European Lead Factory Secures IMI Funding

The European Lead Factory (ELF), a public-private partnership to transform drug targets into new medicines, has secured a total project budget of EUR 36.5 million under the second framework of the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI). Over the next 5 years, 20 partners in 7 countries, including the University of Dundee, will be involved with the ELF brand project in the new ESCulab (European Screening Centre: unique library for attractive biology).

The project partners will have access to large high-quality compound libraries derived from the pharmaceutical industry and the Public Compound Collection and Europe’s leading screening facility, alongside the innovative targets held by academic organisations. This provides an ideal platform to translate early-stage fundamental biological research into credible and investable starting points for drug discovery campaigns.

The National Phenotypic Screening Centre (NPSC), based within the School of Life Sciences at the University of Dundee will bring expertise in developing and screening complex biological assays using “high content” phenomics technology to the initiative.

Dr Paul Andrews, Director of Operations at the NPSC, said, “By employing quantitative microscopy or flow cytometry to measure a range of disease-relevant responses in cells, our approach has the potential to accelerate the development of safer and more effective medicines.”

Dundee will receive around €1.3million for the NPSC’s contribution over the course of the project.

Jon de Vlieger, coordinator of the ESCulab consortium at Lygature, commented: “It’s truly exciting to continue the onboarding of new and innovative proposals for screening and provide high quality starting points for drug discovery to academics and SMEs throughout Europe. In an effort to broaden our scope we are not only looking for target-based approaches, but now also enable phenotypic screens.”

The successful concept of the European Lead Factory has already encouraged additional private partners to join. The ESCulab Project welcomes the two pharmaceutical companies Servier and Grünenthal as well as the Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV), the leading product development partnership in the field of antimalarial drug research and development.