Centauri Therapeutics Receives Innovate UK Biomedical Catalyst Award

publication date: Oct 6, 2017
 | 
author/source: Centauri Therapeutics Ltd

Funding will be used to develop the Company’s Alphamer technology to target antibacterial resistance

centauriThe UK’s innovation agency will contribute up to £945K towards the project

Centauri Therapeutics Ltd (Centauri), a biotechnology company focused on the treatment of infectious diseases and cancer, announced today that it has been awarded up to £945,000 under Innovate UK’s Biomedical Catalyst (BMC) programme. Alongside backing from the Company’s investors, this award from the UK’s innovation agency will co-fund research focused on antimicrobial resistance. The project aims to generate a clinical candidate drug against Gram-negative bacteria, which are a major cause of mortality in hospital-acquired pneumonias, using the Company’s Alphamer™ technology.

Bacteria are continually evolving to resist new antibiotics, meaning new medicines are required to target novel drug-resistant strains and deliver effective therapies to patients. Centauri plans to develop an innovative treatment for patients suffering from infections caused by these resistant bacteria. Using the Company’s Alphamer drug mechanism, chemically synthesised molecules will redirect pre-existing antibodies to pathogens in a specific manner that elicits an immune response. This immune response will mediate destruction of the bacteria to clear the infection, while working in conjunction with existing antibiotics to reduce the dose and duration of therapy. Unlike traditional vaccines, this approach aims to treat infected patients and has the potential to elicit a broader immune response than monoclonal antibodies alone.

Dr Mike Westby, Director and CEO of Centauri Therapeutics, commenting on the award said: “The lack of new antibiotics combined with increasing incidence of bacterial resistance in the clinic has been termed ‘the perfect storm’ and there is an urgent need for innovative methods and efficacious therapies. The BMC Award is a significant recognition of Centauri’s scientific expertise and demonstrates the UK government’s confidence in our team’s ability to combat antibacterial resistance and deliver novel treatments for patients.”

Total costs for the project titled ‘Optimisation of antibody recruiting molecules as immunotherapeutics’ are estimated at £1.35M. The co-funding from Innovate UK will cover up to 70% of this, with Centauri’s investors supporting the remaining 30% of the project costs over a two-year period.


more about centauri therapeutics


 



 

Subscribe to any of our newsletters for the latest on new laboratory products, industry news, case studies and much more!

Newsletters from Lab Bulletin

 

Request your free copies HERE

 

 

 

Popular this Month

Top 10 most popular articles this month

 

 

Today's Picks

 


 

Looking for a Supplier?

Search by company or by product

 


Company Name:

Product:


 

 

 

 

Please note Lab Bulletin does not sell, supply any of the products featured on this website. If you have an enquiry, please use the contact form below the article or company profile and we will send your request to the supplier so that they can contact you directly.

Lab Bulletin is published by newleaf marketing communications ltd.