Advancing Drug Discovery through Academia–Industry Collaborations: Lessons from Merck Discovery Chemistry Partnerships

Abstract

Academia–industry partnerships are an important driver of innovation in drug discovery, and their success depends on intentional problem selection, effective resource sharing, and robust communication during project execution. This outlook highlights select Merck Sharp & Dohme Discovery Chemistry (MSD DC) collaborations reported over the past five years to illustrate principles that underpin productive academia–industry partnerships. Through representative case studies in synthesis collaborations, we illustrate two complementary collaboration strategies: targeted development of synthetic methods that address key medicinal chemistry bottlenecks, and capability-building efforts that enable technology transfer to accelerate drug discovery. We also highlight a few nonsynthetic collaborations by MSD DC in computational chemistry, structure elucidation, and chemical biology subfields, underscoring the cross-functional impact of these efforts on drug discovery. Beyond scientific advances, these collaborations also provide meaningful training and professional development opportunities for the next generation of chemists.