TIANJIN, China, May 13 /PRNewswire-Asia/ -- A signing ceremony for a strategic partnership agreement between Tianjin International Joint Academy of Biotechnology and Medicine (TJAB) and Genzyme Corporation was held in the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) on 10 May.

Officials and executives including Rao Zihe, President of TJAB and President of Nankai University, He Shushan, Director of TEDA Administrative Commission and Standing Committee Member of the CPC Committee of the Binhai New Area, Li Baochun, Deputy Director of the Tianjin Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Huang Yalou, Director of the Binhai New Area Science and Technology Commission, Zhang Yaozhou, Vice president of TJAB, Richard Gregory, Senior VP and Head of Research, Genzyme, Canwen Jiang, Vice President and Head of R&D Asia, Genzyme, and Shan Jizhong, General Manager of Genzyme Beijing Biotechnology Co. Ltd, attended the signing ceremony.

Genzyme is one of the world's ten leading biotechnology companies. The company has grown to a diversified enterprise with more than 12,000 employees in locations spanning the globe and 2009 revenues of US$4.5 billion. The company is committed to developing and applying the most advanced technologies in life sciences, with the research and development efforts spanning a range of medical areas including cardiovascular disease.

TJAB, co-founded by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Health, the State Food and Drug Administration and the Tianjin Municipal People's Government, officially opened in June 2009. As the core and symbol of the BioMed Zone, the academy received RMB1.1 billion of investment from the Tianjin Binhai New Area which was used to install specialized apparatus and devices. Leveraging its one-stop service system and dedicated public technology platform, TJAB has been committed to accelerating the process from new drug development to industrialization.

The strategic partnership between TJAB and Genzyme in the fields of application and translational research, preclinical and clinical study, diagnostic testing and therapy, as well as doctoral and postdoctoral education training will help quickly and successfully bring the company's innovative drugs to China, promoting innovation and development of the Chinese biopharmaceutical industry.

SOURCE Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA)