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BIOASTER and DNDi join forces against Chagas disease in the ‘Met&Path’ project February 27th, 2017 PRESS RELEASE | COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE BIOASTER, the French Technology Reasearch Institute (TRI), and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi), a collaborative, patients’ needs-driven, nonprofit drug research and development organization developing new treatments for neglected diseases, announce that they are combining their expertise to better understand parasites-host interactions in a collaborative project named ‘Chagas ‘Met&Path’. The goal of ‘Chagas ‘Met&Path’ project is to better understand how Trypanosoma cruzi – the causative agent of Chagas disease – can survive and thrive in mammalian cells, looking at the metabolites (Met) and pathways (Path) involved and how drugs affect the latter. Chagas disease is a vector-borne parasitic disease caused by the kinetoplastid protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi (T.cruzi). It is primarily transmitted by large, blood-sucking reduviid insects widely known as “the kissing bugs”. This neglected tropical disease is endemic in 21 Latin American countries, and is of increasing concern worldwide, notably in the USA and Europe. Approximately 5.7 million people are infected, causing 7000 deaths per year. It is a leading cause of infectious cardiomyopathy in the world. There is no vaccine available against Chagas disease and the only drugs which successfully kill T. cruzi parasites are nifurtimox and benznidazole. Both are more than 40 years old. Although effective, they are used as long treatment regimens and cause frequent side effects. An effective, safe, new oral treatment is urgently needed. There is currently little clinical research for Chagas, and recent failures in clinical development with new drug candidates highlight that, to develop the next generation treatment, it is crucial to better understand which host pathways are hijacked by the parasite, and to characterize relevant candidate biomarkers that could be further used to monitor in vivo preclinical evaluation of new drugs. This is the ultimate aim of the ‘Chagas Met&Path’ project. During this project, we will compare the metabolic signatures of mammalian cells, infected or not, and drug-treated or not. This will be performed using cutting-edge technologies combining mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, and bioinformatics. The metabolic pathways differentially modulated under specific experimental conditions will be mapped and relevant biomarkers of infection and cure will be identified, confirmed, and quantified. BIOASTER – 40, avenue Tony Garnier - 69007 Lyon - France - Tél : +33 (0)4 69 84 26 00 www bioaster org “Joining the forces of DNDi and BIOASTER for this exciting project will be a great opportunity to tackle major technical bottlenecks and significantly contribute to finding solutions against Chagas disease”, said Cyril Guyard, Deputy CSO, BIOASTER. “This project will be an important step forward to better understand T. cruzi parasite interactions with the host in order to ultimately develop better drugs that will benefit Chagas patients”, added Robert Don, Discovery and Pre-Clinical Development Director, DNDi. About BIOASTER PRESS RELEASE | COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE BIOASTER is a Technological Research Institute (TRI), the only TRI in the healthcare field, and is also a not-for-profit scientific cooperation foundation (SCF). Created in 2012, BIOASTER offers a new model of technological innovation in microbiology and infectious diseases. Its mission is to carry out ambitious and innovative collaborative projects, with and for public and private partners, to the benefit patients. The aim of BIOASTER is to: • • conceives and develops new and innovative high -value technology in the field of microbiology and infectious diseases; promotes agility to overlap with the our partner’s expectations, and to answer innovation financial issues; Key figures: • • • • 7 interconnected technology units, to serve 4 programs: diagnostics, vaccines, antimicrobials & microbiota. Total of 2,450 m2 of BSL2 & BSL3 laboratories (Lyon & Paris); 123 employees, including 80% of scientific experts and representing 18 nationalities. 48 projects including 19 with private partners, 17 with public partners, and 10 international projects. About DNDi Established in 2003, the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) is a not-forprofit research and development (R&D) organization that develops new, improved, and affordable medicines for deadly neglected diseases that afflict millions of the world’s poorest people. DNDi focuses on discovering and developing treatments for sleeping sickness (human African trypanosomiasis), Chagas disease, leishmaniasis, filarial infections, paediatric HIV, mycetoma, and hepatitis C. In 2016, in collaboration with the World BIOASTER – 40, avenue Tony Garnier - 69007 Lyon - France - Tél : +33 (0)4 69 84 26 00 www bioaster org Health Organization, DNDi launched the Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership, a not-for-profit research and development organization to develop new antibiotic treatments addressing antimicrobial resistance and to promote their responsible use for optimal conservation, while ensuring equitable access for all. Since its inception, DNDi has developed seven new treatments for neglected patients for malaria, sleeping sickness, visceral leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, paediatric HIV with several new drug candidates in the R&D pipeline. DNDi’s objective is to deliver 16 to 18 new treatments by 2023, ensure equitable access to these treatments, and build a robust pipeline of new drug candidates. Press contacts: BIOASTER: PRESS RELEASE | COMMUNIQUE DE PRESSE Olivier CHARZAT Phone: +33 4 69 84 26 00 [email protected] DNDi : Violaine Dällenbach Phone : +41 22 907 92 47 / +41 79 424 14 74 [email protected] BIOASTER – 40, avenue Tony Garnier - 69007 Lyon - France - Tél : +33 (0)4 69 84 26 00 www bioaster org