CHDI, Lundbeck enter collaboration to investigate targeted therapy for Huntington's disease

CHDI Foundation, Inc. and Lundbeck today announced a research collaboration to investigate a targeted therapy for Huntington's disease (HD). Currently, no treatment exists to slow or halt the progression of HD, a challenging hereditary neurodegenerative disease characterized by a triad of behavioral, cognitive, and motor symptoms.

“We look forward to working with this distinguished group of scientists who share our dedication to the HD community”

As part of the collaboration CHDI will conduct pre-clinical studies on a Lundbeck investigative compound. Research will focus on the compound's effect on P2X receptors that may be involved in HD. The study results will influence future research into this and other compounds for HD.

"One of our important functions at CHDI is to seek out promising research ideas in the HD field, and this includes this interesting new work on Lundbeck's compound. Lundbeck is well established in central nervous system drug research and development, and we're looking forward to tapping their expertise," noted Ignacio Munoz-Sanjuan, Vice President, Translational Biology at CHDI. "Lundbeck has a proven track record of not only bringing new therapies to market but also working to support the needs of their patient communities. We hope this research collaboration provides a stepping stone for future therapies that slow the progression of HD."

CHDI is a privately-funded, not-for-profit biomedical research organization that works with an international network of scientists to discover and develop therapies for HD. The organization actively enables HD research by collaborating with research organizations and pharmaceutical companies conducting promising research, often providing financial support. CHDI activities include exploratory biology, clinical studies and trials, and educational workshops. Cooperation is key to finding therapies for HD, which is why CHDI works with a variety of researchers within the HD research community.

"We look forward to working with this distinguished group of scientists who share our dedication to the HD community," said Staffan Schüberg, president of Lundbeck. "CHDI is a beacon of hope for the HD community and devotes itself entirely to finding therapies that have the potential to improve the lives of HD families. Given our shared commitment, we are thrilled to partner with them and hope that our research will lead to advancements in HD therapeutic options. We are also pleased that this announcement coincides with HD Awareness Month to help draw attention to the need to find therapies for this degenerative neurological disease."

This collaboration is part of Lundbeck's continued commitment to its HD Research Initiative, launched in 2010 to identify and ultimately commercialize therapies that may slow or halt the progression of the disease. The initiative is driven by collaborations with academic institutions, research organizations and companies that share Lundbeck's ongoing commitment to the HD community. In 2011, Lundbeck and the University of Massachusetts Medical School began to investigate RNAi-based therapies to suppress the production of mutant huntingtin (mHtt), the abnormal protein that causes HD. Those conducting early-stage HD research and interested in exploring opportunities to collaborate with Lundbeck should send an email to [email protected].