Three new small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) - Syncom, Synvolux Therapeutics and InteRNA Technologies - have joined public-private partnership TI Pharma by participating in two new projects. These projects, focusing on cancer and inflammatory diseases, have a total budget of nearly 6 million euros.
The new consortium, formed by Syncom, Synvolux Therapeutics, and University Medical Center Groningen, focuses on designing a versatile drug delivery system for inflammatory diseases and cancer. Another new consortium is formed by InteRNA Technologies, Utrecht University and VU University Medical Center, and focuses on the development of anti-angiogenic microRNA-based therapeutic products for the treatment of cancer.
Versatile drug delivery platform for inflammatory diseases and cancer New molecular entities (NMEs) in the drug development pipeline comprise various classes of kinase inhibitors that cause unacceptable toxicity in humans. Proper formulation might circumvent side effects and improve their general therapeutic efficacy. However, currently, no appropriate formulation technology is available for these kinase inhibitors.
This project focuses on a systematic approach in which chemical modification of NMEs is combined with drug formulation studies. This will lead to a versatile drug delivery platform for future clinical application of kinase inhibitors in the treatment of cancer and chronic inflammatory diseases. "This approach is expected to make targeted drug delivery finally meet its expectations, as it will become available for a variety of drug classes that are under development in the pharmaceutical industry," according to the consortium members.
Development of novel anti-angiogenic miRNA based therapeutics
"Conventional cancer treatment such as surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy are far from sufficient, therefore, new strategies of cancer treatment are needed more than ever," says Roel Schaapveld, chief executive officer, InteRNA. There is a large body of evidence indicating that tumour growth and metastasis formation are dependent on the formation of new blood vessels. Furthermore, angiogenesis is an early event in the development of tumours, being already switched on in pre-cancerous events and long before visible or clinically relevant tumour mass is present. Schaapveld: "These two features make angiogenesis an ideal target for the development of novel anti-cancer strategies."
The recent discovery that non-coding RNAs, called microRNAs (miRNAs), play a critical role in gene regulation provides new opportunities to discover RNAs that can control angiogenesis. The major aim of this project is to establish a technology platform for the development of (anti-cancer) therapeutics based on angiostatic miRNAs. miRNA is utilized as a therapeutic modality and advanced nanoparticle delivery systems accomplish intracellular delivery of nucleic acid agents. These will be combined with the identification of surface receptor targets on tumour blood vessels to allow for therapeutic intervention. Eventually, this will result in the development of anti-angiogenic miRNA-based therapeutic products for the treatment of cancer.
InteRNA Technologies B.V. actively explores and exploits opportunities to translate its unique collection of miRNAs and miRNA discovery and validation technologies into successful diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic applications. The company's primary focus is to unravel the role of its proprietary miRNAs in cancer.
InteRNA Technologies was incorporated in 2006 by Aglaia Oncology Fund and has established close relationships with the research groups of its founders Edwin Cuppen, PhD, and Eugene Berezikov, PhD, of the Hubrecht Institute (Utrecht, the Netherlands), leading scientific groups in the field of miRNA research.
Syncom is a contract research organization that specializes in all aspects of organic synthesis. Syncom focuses on synthetic chemistry support for mainly medicinal chemistry and chemical development groups.
Synvolux Therapeutics B.V. is a privately held Dutch company dedicated to the development, production and commercialisation of new therapies using its SAINT technology: a unique, safe and highly efficacious delivery technology for macromolecules (DNA, RNA, proteins and others).
Within TI Pharma, consortia of industrial and academic research teams conduct groundbreaking, cross-disciplinary research projects that fit into the Priority Medicines program of the WHO. Each year, the Dutch government funds the top institute to the tune of 30 million euros.
The University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG) is the only university medical centre in the northern part of the Netherlands, and therefore the final point of referral for many patients. Research at the UMCG is characterized by a combination of fundamental and patient orientated clinical research.
Utrecht University is one of Europe's leading research universities recognized internationally for its high-quality approach to both research and teaching. Founded in 1636, Utrecht University has always focused strongly on research. Thanks to its solid basis in discipline-based scholarship, it is at the forefront of developments in interdisciplinary knowledge in fields ranging from biochemistry and biophysics to human rights and cultural studies.
The scientific research and patient care of VU University Medical Center are based on five pivotal points, each one including patient care, training, educational programs and research. The lines of scientific research within each of the pivotal points are brought together in a multidisciplinary research institute.