New FP6 project to bridge gap between drug development and manufacture
The European Commission is providing 2.5 million euro for a new project aimed at bridging the gap in the drug development pipeline under the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). Using a new approach in post-genomics drug discovery, the project combines optimal technologies with the best scientific expertise to develop new medical therapies. Pont (Parallel Optimisation of New Technologies for Post-Genomics Drug Discovery), is a specific targeted research project (STREP) involving four biotechnology companies and two academic partners from Austria, Germany and the UK, who will work together over a three year period. 'This partnership focuses on particular strengths in areas where Europe is in a relatively favourable position compared with the US: human tissue resources, RNA technology, and structural proteomics. In addition to a competitive advantage for each of these European biotech companies, successful implementation of the PONT strategy will provide important and valuable new therapeutic prospects. This project will thereby increase the overall competitiveness of the European biotechnology industry,' explained the project consortium in a statement. Indeed, to achieve greater capacity and coverage of the drug development pipeline, it is important to organise partnerships that will help accelerate the 'idea to product' process in a cost-effective way. In contrast to the traditional approach, PONT will undertake pre-clinical drug development with a parallel instead of a sequential approach. This will save years when it comes to the trials. 'This approach will certainly increase the competitiveness of each participant biotechnology company,' explained Charles Buck, the PONT project coordinator. Indeed, this parallel drug discovery paradigm will shorten drug preclinical development time by two or more years and dramatically reduce late-stage drug target attrition. The resulting time and cost savings will make great strides in addressing the general lack of efficiency in converting promising targets from genomics research into effective new drugs, he said. PONT will initially focus on the development of genomics targets in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) or liver cancer. HCC was chosen because it is one of the leading cases of cancer death worldwide and has a very poor prognosis. For example, the five year survival rates in Germany are only 7.3 per cent for males and 6.2 per cent for females. Furthermore, as the rates of alcoholism and chronic hepatitis B and C viral infections, leading to liver diseases, continue to increase, 'the outlook [...] is for a steady increase in liver cancer rates, underscoring the need for new therapies in this area,' explained the PONT partners in the statement. This is especially the case as liver cancer is difficult to treat and survival rates are particularly low. 'PONT translates basic knowledge to the application stage for a disease that is not under control and represents major potential markets. As the concept proposed is generally applicable to any human disease, implementation of this strategy in other disease contexts will provide important business advantage to the participating partners as well as important health advantages to the population,' concluded the statement.