Another OLD PR:
ArQule and ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Establish new Drug Discovery
2000-12-19 07:00 (New York)
Collaboration
WOBURN, Mass. and SAN DIEGO, Dec. 19 /PRNewswire/ -- ArQule, Inc.
(Nasdaq: ARQL) and ACADIA Pharmaceuticals announced today a new drug discovery
collaboration. This collaboration will combine ACADIA's functional genomics
platform with ArQule's Parallel Track (TM) Drug Discovery program to discover
novel small molecule drug candidates directed at individual G-protein coupled
receptor (GPCR) targets. The companies will share intellectual property
resulting from the collaboration, and equally contribute to at least one joint
drug discovery program. The companies will share revenues resulting from the
commercialization of joint drug discovery programs.
ArQule's Parallel Track (TM) Drug Discovery program is targeted toward
discovery of compounds selected for Good Laboratory Practice (GLP) toxicology
and Investigational New Drug (IND) candidates. The program combines
chemistry, computational design, predictive modeling, and in vitro absorption,
distribution, metabolism, elimination, toxicology (ADMET) profiling for lead
generation, qualification, and optimization. ACADIA's patented Receptor
Selection and Amplification Technology (R-SAT (TM)) is a functional cell-based
chemical compound testing system that is applied to measure the ability of
compounds to alter cellular function. R-SAT (TM) enables ultra high
throughput screening of diverse compound libraries and the quantitative and
physiologically predictive evaluation of compounds.
ACADIA has developed functional genomic systems for more than 200 genomic
targets. These targets include most of the GPCRs for which endogenous
activators are known, and a wide range of proprietary "orphan" GPCRs that have
been discovered by analysis of genomic databases. In addition to screening
GPCR targets against ArQule's Mapping Array (R) and Compass Array (TM)
libraries, the collaboration may use a chemogenomics approach to guide
synthesis of targeted compound libraries which will also be screened. The
process of chemogenomics compares the structures found within a class of
biological targets, such as GPCRs, with a wide variety of chemical structures
to identify which chemical compound classes should be synthesized and
screened. Using a collaborative approach, the companies have the potential to
achieve rapid identification of possible drug classes for these targets and to
speed the overall discovery process.
"GPCRs are of significant importance in the pharmaceutical industry,
representing common targets for the world's major pharmaceutical products,"
said Uli Hacksell, Ph.D., ACADIA's Chief Executive Officer. "ArQule's
proprietary technology will allow us to evaluate more potential drug targets,
provide new opportunities for discoveries and enhance the potential for rapid
discovery of new pre-clinical drug candidates."
"I am very excited by the momentum behind our Parallel Track approach to
drug discovery. With this - our third drug discovery collaboration to be
signed in less than three months - we look forward to building a broad
portfolio of drug discovery programs," commented Stephen A. Hill, President
and Chief Executive Officer of ArQule. "ACADIA's functional genomics platform
will be a valuable asset as we continue to build our comprehensive drug
discovery collaborations."
ArQule collaborates with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology
companies to synthesize and optimize small molecules that have the potential
to enter clinical development and become medicines. ArQule's Parallel Track
Drug Discovery program integrates key technologies for high-throughput,
automated synthesis of small molecules with technologies that enable more
informed, intelligent decisions about what molecules to synthesize.
Parallel use of these "what to make" and "how to make" technologies
results in rapid, iterative cycles of lead generation, qualification, and
optimization of clinical drug candidates. In addition, ArQule also offers
access to their high-throughput, automated synthesis and lead optimization
platforms through technology licensing agreements. The Company is based in
Woburn and Medford, Massachusetts. For additional information, please visit
www.arqule.com.
ACADIA is a genomics-based drug discovery and development company that
efficiently discovers highly specific small molecule drugs using its
proprietary integrated technology platform. ACADIA's proprietary approach
integrates genomics, chemistry and biology to rapidly identify and validate
genomic targets and discover chemistries specific to those targets. The
Company has established a portfolio of drug discovery programs directed at
major diseases, including glaucoma, chronic pain, schizophrenia and
Alzheimer's disease, and is commercializing this pipeline through licensing
and discovery collaborations with pharmaceutical partners. The Company's
corporate headquarters and biological research facilities are located in San
Diego, California and its chemistry research facilities are located in
Copenhagen, Denmark. For additional information, please visit www.acadia-
pharm.com. |
