CAMBRIDGE, U.K., July 7, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Astex Technology, the fragment-based drug discovery company, today announced that it has extended its existing research collaboration agreement with AstraZeneca AB (NYSE AZN) in the area of cytochrome P450s. Under the terms of the 3-year extension, Astex will continue to apply its high-throughput X-ray crystallography (HTX(R)) technology to obtain crystal structures of human cytochrome P450s alone and in complex with AstraZeneca's compounds. Financial details were not disclosed.
"We are delighted to extend our existing collaboration with AstraZeneca which was the first corporate partner to join our P450 Program in 2001," commented Tim Haines, Astex's CEO. "This is a tremendous validation of the unique expertise of Astex in the P450 field and reflects the considerable successes we have achieved in the last two years including solving the first crystal structures of human cytochrome P450s. The unique and proprietary position we have established not only allows us to look at how drugs binds to these key metabolizing enzymes but is also opening up entirely new opportunities for Astex in the area of P450 drug activation and drug rescue. We are pleased that AstraZeneca's drug discovery efforts will also continue to benefit from the application of this unique knowledge. "
About Astex
Astex is a fragment-based drug discovery company pioneering the use of high-throughput X-ray crystallography for the rapid identification of novel drug candidates. The Company's unique fragment-based drug discovery approach, termed Pyramida, utilizes protein crystal structures to detect the binding of drug fragments, which are then optimized into potent lead compounds. Facilitating this approach is Astex's integrated drug discovery platform, which covers all aspects of structure-based drug discovery including protein production, crystallization, structure determination, bioinformatics, computational and medicinal chemistry and biology and DMPK. Astex is focusing its drug discovery approaches on proprietary and public domain protein targets from families and/or pathways. This includes validated kinases, phosphatases and proteases implicated in human disease. Astex has drug discovery collaborations with Schering AG, AstraZeneca, Mitsubishi Pharma and with the Institute of Cancer Research, UK and Cancer Research Technology, has further research agreements with another large pharmaceutical company, and has structural biology research agreements with AstraZeneca, Aventis Pharmaceuticals and Mitsubishi Pharma focused on solving novel cytochrome P450 crystal structures.
Astex Technology Noonan Russo Presence
Mr Timothy Haines Veronica Cefis Sellar
Chief Executive
Email: Email:veronica.sellar@eurorscg.com
t.haines@astex-technology.com
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7726 4452
Dr Jeremy Carmichael Web: www.nrp-euro.com
Associate Director Business
Development
Email:
j.carmichael@astex-technology.com
Tel: +44 (0) 1223 226200
Web: www.astex-technology.com
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