Date: 2015-09-11
Type of information: Opening of new premises
Compound: CRUK-MEDI Alliance Laboratory
Company: Medimmune (USA - global biologics arm of AstraZeneca (UK) Cancer Research UK (UK) Cancer Research Technology (CRT) (UK)
Therapeutic area: Cancer - Oncology
Type agreement: opening of new premises - collaboration
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- • On September 11, 2015, Medimmune and Cancer Research Uk announced that a new laboratory that will focus on the discovery and development of novel biologic cancer treatments and diagnostics has been opened this week in Cambridge by life sciences minister George Freeman MP. The state-of-the-art CRUK-MEDI Alliance Laboratory, located on Granta Park, is an innovative collaboration between Cancer Research UK, its commercial arm Cancer Research Technology, and MedImmune, the global biologics research and development arm of AstraZeneca.
- In this partnership, both Cancer Research UK and MedImmune scientists will work together in the laboratory and collaborate closely to share knowledge and expertise to discover and develop novel biologics to treat and diagnose cancer. The alliance will bring together MedImmune’s world-class human antibody phage display libraries and protein-engineering expertise with Cancer Research UK’s cancer biology expertise. Cancer Research UK has provided the equipment and operational funding for the laboratory and will contribute a portfolio of novel drug targets through its extensive network of principal investigators. MedImmune will manage the drug discovery process for accepted projects.
- Dr Maria Groves, head of the CRUK-MEDI Alliance Laboratory and associate director at MedImmune, said: “This laboratory is truly a collaborative approach and its success will depend on three key factors: the application of our high-quality and diverse phage display libraries; designing a drug discovery process that will enable us to find specific potent antibodies with the right mechanism against the disease target and, finally, building a network of principal investigators who will have the opportunity to generate novel ideas for oncology therapeutics. We are driven to engineer the best antibodies and identify which components of cancer make the best targets for treatment. There’s a lot of ground to cover and we’re delighted to be working in partnership to advance this exciting field.
- • On 25 September 2014, AstraZeneca announced that MedImmune, its global biologics research and development arm, and Cancer Research UK, with its commercial arm, Cancer Research Technology (CRT), have entered into an innovative collaboration to establish a joint laboratory in Cambridge, UK. The new laboratory, representing a first of its kind partnership for both organisations, will focus on the discovery and development of novel biologic cancer treatments over an initial five-year period. As part of the collaboration, scientists from both organisations will work side-by-side on multiple oncology projects at the new CRUK-MEDI Alliance Laboratory. Cancer Research UK, will provide set-up and operational funding for the laboratory and will contribute a portfolio of novel drug targets together with a team of scientists. MedImmune will oversee the laboratory activities and provide access to its human antibody phage display libraries and established antibody-engineering technologies. The joint team will share knowledge and expertise to discover and develop antibodies to treat cancer.
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