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The work will be carried out by scientists at Cancer Research UK’s Drug Discovery Unit at The University of Manchester, after the new family of compounds was identified using HitGen’s leading technology platform. This involved screening vast DNA encoded libraries, containing many hundreds of millions of small molecules with drug-like properties synthesized on chemically diverse scaffolds. A number of new small molecule leads for this important therapeutic target in lung cancer nominated by Cancer Research UK were revealed.
This is the first licence taken through the ongoing collaboration between CRT, Cancer Research UK’s Manchester Institute Drug Discovery Group and HitGen, who are eligible for milestone payments as the project progresses. Dr Jin Li, CEO of HitGen, said: “We’re delighted to announce this significant project milestone. We look forward to seeing the progress made by the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute.”
Dr Donald Ogilvie, head of drug discovery at the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute at The University of Manchester, said: “We’re very pleased to work with HitGen to find promising leads against these more difficult targets that may otherwise not be developed.”
“As part of the Cancer Research UK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence, we’re determined to get new lung cancer treatments to patients quicker. Identifying this promising candidate drug offers the potential to help boost survival from this devastating disease.”
For media enquiries contact Ailsa Stevens in the Cancer Research UK press office on 020 3469 8300 or, out of hours, on 07050 264 059.
Notes to editors
* The Drug Discovery Unit builds upon fundamental biology discoveries made within the Manchester Cancer Research Centre (MCRC). The University of Manchester, including the Cancer Research UK Manchester Institute, joined forces with Cancer Research UK and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust to form the MCRC, allowing doctors and scientists to work closely together to turn scientific advances into patient benefits sooner. See: http://www.mcrc.manchester.ac.uk/Our-Research/Research-Groups/Drug-Discovery-Unit
About HitGen Ltd
HitGen is an innovation driven life science company based in Chengdu, China and Houston, Texas. HitGen has established a unique platform for early drug discovery research. Our DNA encoded libraries contain more than 10 billion novel, diverse, drug-like compounds. The library is founded on many hundreds of distinct chemical scaffolds, designed with tractable chemistry and proven results for finding drug leads against targets from known and novel protein classes.
For further information, please contact:
Dr. Jin Li, Chairman & CEO， HitGen Ltd. Tel: +86 028 85197385
Dr. Barry Morgan, Chief Scientific Officer，HitGen Ltd. Tel: +1 5088409646
About Cancer Research UK
- Cancer Research UK is the world’s leading cancer charity dedicated to saving lives through research.
- Cancer Research UK’s pioneering work into the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of cancer has helped save millions of lives.
- Cancer Research UK has been at the heart of the progress that has already seen survival in the UK double in the last 40 years.
- Today, 2 in 4 people survive their cancer for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK’s ambition is to accelerate progress so that by 2034, 3 in 4 people will survive their cancer for at least 10 years.
- Cancer Research UK supports research into all aspects of cancer through the work of over 4,000 scientists, doctors and nurses.
- Together with its partners and supporters, Cancer Research UK's vision is to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured.
For further information about Cancer Research UK's work or to find out how to support the charity, please call 0300 123 1022 or visit www.cancerresearchuk.org. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
