Project lays ground work for new drugs

By LIAM DANN

A Palmerston North company has launched a multi-million-dollar project to develop the building blocks for new drugs that prevent cancer, heart disease and other ailments.

In a joint project, New Zealand Pharmaceuticals is using knowledge built up over many years by the crown research institute Industrial Research and plans to synthesise special carbohydrate derivatives needed for many modern drugs.

Industrial Research's carbohydrate chemistry leader, Dr Richard Furneaux, said fighting disease with drugs based on carbohydrates had become a huge focus of development for international drug companies.

"Using our recipes, NZP will be able to cost-effectively produce the carbohydrate building blocks used to make these new drugs," he said.

Furneaux's team are world leaders in the area of glycotherapeutics.

Their drug discovery programme has identified compounds that inhibit carbohydrate-processing enzymes and can interrupt disease processes.

The team is already working with US-based drug company Inologic to develop one of the world's first drugs to treat cystic fibrosis.

Other companies are developing carbohydrate-based treatments for diseases such as thrombosis, anaemia and cancer.

NZP already licenses one carbohydrate synthesis technology from Industrial Research and has developed the product into a million-dollar business through sales to international biotechnology companies.

It hopes to create a snowball effect with this project.

NZP was established more than 30 years ago. It has a staff of 80 and its core business has traditionally been the extraction and purification of animal-derived biochemicals.

Managing director Richard Garland said the new direction represented an exciting commercial opportunity for the company.

"This project gives us the means to become a key player in a valuable niche global market," he said.

The project has the backing of Technology New Zealand, which will contribute $1.5 million and New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, which will add an extra $500,000.

The project has a three-year time frame.