CDRD, NGDI-UBC collaborate to combine existing approved drugs to better treat TB

One year after The Centre for Drug Research and Development (CDRD) and the Neglected Global Diseases Initiative at the University of British Columbia (NGDI-UBC) came together to develop interventions for neglected global diseases, a project to combine existing approved drugs to better treat Tuberculosis (TB) has emerged as the collaboration's leading prospect.

TB is the second leading cause of death by infectious disease in adults worldwide and it is estimated that one third of the world's population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb). Research by UBC's Drs. Santiago Ram-n‐Garc-a and Charles Thompson has found a synergistic combination of two known drugs (used for other therapeutic applications but never before to treat TB) capable of inhibiting Mtb growth, while neither of these drugs have any effect on their own against Mtb.

"Although this partnership is still relatively young," said Dr. Kishor M. Wasan, Director and Co-Founder, NGDI-UBC and Professor and Associate Dean, Research and Graduate Studies, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences, UBC, "it is already proving to be very valuable in this global fight."

The partnership brings together CDRD's drug development platform and commercialization know-how with NGDI-UBC's extensive network of expertise that extends across broad disciplinary boundaries. This partnership thereby augments each organization's ongoing drug development efforts in partnership with world leading scientists, all with a mind to ensuring reasonable, fair and affordable access for developing countries.

In collaboration with CDRD's screening division, Drs. Ram-n‐Garc-a and Thompson introduced the concept of in TB drug development. They identified 14 combinations of known drugs that acted in synergy when inhibiting Mtb growth in vitro and within macrophages. These were then further analyzed to identify combinations with suitable pharmacokinetic properties. One of them has now been chosen as the lead combination to be taken forward into in vivo proof of concept studies.

"Collaborating with CDRD has provided us with access to a new array of drug development infrastructure and expertise," said Dr. Ram-n‐Garc-a. "It has also brought new funding to our research through the CDRD-Pfizer Innovation Fund. Through CDRD, we now have one of the world's top pharmaceutical companies behind us as a key partner."

"This project is really just the beginning for the CDRD-NGDI partnership," said Karimah Es Sabar, Senior Vice President, Business and Strategic Affairs, CDRD. "We have several additional highly-promising projects in the pipeline focused on developing therapies for some of the world's most devastating illnesses, and we know that more exciting news will soon follow."

Source: The Centre for Drug Research and Development