InterAx and Prof. Peter Kolb from the Philipps-University Marburg initiated a collaboration for lead discovery
Villigen, Switzerland, 22nd of August 2017
InterAx Biotech AG, a Swiss start-up focusing on the discovery of novel GPCR-targeting medicines, and Prof. Peter Kolb of Philipps-University Marburg, group leader in the Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, entered a collaboration to fuse the unique biosensor and systems biology platform with the expertise on virtual screening for the development of lead compounds with highly tailored pharmacological properties for an undisclosed target.
About Prof. Peter Kolb, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Philipps-University Marburg
Peter Kolb is a Heisenberg Professor of Computer-Aided Drug Discovery. His research team works on the prediction and rational design of ligands with custom-tailored properties for a range of targets, predominantly from the GPCR family of membrane proteins. A key focus of this work is the synthetic accessibility of molecules, while at the same time focusing on novel, unprecedented scaffolds for the investigated receptors.
About InterAx
InterAx Biotech AG is a Swiss company and spinoff from the ETH Zurich and the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI). InterAx is fully funded by private investors and is building a unique drug discovery platform for identification of functionally selective G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) drug candidates. The InterAx core technology resides in engineering protein-based biosensors specifically sensing a particularly active state of a GPCR and in using computer algorithms to predict downstream cell signaling effects. This unique combination allows for better predictions of drug candidates properties for the desired GPCR target.
By combining the UMR unique expertise in virtual screening and the InterAx biosensor and systems biology platform, we will establish an iterative design and testing cycle that helps us guide the optimization of initial hits towards potent and efficacious lead matter. At the same time, we will elucidate potentially paradigm-changing principles that will aid us in future endeavors.
