Merck Serono, the biopharmaceuticals arm of Germany's Merck KgaA, is extending by two years its 10-year R&D cooperation with San Raffaele University & Research Hospital for Research in Milan focusing on neurodegenerative diseases.

The partners are aiming at the development of pre-clinical and clinical research projects with a focus on developing innovative therapies against serious and disabling neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis affecting young adults in particular.

San Raffaele University & Research Hospital are providing know-how and laboratories to develop new therapies and to evaluate the effectiveness of the molecules developed by Merck Serono.