CAMBRIDGE, United Kingdom, Sept. 22, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Astex Technology, (Other OTC:FJSPF) the fragment-based drug discovery company, today announced that it has received the first research and development milestone payment from AstraZeneca (NYSE:AZN) (Pink Sheets:AZNCF) (Pink Sheets:AZNDF) as part of its collaboration to identify novel drugs against a key protein target implicated in Alzheimer's disease.
Under the collaboration which commenced in March 2003, Astex provided an initial series of small molecule inhibitors and is also applying its high-throughput X-ray crystallography and Pyramid(tm) approach for fragment-based drug discovery against the target, to rapidly identify additional novel drug candidates. Financial details were not disclosed.
"I am delighted to announce the recognition of this first research and development milestone by AstraZeneca which further endorses Astex's abilities in fragment-based drug discovery," commented Timothy Haines, Chief Executive of Astex. "Astex and AstraZeneca are working extremely effectively together and this has fuelled the significant progress made to date in the discovery of novel compounds against this high value Alzheimer's target." "AstraZeneca's collaboration with Astex exemplifies our commitment to the discovery and development of drugs that have the potential to treat neurological disorders," said Christof Angst, Vice President, CNS Discovery, AstraZeneca R&D Wilmington. "We are delighted with the research collaboration and look forward to future milestones and successes with Astex."
About Astex
Astex is a fragment-based drug discovery company pioneering the use of high-throughput X-ray crystallography for the rapid identification of novel drug candidates. The Company's unique fragment-based drug discovery approach, termed Pyramid(tm), utilizes protein crystal structures to detect the binding of drug fragments, which are then optimized into potent lead compounds. Facilitating this approach is Astex's integrated drug discovery platform, which covers all aspects of structure-based drug discovery including protein production, crystallization, structure determination, bioinformatics, computational and medicinal chemistry and biology and DMPK. Astex is focusing its drug discovery approaches on proprietary and public domain protein targets from families and/or pathways. This includes validated kinases, phosphatases and proteases implicated in human disease. Astex has drug discovery collaborations with Schering AG, AstraZeneca, Mitsubishi Pharma and with the Institute of Cancer Research, UK and Cancer Research Technology. The Company has further research agreements with another large pharmaceutical company, and structural biology research collaborations with AstraZeneca, Aventis Pharmaceuticals, Mitsubishi Pharma and Fujisawa Pharma focused on solving novel cytochrome P450 crystal structures.
About AstraZeneca
AstraZeneca is a major international pharmaceutical company engaged in the research, development, manufacture and marketing of ethical (prescription) pharmaceuticals and the supply of healthcare services. It is one of the top five pharmaceutical companies in the world with sales of over US$17.8 billion and leading positions in sales of gastrointestinal, oncology, anaesthesia (including pain management), cardiovascular, neuroscience and respiratory products. Skilled research is at the heart of AstraZeneca's continuing success with over 11,000 R&D employees worldwide and an annual investment of more than $3.1 billion dedicated to the discovery and development of new and improved medicines. For more information about AstraZeneca, please visit www.astrazeneca.com
Please click on the link provided to view the full press release.