Boehringer Ingelheim and Weill Cornell Medicine are working together to identify novel treatment approaches that could halt or even reverse lung tissue damage in coronary obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).

The three-year collaboration will utilise Weill's Department of Genetic Medicine's understanding of chronic airway diseases and experience in the investigation of novel therapeutic concepts for airway repair and Boehringer's expertise in the respiratory drug discovery and development.

"The scientists at Weill Cornell Medicine and Boehringer Ingelheim will work hand in hand to translate new discoveries into drug discovery and development programs at Boehringer Ingelheim," said the pharma giant's Dr Clive Wood, senior corporate vice president of Discovery Research.

"The new collaboration is an excellent example of our unique partnering approach and our focus on early innovation, underscoring our ambition to develop the next generation of medical treatments for patients with COPD."

BI noted that the collaboration - the second between the pharma and Weill Cornell Medicine, following prior work in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) - is part of its ongoing commitment to bring new medicines that address unmet needs for difficult-to-treat illnesses.

Further terms of the deal weren't revealed.