Rostra Therapeutics awarded share of £3m Cystic Fibrosis Collaborative Drug Discovery Programme

13th November 2024: Rostra Therapeutics awarded share of £3m Cystic Fibrosis Collaborative Drug Discovery Programme

4th November 2024, United Kingdom: Rostra Therapeutics are delighted to be one of the companies to be awarded a share of a £3 million Collaborative Discovery Programme (CDP) announced by the Cystic Fibrosis Antimicrobial Resistance (CF AMR) Syndicate. The CF AMR Syndicate is a cross-sector initiative that brings together leading experts in Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) from industry, academia and the clinic, along with insights from people living with CF, to accelerate the discovery and development of new and effective treatment options for people with CF. The Syndicate is jointly managed by Medicines Discovery Catapult, Cystic Fibrosis Trust and LifeArc.

Rostra Therapeutics is an early-stage life sciences company with a mission to develop a novel molecular platform technology into medicines to treat serious infectious diseases and help address the global threat of AMR. The technology platform, Strathclyde Minor Groove Binders (S-MGBs), has been developed at the University of Strathclyde and has shown high activity against fungi including all those highlighted as 'critical' in the WHO Fungal Priority Pathogen List.

Cystic fibrosis affects over 162,000 people globally, and over 11,300 in the UK. People with CF are affected by life-threatening lung infections that can permanently change lung function and reduce their quality of life. Growing resistance to antimicrobials and a lack of effective treatments means that there continues to be an urgent need to identify new therapies.

The collaboration between Rostra Therapeutics and the CF AMR Syndicate will work to identify new compounds with the potential to treat lung fungal infections in patients with cystic fibrosis, including those that are resistant to other antifungal drugs.

Dr Paula Sommer, Head of Research at Cystic Fibrosis Trust, said: "Lung infections are hard to treat due to antimicrobial resistance, which is why we're delighted to see the CF AMR Syndicate support these projects that will develop new antimicrobial treatments for CF."

Dr Beverley Isherwood, Strategy Leader, Infectious Diseases at Medicines Discovery Catapult, said: "We are delighted to be working with innovative companies like Rostra Therapeutics to accelerate vital research and find new treatments for people with CF. By supporting awardees through the early development phases to generate essential data packages, the CF AMR Syndicate's CDP will position these projects to attract onward funding and investment for further development."

Dr Catherine Kettleborough, Head of Chronic Respiratory Infection Translational Challenge at LifeArc said "Collaboration is essential to unlocking new avenues in drug discovery, especially in areas like cystic fibrosis where antimicrobial resistance poses such significant challenges. Funding research through the CF AMR Syndicate will play a crucial role in catalysing scientific progress, and we're thrilled to support Rostra Therapeutics in their work."

Professor Colin Suckling, CSO Rostra Therapeutics said: "We are delighted to be working with the scientific and clinical experts at the CF AMR Syndicate to develop our novel approach to treating life-threatening fungal lung diseases in patients living with CF. The funding will help to identify molecules that have the potential to be developed into medicines to treat patients living with CF, including those with infections caused by antimicrobial resistant pathogens."

For more information on the CF AMR Syndicate's Collaborative Discovery Programme (CDP), please visit: https://cfamr.org.uk/collaborative-discovery-programme/

For more information on Rostra Therapeutics, please visit: https://www.rostratx.com

272 Bath Street
Glasgow, Scotland, UK
G2 4JR

Rostra Therapeutics is a new life sciences company with a mission to develop a novel platform of molecules, the 2nd generation Strathclyde Minor Groove Binders (S-MGBs), into medicines to address unmet clinical need. Various S-MGBs have demonstrated efficacy against many different pathogens including fungi, viruses, bacteria and parasites. Rostra Therapeutics will create and capture value by discovering and developing novel molecules into medicines to treat a variety of serious infectious diseases.

This release was published on openPR.