Domainex optimisation services facilitate cancer drug discovery programme

Published: 8-Apr-2010

Collaboration with the Institute of Cancer Research advances cancer drug research in UK


Domainex, a UK drug discovery specialist, is taking part in a lead optimisation collaboration with the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) to find a new treatment for breast cancer.

The ICR team, led by Professor Alan Ashworth of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre, working with Domainex, has discovered drug-like compounds that inhibit an enzyme from the PARP superfamily, whose expression leads to the survival of breast cancer cells. Last year the programme received a £4m research grant under the Wellcome Trust's Seeding Drug Discovery initiative.

Domainex will apply its LeadBuilder virtual screening technology to design and select chemical compounds suitable for rapid progression. It will also apply its medicinal chemistry expertise to assist the ICR team to develop drug candidates for progression into clinical trials.

Founded in 2002, Domainex provides computational and medicinal chemistry, gene cloning and expression services to pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. It also offers Combinatorial Domain Hunting, a patented method for expressing difficult protein targets.

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