Drug Development Technology
- Developing Next Generation Drugs Targeting GPCR Heterodimers –
PERTH, Western Australia. – February 24, 2009 – Dimerix Bioscience Pty Ltd announced that it has closed an investment round in excess of $1.4 million. Dimerix will apply funding to expand its contractual profiling of drugs against GPCRs that form heterodimers, in addition to continuing its own development programs.
Dimerix has developed a novel cell-based assay technology to identify molecules acting through pairs of different GPCRs, known as GPCR heterodimers. The company has secured early commercial revenues for applications of its technology by profiling compounds against heterodimer targets. Dimerix is also progressing collaborations and internal programs to develop drug combinations that act synergistically through GPCR heterodimer complexes and screen compound libraries against heterodimer targets.
The investment round was lead by clients of Candor Financial Management (CFM) and included additional sophisticated biotechnology investors. Andrew Hector of CFM commented, “This is an opportunity to support the commercialisation of innovative technologies developed in Western Australia. The commitment of the Dimerix team, its early revenue generation and the arm’s length technology collaborations were important aspects of this funding round.”
Dimerix CEO, Dr James Williams added “Drugs targeting GPCRs account for 40% of all marketed drugs and Dimerix offers a new approach for GPCR drug discovery. The GPCR- HIT platform is enabling Dimerix to generate early revenue profiling marketed and development compounds for GPCR heterodimer effects. This has immediate application across a broad range of indications, including cardiovascular, CNS, respiratory and metabolic diseases. Understanding GPCR heterodimer effects unlocks the potential for better drugs with fewer side effects, and enables drugs to be better tailored to patient populations.”
A recent commentary published in Nature Chemical Biology entitled Building a new conceptual framework for receptor heteromers* overviews the emergence of GPCR heterodimers and the importance of tools for drug discovery involving GPCR heterodimer targets. Dimerix technology inventor, Dr Kevin Pfleger is a co-author on this commentary.
Mr Tim Grogan of Fusion Life Sciences has taken on the Chairman role continuing his contributions to Dimerix. Dimerix’s GPCR-heterodimer identification technology was invented at the Western Australian Institute for Medical Research (WAIMR) and Centre for Medical Research, University of Western Australia. Ownership of the technology has been assigned to Dimerix.
About GPCR-HIT Technology
Dimerix’s proprietary G protein-couped receptor heterodimer identification technology (GPCR-HIT) platform can identify new compounds that affect GPCR heterodimers specifically or allosterically. This significantly expands the scope of GPCR based drug development. The technology can be applied at various stages of drug development including screening for leads and profiling of compounds, including profiling for potential toxicity or other side effects of compounds that are believed to act through monomeric GPCRs.
About Dimerix Bioscience Pty Ltd
Dimerix is an emerging biopharmaceutical company commercialising technology that enables the development of new, highly specific drugs with fewer side effects which act through GPCR heterodimers. Drugs targeting GPCRs include combination therapies that act synergistically through GPCR heterodimers. GPCRs are critically involved in a wide variety of serious illnesses, including inflammation, cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease, cancer, and CNS disorders.
For more information visit www.dimerix.com.
Contact:
James Williams, CEO, Dimerix
+61 (0)409 050 519
james@dimerix.com
*Ferre et al. Nature Chemical Biology 5, 131 – 134 (2009)
