What's up with this collaboration? Bristol & U. of Texas working together without Geron? I thought GERN had this field all wrapped up concerning drug development. Maybe all of the patent issues aren't quite as worked out as we thought.
"PRINCETON, N.J., and AUSTIN, Texas, March 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (NYSE: BMY) and The University of Texas at Austin today announced that they have entered into a research collaboration to discover and develop telomerase inhibitors that may be novel anticancer compounds. Telomerase is an enzyme that is overproduced in cancer cells and plays a pivotal role in their immortality. Blocking the activity of this enzyme may inhibit the growth and spread of human tumors.
Inhibition of the telomerase enzyme represents a novel approach to cancer therapy research. "Cancer cells use telomerase to maintain the protective ends of their chromosomes," said Laurence Hurley, Ph.D., George Hitchings Regents Chair in Drug Design at UT Austin, "which are critical for the survival of the cells. If we can inhibit telomerase, we would disrupt the cancer cell's chromosome ends and slow tumor growth."
"Drug targeting of the special structures at the ends of chromosomes represents an exciting new opportunity in cancer treatment," said William Koster, Ph.D., senior vice president, Drug Discovery,
Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceutical Research Institute. "Dr. Hurley's team has considerable experience in designing drugs that target DNA, and based on this experience, I believe we can design drugs that would selectively affect the maintenance of cancer cell chromosomes through inhibition of telomerase. We believe that this represents a potentially exciting new
approach for the treatment of patients with cancer."
According to the terms of the agreement, Bristol-Myers Squibb will fund a three-year research collaboration and provide payments to UT Austin for successfully meeting designated research goals. In return, Bristol-Myers Squibb will be granted exclusive worldwide rights to any lead compounds in development or discovered during the collaboration. UT will receive royalty payments from any marketed products. Financial arrangements were not disclosed.
Dr. Hurley heads up an oncology drug discovery program in the Drug
Dynamics Institute in the College of Pharmacy at UT Austin. He is the
recipient of an Outstanding Investigator Award from the National Cancer Institute and is internationally recognized for his research in the development of novel approaches to the design of drugs for the treatment of cancer. His previous research collaborations have led to drugs that are presently being tested in the clinic.
Bristol-Myers Squibb is a diversified worldwide health and personal care company whose principal businesses are pharmaceuticals, consumer products, nutritionals and medical devices. It is a leading maker of innovative therapies for cardiovascular, metabolic and infectious diseases, central nervous system and dermatological disorders, and cancer. The company is a leader in consumer medicines, orthopaedic devices, ostomy care, wound management, nutritional supplements, infant formulas, and hair and skin care
products. "
l mason |
