Zucara signs licensing deal with CDRD for therapeutic drug candidate

CDRD and Zucara are working in partnership to develop unique compounds that will lead to a new safe and effective long-term therapeutic approach as the first once-daily therapeutic to prevent hypoglycemia in patients with diabetes.

The compounds are pre-clinical first-in-class novel antagonists with the demonstrated potential to specifically block somatostatin type 2 receptors thereby preventing hypoglycemia and restoring a natural glucagon response. This method offers a clear advantage over current approaches which are more rescue in nature.

Zucara’s CEO Michael Midmer said: “This new license is an important step forward in bringing a new drug therapy closer to patients living with diabetes as it will enable us to access a promising lead drug candidate and position us to start clinical trials as early as 2018.

“We believe this approach will dramatically change the treatment of hypoglycemia and improve long-term patient health.”

CDRD Project Champion and Zucara Chief Scientific Officer Richard Liggins said: “We are very pleased that our innovative approach to develop new potential drug therapies is moving closer to clinical trials.

“Zucara, with our partner MaRS Innovation, has an opportunity to be part of the next evolution in diabetes therapies and accelerated advancement of a Canadian-based technology built on the discoveries of Banting and Best almost 100 years ago.”

Further validation of the lead drug candidate and in vivo studies are ongoing. Zucara will be seeking Series A funding in early 2017 to take the company through Phase I clinical trials which are expected to start in 2018.

CDRD’s technology development efforts were funded in part through the Genome BC-CDRD Development Fund.