Oxford Biomedica and VIB-K.U. Leuven annouce collaborative research project funded by the Motor Neurone Disease Association
Oxford BioMedica, VIB and the UK Motor Neurone Disease Association (MND Association) announced the award by MND Association of a research grant to support the further preclinical evaluation of MoNuDin® for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease). The grant is for £255,000 and will fund a collaborative project between Oxford BioMedica and the research group of Professor Peter Carmeliet, Director of the VIB Vesalius Research Center and Professor of medicine at K.U. Leuven.
The collaboration will utilise Oxford BioMedica’s advanced LentiVector® gene delivery technology to compare the therapeutic potential of two forms of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Previous preclinical studies carried out by Oxford BioMedica and VIB, also funded by the MND Association, have shown that one form of VEGF delayed disease onset, slowed disease progression and extended life expectancy in ALS research models. This project will also evaluate the optimal delivery protocol for these gene therapy approaches.
MoNuDin® is based on Oxford BioMedica’s advanced LentiVector® gene delivery technology and is designed to protect motor neurones susceptible to degeneration as a result of ALS through the delivery of a neuroprotective VEGF gene. Oxford BioMedica is also conducting further preclinical studies of MoNuDin® in the area of ALS in collaboration with the ALS Therapy Development Institute.
Oxford BioMedica’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr Stuart Naylor, commented: “We are delighted to have received funding from the MND Association for this exciting collaborative project on the further development of MoNuDin®. We are also very pleased to be working again with the excellent research team of Professor Carmeliet at VIB. Together we aim to further the preclinical development of MoNuDin® and accelerate its progression to clinical studies.”
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Topic world Gene therapy
Genetic diseases once considered untreatable are now at the center of innovative therapeutic approaches. Research and development of gene therapies in biotech and pharma aim to directly correct or replace defective or missing genes to combat disease at the molecular level. This revolutionary approach promises not only to treat symptoms, but to eliminate the cause of the disease itself.
Topic world Gene therapy
Genetic diseases once considered untreatable are now at the center of innovative therapeutic approaches. Research and development of gene therapies in biotech and pharma aim to directly correct or replace defective or missing genes to combat disease at the molecular level. This revolutionary approach promises not only to treat symptoms, but to eliminate the cause of the disease itself.