OligoNova Hub: New open calls and first meeting on the way
The Swedish national initiative for oligonucleotide therapies, OligoNova Hub, which gives researchers access to cutting-edge oligonucleotide technologies and a chance to develop their results further, is currently being built at the AstraZeneca BioVentureHub innovation hub as part of the SciLifeLab Drug Discovery and Development (DDD) platform.
Therapeutic oligonucleotides are a new form of treatment based on short and highly modified RNA or DNA molecules that will open many new avenues to treat diseases where traditional drugs have failed. The unique modes-of-action of therapeutic oligonucleotides enables treatments that correct disease-causing genetic variations, and can also be used to tune the levels of specific proteins.
The DDD-platform has recently launched an open call for oligonucleotide-projects and in the coming years, therapeutic oligonucleotides will be one of four strategic focus areas (shown below) for technology development within the platform.
- Technologies facilitating Drug discovery Aided by Machine Learning (DAML)
- Technologies facilitating Therapeutic Oligonucleotides (TO)
- Technologies facilitating Display and Selection (DaS)
- Technologies facilitating development of Proximity induced agents and protein Degraders (PD)
The platform is expanding in all of these focus areas and welcomes new potential collaborators. If you are interested, please contact Kristian Sandberg (kristian.sandberg@SciLifeLab.uu.se) and/or Per Arvidsson (per.arvidsson@scilifelab.se) to initiate discussions.
As a further note, an upcoming national call for projects suitable for screening in DNA encoded chemical compound libraries combined with machine learning, is scheduled for May.
First OligoNova meeting soon to take place
OligoNova recently announced their first OligoNova Network conference, where leading Swedish oligonucleotide experts can meet face-to-face. The conference will take place at GoCo Health innovation City in Mölndal on April 25-26, 2022.
The conference will facilitate collaborations and sharing of expertise between prominent researchers, clinicians and innovators, representing approximately 40 research groups from across Swedish academia, industry, institutes, healthcare regions and SMEs.
The primary aims of the conference are:
• To coordinate and strengthen Swedish research and expertise in this area to facilitate the future development of oligonucleotide therapeutics in Sweden.
• To address challenges and catalyze collaboration opportunities relating to the development of oligonucleotides as groundbreaking therapies that benefit patients.
At the conference, the experts can start building national and international collaborations to tackle key R&D challenges and create innovative solutions, tools and knowledge that will, in turn, feed the development of novel oligonucleotide therapies.
Read the OligoNova Network conference press release
photo: Mikael Wallerstedt
