Cancer Research UK and its commercial arm, Cancer Research Technology, are to join forces with Astellas Pharma Inc. to find new drug targets in the fight against cancer, with an initial focus on pancreatic cancer.As part of a new collaboration, Cancer Research UK, CRT and Astellas will conduct a two-year research program in the UK to find promising new drug targets for pancreatic cancer.
Certain pancreatic cancers are dependent on autophagy, the process of consuming your own cellular parts for energy, in order to grow. Blocking this pathway may help stop some pancreatic cancers in their tracks.
Under the terms of the deal, the first stage aims to identify and then validate the best possible drug targets to block the autophagy pathway in pancreatic cancer cells. This research will be carried out by Prof. Kevin Ryan at the Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute and Dr Sharon Tooze at the Cancer Research UK London Research Institute. Astellas has an exclusive license to progress the most promising candidates through further drug discovery and development, subject to certain milestone and royalty payments to CRT.
Ryan, Cancer Research UK scientist based at the Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute, said: “This is an exciting opportunity to develop new drugs for pancreatic cancer where there is an urgent need for new treatments. Research suggests that pancreatic cancer can be dependent on autophagy making it an excellent pathway to target for drug discovery.”
Kenji Yasukawa, PhD, senior vice president and chief strategy officer, Astellas, said: “Since May 2013, Astellas has invited researchers from around the world to collaborate to increase drug discovery opportunities and expand development pipelines. The aim is to establish links with overseas researchers who have ideas that possess a high level of novelty and creativity. This consortium with Cancer Research UK and CRT is one of the collaborations to be achieved through this global initiative.”
New treatments are desperately needed for pancreatic cancer – one of the deadliest forms of cancer. Every year 8,800 people are diagnosed with the disease in the UK but survival rates remain very low, with only three percent of people diagnosed with pancreatic cancer surviving their disease for five years or more after their diagnosis*.
Dr. Keith Blundy, Cancer Research Technology’s chief executive officer, said: “In establishing this significant collaboration, the first of its kind between CRT and a Japanese pharmaceutical company, we’re bringing together Cancer Research UK’s world-leading target validation expertise and Astellas’ proven track record on drug development. We hope this will lead to new drugs for pancreatic cancer patients. We’re excited to commence this collaboration and look forward to furthering our relationship with Astellas in the future.”
Date: August 8, 2014
Source: Cancer Research UK
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
