University’s Science and Technology Park of Biomedicine and will fully replicate real‑world manufacturing conditions for high‑tech pharmaceuticals in compliance with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards. Students will gain hands‑on experience in production processes, qualification and validation, quality assurance, and risk management at every stage of drug development.
“This partnership gives our students even more opportunities to design their individual educational paths. We already have a full‑cycle drug development infrastructure – from laboratory to market‑ready product. Together with leading pharmaceutical companies, we have developed over 70 drugs and conducted hundreds of preclinical and clinical trials. Working with AstraZeneca is yet another step towards combining expertise to create new medicines, increase patient access to innovations, and expand into international markets,” said Petr Glybochko, Rector of Sechenov University.
Other collaboration areas include drafting recommendations to improve national and Eurasian pharmaceutical regulations, expert support for regulatory practices concerning innovative drugs, and launching joint educational programmes and research projects aimed at developing new drug classes.
“Strategic alliances between global pharma, leading universities, and regulators are becoming the very infrastructure of new medicine – not just corporate agreements. The shortage of professionals who can work at the intersection of biopharmaceutical science, technology, and clinical practice is one of the industry’s key challenges. Our collaboration with Sechenov University is part of the answer to that challenge,” noted Irina Panarina, General Director of AstraZeneca Russia and Eurasia.