The School of Pharmacy at the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) and Cumulus Oncology have announced a new collaboration to facilitate early-stage cancer drug discovery. The objective of this project is to develop innovative approaches for targeting different cancer-related proteins, such as small GTPases, and to apply this technology in a variety of research projects.
The DrugTech Research Community where the School of Pharmacy, UEF, plays a central role, has a long-standing history in the field of molecular modelling with a particular emphasis on long-timescale Molecular Dynamics (MD) simulations. This work is made possible by the world-class supercomputing facilities available to UEF through Finland's national centre of expertise in information technology CSC – IT Center for Science.
Cumulus Oncology is Europe’s first oncology biotech creation studio and is dedicated to developing new therapeutics for unmet need in cancer. Through its model of asset curation, new companies are created and pipelines built, with each company focusing on a specific area of biology with a clear line of sight to specific patient populations.
This collaboration represents a significant step forward in the field of small GTPase research and has the potential to yield important insights and advancements.
Clare Wareing, Cumulus CEO, commented, “The Cumulus model is to create valuable assets to tackle unmet need in cancer and the collaboration with UEF typifies this approach. We’re delighted to be collaborating with Professor Antti Poso and team.”
“I am really excited to engage in this collaboration with Cumulus Oncology, which has a huge potential to result in discoveries that can ultimately benefit cancer patients,” said Dr Tatu Pantsar, Scientific Leader of the project.
“For us, collaboration with industry is a natural way to operate, as translational aspects are extremely important in drug discovery,” added Professor Antti Poso.
“This collaboration with Cumulus Oncology is a great example of the importance of early partnership with innovative companies in finding the pathways for knowledge transfer and the utilisation of top research for the benefit of people,” summarises Dr Minna Hendolin, Director of Impact at UEF.
