The Center for Orphan Drug Research at the University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy helps small companies with insufficient in-house expertise and resources in drug synthesis, formulation, pharmacometrics, and bio-analysis.
The Keck Graduate Institute Center for Rare Disease Therapies (CRDT) in Claremont, California, supports projects to revive potential orphan drugs whose development has stalled by identifying barriers to commercialization, such as problems with formulation and bio-processing.
Numerous advocacy groups such as the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Global Genes Project, Childrens Rare Disease Network, Abetalipoproteinemia Collaboration Foundation, Zellweger Baby Support Network, and the Friedreichs Ataxia Research Alliance have been founded in order to advocate on behalf of patients with rare diseases with a particular emphasis on diseases that affect children.