Cancer Research Horizons and Diamond Light Source establish drug discovery partnership

• Partnership strengthens existing relationship to establish a world-leading fragment-based drug discovery programme
• The combined expertise of both organisations will accelerate hit discovery to identify potent candidates for cancer treatments
• Governance framework to help drive engagement around fragment-screening by X-ray crystallography from pharma and biotech partners across the industry

LONDON, UK, 10 December 2024 – Cancer Research Horizons, the innovation arm of Cancer Research UK, is partnering with Diamond Light Source, the UK’s national synchrotron, to build a world-leading fragment-based drug discovery programme.

Diamond Light Source accelerates electrons to near light speed, producing bright light that is directed into research instruments known as beamlines. Cancer Research Horizons and its drug discovery site at Newcastle University have already been using Diamond’s beamlines and XChem facility for fragment-based screening, a powerful approach to identify chemical entities that can be developed rapidly into potent candidates.

The new partnership will build on this existing relationship to improve the throughput, running and analysis of these experiments. By leveraging their combined expertise and resources, the partnership aims to accelerate the drug discovery process and help bring new cancer treatments to patients faster.

Under the agreement, Cancer Research Horizons will fund two on-site postdoctoral research assistants dedicated to optimising the delivery of its in-house and industry-partnered projects. In return, Diamond will provide early access to any proprietary developments to its platform.

The partnership will establish a governance framework to enable Cancer Research Horizons to provide feedback on the industrialisation of Diamond’s Fragment Screening platform. This initiative aims to enhance its appeal to Cancer Research Horizons’ pharmaceutical and biotech partners, driving broader industry engagement.

Andrew Turnbull, Group Leader, Structural Biology, Cancer Research Horizons, said: “We are delighted to establish a partnership with Diamond Light Source to capitalise on its XChem fragment screening pipeline, which will synergise with our in-house small-molecule drug discovery capabilities, and enable us to identify chemical starting points against our portfolio of cancer targets to accelerate the delivery of new medicines for patient benefit.”

Elizabeth Shotton, Diamond Light Source’s Head of Industrial Liaison, said: “We are thrilled to partner with Cancer Research Horizons to advance fragment-based drug discovery. By combining our cutting-edge synchrotron technology with the expertise of Cancer Research Horizons, we aim to support the development of new cancer treatments. This collaboration underscores our commitment to leveraging scientific innovation for impactful healthcare solutions.”

Martin Noble, Professor of Structural Biology and Anti-Cancer Drug Discovery at Newcastle University, said: “Scientists in Newcastle are excited to be part of a partnership that brings together expertise and excellence across multiple sites with a shared ambition of accelerating the discovery of new cancer medicines.”