We are delighted to report that Prof David Brook, a scientist working on myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1), has received a major award to a value exceeding £3million from the Wellcome Trust, one of the UK’s major funders of biomedical research dedicated to improving health.
In 2008, Muscular Dystrophy UK awarded Prof Brook a two-year project grant to develop a cell-based drug screen for DM1. During this project, Prof Brook and colleagues searched for compounds that could improve the molecular features of DM1. They then further studied these compounds for their potential as drugs to treat DM1.
Building on the work carried out during this project, Prof Brook secured a further grant from the Medical Research Council. During this follow-up project, he and his colleagues identified small molecules that target a novel protein and significantly reduced the molecular features of DM1.
In this new Seeding Drug Discovery project funded by the Wellcome Trust, Prof Brook will be targeting this novel protein by generating unique molecules that are selective and more suitable to be taken orally by patients.
If this approach is successful, Prof Brook and colleagues hope to develop a drug that would target most features of the condition.
This is a great example of how a small project grant can generate the knowledge necessary for securing a large drug discovery project that could potentially lead to new therapies.
Read more on the Muscular Dystrophy UK website here >> http://www.musculardystrophyuk.org/news/news/muscular-dystrophy-uk-supported-scientist-gets-multi-million-pound-grant-from-the-wellcome-trust/