What is drug discovery?
We identify disease targets and create effective treatments
Given the time and resource-intensive nature of creating new drugs, leaps in technology and medicine have radically enhanced the efficiency of the drug discovery pipeline.
The early discovery process is split into focused steps that permit researchers to validate their discoveries by testing the effects of their compounds on desired disease targets.
At this stage, diseases are extensively studied by researchers in diverse fields such as immunology, biology, biochemistry. Researchers collect data on diseases to better understand the resultant biological reactions, and underlying causes that could potentially be targeted by drug therapy.
Researchers pinpoint the biological process that is triggering illness or inhibiting a healthy mechanism in the body.
Researchers screen molecules to identify “hits” that can bind to their target or modulate the biological process of interest.
Our facilities encompass a range of platforms for screening small molecules, fragments and peptides.
Hit molecules are then tested in cell-based assays, this may include complex 3D cell models and organoids. Medicinal chemists may synthesise libraries of compounds with similar properties to the hit, to identify which is the most potent lead.
The most significant lead compounds that have passed rigorous stages of screening and testing are optimised for maximum efficacy and safe administration.
The next steps in the drug development process carry the invaluable work done by researchers onto preclinical and clinical studies. As the drug discovery pipeline narrows toward a therapeutic solution that can be made into a commercialised product, so do the number of active compounds that are viable. That is why in alignment with our collaborators, we are poised to translate our world-class research into life-changing medication.
