Institute Pasteur Korea signs partnership agreement with Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul
The two-year program will develop academic, scientific and technical cooperation.

June 3, 2011, Seoul, S. Korea ? Institut Pasteur Korea (IP-K), the internationally-renowned translational research institute, and the State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil today signed an agreement on scientific cooperation and training.

Participating in the signing ceremony were the Governor of Rio Grande do Sul, Tarso Genro; the State Secretary of Science, Innovation and Technology of Rio Grande do Sul, Cleber Prodanov; Brazil’s Ambassador to South Korea, Edmundo Fujita; the CEO of IP-K, Ulf Nehrbass, and the Director of the Center for Neglected Diseases Drug Discovery at IP-K, Lucio Freitas-Junior.

Under the agreement, students and researchers from Rio Grande do Sul will receive training and participate in research projects at IP-K.
In addition, opportunities for joint research projects are being considered, as are other forms of cooperation, such as scientific meetings, technical cooperation, and technology transfer. The agreement is effective for two years from today.

The partnership follows a recent visit by State Secretary, Cleber Prodanov, to IP-K at the invitation of Professor Lucio Freitas-Junior, who is a Brazilian national. The Governor expressed great interest in the nature and quality of the work being undertaken at IP-K, prompting the discussions on collaboration.

IP-K’s CEO, Ulf Nehrbass, says that “Collaboration, both here in South Korea and throughout the World, is the fastest way to develop much needed new medicines and it is the lifeblood of research progress. I am delighted at the new opportunities being opened up by our partnership with Rio Grande do Sul.” Lucio Freitas-Junior added “I am excited to be working with promising students and expert researchers from Rio Grande do Sul and there are many potential areas for partnership.”