The CNCCS, a benchmark Italian consortium for bioeconomy and an opportunity for the Istituto Superiore di Sanità.

BioEconomy is the word for a recently arisen paradigm that constitutes the inspirational principle of CNCCS (Collezione Nazionale Composti Chimici e Centro Screening – National Collection of Chemical Compounds and Screening Centre), a newly public-private partnership in Italy. BioEconomy postulates that science can be safely coupled with economy and that from such " unritual marriage " would derive a benefit for the society triggering welfare through innovation .vate company with the most advanced technology for exploiting organic compounds. The CNCCS is funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR) through the CNR to encourage a never-seen-before synergy between public research bodies and private institutions. The scientific power of CNR and ISS merging with IRBM's resources for the identification and collection of chemicals will make the CNCCS the leading reference European centre for " orphan " compounds. Why such an effort? Why the ISS should mingle in a public private partnership? The role of basic research is under scrutiny and poorly tolerated when a depressed economy and stakeholders (patients, families, society in general) put great pressures to direct the objectives of science toward goals that must result in benefits for society. The ISS has a special responsibility because its role is to address the needs of society by taking up the challenges of science beyond the existing limits. The ISS foresees that the CNCCS consortium would better serve the scope of science and society, a goal that is unattainable by science or industry alone. Private-public enterprises are quickly rising and institutional research bodies are becoming partners of charities, large pharmaceutical companies, and small biotech firms for looking at novel and affordable drugs for the cure of neglected diseases. Examples of these enterprises are the Malaria Vaccine Initiatives, the Medicines for Malaria Ventures, the Global alliance for TB drug development, and the Drug for Neglected Diseases Initiatives. What would be the contribution of the CNCCS consortium for the society and the general welfare in terms of health and economy? The quality of science in Italy is higher than lay people think despite poor public and private investments. In Italy, particularly in the ISS, there is a long-standing tradition in the field of organic chemistry with tens of thousands molecules continuously synthesized in public and private research laboratories. Unfortunately, most of discovered molecules " sit on the shelf " of academic and scientific laboratories and are poorly or not tested …