Serono and Graffinity to Partner on Drug Discovery

(Geneva, Switzerland). Novel therapeutics will be sought for a variety of fields, including immunology and reproductive health.

Under the agreement, Serono will provide five target proteins to Graffinity, which will apply its proprietary RAISE (rapid affinity instructed structure evolution) technology and drug-fragment chemical microarrays to identify and evolve small molecule lead structures. Serono will have the option to have full ownership of any lead structures generated by Graffinity, but Graffinity will retain the right to develop compounds for which Serono does not exercise its option. Graffinity could receive fees of up to 40 million euros over a period of time, based on the achievement of all specific preclinical and clinical milestones. In addition, Graffinity has the potential to receive royalties on any products Serono commercializes as a result of this collaboration.

"Fragment-based rug discovery is an exciting new approach to finding therapeutic leads with novel modes of action,” said Dr. Tim Wells, senior executive vice president of research, Serono. "We have been impressed with the Graffinity research team and look forward to collaborating with them on a number of high priority targets.”





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