Research & University News

The scientists Benjamin List and David MacMillan have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their discovery that small organic molecules are suitable as mediators of chemical reactions. Working independently of one another, Drs List and MacMillan showed that organic molecules constitute a third type of catalyst that can accelerate chemical reactions and lead them to a desired goal. Previously, scientists assumed that only enzymes and metals could perform this task.

The Swedish biotech Modus Therapeutics Holding AB has entered into a partnership with a team at Imperial College London, UK to investigate the compound sevuparin in patients with severe malaria. Modus is currently developing sevuparin for sepsis and septic shock, life-threatening conditions caused by the body’s reaction to an infection. The company has now extended its research to do more work in malaria.

Preclinical work being undertaken by STORM Therapeutics Ltd has shown that targeting RNA modifying enzymes with small molecule drugs is a credible new strategy for treating acute myeloid leukaemia, as well as solid tumours. A second paper outlining this strategy was published on 26 April 2021 in the journal Nature.

A small molecule drug that activates a component of the innate immune system could play a role in enhancing radiation therapy for the treatment of cancers, according to a study published in Nature Communications on 19 April 2021. The study, conducted by Yale University in the US and F-star Therapeutics Ltd, co-located in the UK and US, looked at the role of STING (stimulator of interferon genes) in regulating tumour cell survival.

A candidate vaccine for the prevention of malaria has shown an efficacy rate of 77% in a Phase 2b trial of African children between the ages of five to 17 months – exceeding an efficacy target set by the World Health Organization. The trial results were published online by The Lancet on 22 April 2021, prior to peer review.

Medigene AG has reported the discovery of novel immunogenic tumour specific antigens derived from the non-coding regions of the human genome. The German biotech company presented the finding at the virtual annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research on 10 April.

Future Planet Capital, a London, UK-based investment group, has acquired Midven Ltd, one of Britain’s oldest venture capital firms, with a view to expanding its network of academic and public sector relationships in the life sciences. Announced on 8 April, the value of the transaction wasn’t disclosed.

A new UK company focused on developing small molecule drugs for rare neuromuscular and metabolic diseases is being prepared for launch following the publication of research on mitochondrial dysfunction in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA. The company, MitoRx Therapeutics, is being spun out of the University of Exeter. Jon Rees, a life sciences consultant, has been named chief executive.

A vaccine developed by Russia to prevent coronavirus disease has been shown to be 91.6% effective, according to data from a Phase 3 trial published in The Lancet on 2 February 2021. The vaccine, Gam-COVID-Vac (Sputnik V), is a combined vector vaccine carrying the gene for the SARS-CoV-2 full length glycoprotein S. It is intended to elicit antibodies to the virus glycoprotein as well as antigen-specific cellular immunity.

AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford have become the third developers to report high levels of efficacy for their experimental vaccine to prevent Covid-19. The partners are now preparing for regulatory submissions, and have reaffirmed a commitment to supply their vaccine globally on a not-for-profit basis for the duration of the pandemic.