ChemBio seminar by Prof. Mark Carr (Leicester) - CH-635
Title: Pioneering Antibody-Assisted Drug Discovery
Abstract:
Antibody-assisted drug discovery (A2D2) approaches have the potential to revolutionise knowledge-based drug discovery drug, delivering huge social, economic and healthcare benefits. In collaboration with scientists at UCB Biopharma and LifeArc, we have pioneered the development and application of antibody-assisted drug discovery approaches to a diverse range of fully validated protein therapeutic targets, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-13 (IL-13) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1). Diverse panels of antigen binding domains from heavy chain only llama antibodies have been isolated for a range of therapeutic target proteins from a naïve library generated by UCB Biopharma, which has allowed the identification and stabilisation of rare but functionally important conformational states, together with the identification of new allosteric regulatory sites. The seminar will present recent examples of this work and illustrate new opportunities identified for drug discovery.
Speaker's biography:
Professor Mark Carr has managed a successful structural biology and protein science research group for nearly 30 years (integrated NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography), which has concentrated on determining the structures, functions, interactions and mechanisms of action of proteins and protein complexes involved in key biological processes of significant medical importance, including the characterisation of interactions with potential new therapeutic antibodies and small molecule drugs. For the last 10 years work within the group has focussed on making a major contribution to the discovery, design and development of important new drugs through close collaboration with pharmaceutical companies such as UCB Biopharma and translational charities such as LifeArc and Cancer Research UK. This includes the pioneering of innovative new approaches to drug discovery, such as antibody-assisted drug discovery.
A long-standing research partnership between Prof. Carr’s group and research scientists at UCB Biopharma has shown that detailed protein structural and epitope information obtained by NMR spectroscopy-based approaches can contribute to the selection, mechanistic understanding and patent protection of new therapeutic antibodies. This has made major contributions to the development of several new therapeutic antibodies, including Cimzia (anti-tumour necrosis factor α), Evenity (anti-sclerostin) and Bimekizumab (anti-interleukin-17A and interleukin-17F), collectively providing effective treatment options for a range of major human diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, psoriasis and osteoporosis. His group have also made major structural biology contributions to therapeutic antibody discovery projects with LifeArc and the Cancer Research UK-AstraZeneca Antibody Alliance Laboratory.
Lab website: https://le.ac.uk/people/mark-carr
Abstract:
Antibody-assisted drug discovery (A2D2) approaches have the potential to revolutionise knowledge-based drug discovery drug, delivering huge social, economic and healthcare benefits. In collaboration with scientists at UCB Biopharma and LifeArc, we have pioneered the development and application of antibody-assisted drug discovery approaches to a diverse range of fully validated protein therapeutic targets, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin-13 (IL-13) and programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1). Diverse panels of antigen binding domains from heavy chain only llama antibodies have been isolated for a range of therapeutic target proteins from a naïve library generated by UCB Biopharma, which has allowed the identification and stabilisation of rare but functionally important conformational states, together with the identification of new allosteric regulatory sites. The seminar will present recent examples of this work and illustrate new opportunities identified for drug discovery.
Speaker's biography:
Professor Mark Carr has managed a successful structural biology and protein science research group for nearly 30 years (integrated NMR spectroscopy and X-ray crystallography), which has concentrated on determining the structures, functions, interactions and mechanisms of action of proteins and protein complexes involved in key biological processes of significant medical importance, including the characterisation of interactions with potential new therapeutic antibodies and small molecule drugs. For the last 10 years work within the group has focussed on making a major contribution to the discovery, design and development of important new drugs through close collaboration with pharmaceutical companies such as UCB Biopharma and translational charities such as LifeArc and Cancer Research UK. This includes the pioneering of innovative new approaches to drug discovery, such as antibody-assisted drug discovery.
A long-standing research partnership between Prof. Carr’s group and research scientists at UCB Biopharma has shown that detailed protein structural and epitope information obtained by NMR spectroscopy-based approaches can contribute to the selection, mechanistic understanding and patent protection of new therapeutic antibodies. This has made major contributions to the development of several new therapeutic antibodies, including Cimzia (anti-tumour necrosis factor α), Evenity (anti-sclerostin) and Bimekizumab (anti-interleukin-17A and interleukin-17F), collectively providing effective treatment options for a range of major human diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease, psoriasis and osteoporosis. His group have also made major structural biology contributions to therapeutic antibody discovery projects with LifeArc and the Cancer Research UK-AstraZeneca Antibody Alliance Laboratory.
Lab website: https://le.ac.uk/people/mark-carr
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free