- The initiative focuses on ALS drug discovery using a jointly developed evaluation technology.
- ALS affects around 10,000 people in Japan with a life expectancy of 3-5 years post-onset.
- The technology uses patient-induced pluripotent stem cells to address ALS's diverse pathological states.
- The project is part of Japan's GAPFREE initiative to expedite drug discovery.
Initiative Overview
Toray Industries and Aichi Medical University have launched an open innovation framework to advance drug discovery for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This collaboration aims to accelerate research and development by partnering with pharmaceutical companies.
ALS Impact
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, leads to motor neuron damage, causing muscle atrophy and weakness. In Japan, approximately 10,000 individuals are affected, with an average life expectancy of three to five years after onset. Despite ongoing research, a fundamental treatment remains elusive due to the disease's diverse manifestations.
Technological Development
The collaboration has resulted in a drug efficacy evaluation technology based on patient-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived motor neuron cell culture. This technology addresses the varying pathological states of ALS and is part of the GAPFREE initiative, which supports drug discovery through industry-academia-government partnerships under the Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development.
Research and Collaboration
The developed technology serves as a platform to accurately evaluate and predict the efficacy of new drug candidates, potentially improving success rates in drug discovery. Toray has created an integrated evaluation system with customized equipment and workflows for high-precision data acquisition. The initiative will foster joint research with pharmaceutical companies to assess the efficacy of their drug candidates, aiming to accelerate the development of effective ALS treatments.
