Partnerships

Through powerful and lasting partnerships, the Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) - also known as the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Institute - seeks to find cures for viral hepatitis, nurture biotechnology entrepreneurship, train future researchers, and provide information and support to those affected by viral hepatitis. Partnerships enable the IHVR to maximize its resources and achieve greater scientific impact than it could alone.

Hepatitis B Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for those affected by hepatitis B worldwide. In 2003, the Foundation established the Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) to serve its research needs and to house the Hepatitis B Foundation Lab, which is dedicated solely to hepatitis B research. The Hepatitis B Foundation and the IHVR reside in the same facility, which allows a sharing of valuable resources to achieve their complementary research and outreach mission.

Drexel Institute for Biotechnology and Virology Research (Drexel Institute) is a new research division, established in July 2004 by Drexel University College of Medicine , which shares space and resources with the Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) and the Hepatitis B Foundation in Bucks County, PA, to further their mutual research goals. Drexel University College of Medicine, formerly MCP Hahnemann University, is located in Philadelphia, PA, and is the largest private medical school in the nation and a leader in health science education and research.

Pennsylvania Department of Health
The Pennsylvania Department of Health is a leader in the nation because of its significant commitment to promoting viral hepatitis awareness, education and research in the state. For many years, the PA Department of Health has successfully partnered with the Hepatitis B Foundation to implement viral hepatitis outreach programs. As a result, the PA Department of Health awarded a major grant to the Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) in 2004, and renewed the grant for fiscal year 2005, to support its viral hepatitis research and outreach mission.

The IHVR provides sub-awards to the Hepatitis B Foundation for its comprehensive educational programs, and to the Drexel Institute for complementary research programs. Every year the Secretary of Health, Physician General, and other senior administrative leaders from the PA Department of Health are invited to visit and to hear firsthand about the good work being done by the IHVR and the Hepatitis B Foundation.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania
Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania is an independent nonprofit economic development organization, supported by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, to foster dynamic relationships among companies, investors, research institutions and the university community. The Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) receives a grant from Ben Franklin Technology Partners to coordinate the Regional Biotechnology Council of Central Bucks and the Ben Franklin Innovations Center, which assists “start-up” biotech companies in the region.

University of Oxford
In July 2004, the Hepatitis B Foundation entered into an agreement with the University of Oxford to sponsor a joint training program to recruit college graduates into science who will be mentored and supervised by scientists from the Institute for Hepatitis and Virus Research (IHVR) and Drexel Institute. Upon successful completion of the training program, qualified candidates will be eligible to apply for enrollment in scientific doctoral studies at the University of Oxford, and if accepted by Oxford, the Hepatitis B Foundation will provide full tuition scholarships for up to two students.

This is an exciting partnership between one of the world’s most venerable institutions of learning, with nearly 1,000 years of history, and a young public health organization in the United States. Both organizations share complementary goals - the University of Oxford is interested in identifying outstanding students who will work on matters of great importance and the Hepatitis B Foundation and the IHVR are interested in finding cures for one of the world’s most confounding, serious diseases. Fortunately, these are the same types of individuals that the University of Oxford hopes to attract, too.

The Hepatitis B Foundation training program with the University of Oxford is only one of two of its kind in the United States (the other program is at The Scripps Institute, La Jolla, CA). Prof. Raymond Dwek, FRS, an internationally acclaimed scientist and Head of Biochemistry at the University of Oxford, and a distinguished member of the scientific advisory board of the Hepatitis B Foundation, championed the creation of this unique partnership.