Drug design service agreement signed

Carna Biosciences, a Japanese biotech company that provides intercellular signalling-based drug discovery services, and CrystalGenomics, a biopharmaceutical company specialising in structure-based drug discovery, have signed a service agreement with Rigel Pharmaceuticals in the field of structure-based drug design.

Detailed structural analysis of disease targets, in the presence or absence of their putative therapeutic compounds, has become a key part of the structure-based drug discovery processes now favoured by many biopharmaceutical companies, particularly those investigating the modulation of known protein kinases, where detailed, 3-D structural information provides the ability to optimise compounds 'rapidly, rationally, and efficiently'.

Carna and CrystalGenomics initiated their collaborative promotion of crystallographic products and services in February 2005. 'This is a major step forward in our quest to be recognised as a "one-stop-shop" for kinase-related products and services, 'said Kohichiro Yoshino, president and ceo, Carna.