Luciole Pharmaceuticals, a startup company focused on the discovery and development of small molecules that enhance the repair of oxidative damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), and Cyclica, the partner of choice for data-driven drug discovery, today announced a research collaboration aimed at accelerating the discovery of small molecule agonists of OGG1 (8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase), the key enzyme in initiation of base excision repair (BER) of both nuclear and mtDNA. Luciole will use Cyclica's platform to screen, identify, design and evaluate compounds directed at OGG1 for the treatment of neurodegenerative and other diseases of aging.

"Luciole aims to be the premier mitochondrial repair company by applying state-of-theart technology and an efficient, virtual company approach to developing novel medicines. We are pleased to be using Cyclica's first in class polypharmacology and AI enabled platform to efficiently identify new molecules with disease-modifying potential. The collaboration with Cyclica will jump start our drug discovery and development program to enable the acquisition of financial resources, implementation of medicinal chemistry and biology and create a leading mitochondrial drug discovery and development platform for the future." — Dennis I. Goldberg, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer at Luciole Pharmaceuticals.

"Our collaboration with Luciole, to accelerate the discovery of novel therapeutics to address various neurodegenerative disorders, will further complement Cyclica's overall mandate, to build the biotech pipeline of the future by embracing the complexity of disease. This partnership will foster Luciole's strong expertise in mitochondrial DNA repair and Cyclica's multi-objective design platform and complementary program offerings to address therapeutic gaps for patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases.'' — Dr. Vern De Biasi, Chief Partnership Officer. 

About Luciole Pharmaceuticals

Luciole Pharmaceuticals is a startup biotech company developing novel therapeutics to repair damaged mtDNA, a critical aspect of the aging process.  Mitochondria provide all mammalian cells with energy, and healthy mitochondria are essential to healthy tissues and longevity.  A natural by-product of this essential function is the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS).  The mitochondrial genome (mtDNA) is physically tethered to the primary site of ROS generation.   Oxidative damage to mtDNA is an inexorable aspect of human aging, causing mitochondrial dysfunction, mtDNA breakdown, activation of the innate immune system -- and ultimately cell death.  Luciole is the first company to focus on enhancing the repair of oxidatively damaged mtDNA.

Luciole's technology is based on the cutting-edge work of Dr. Rumsey, Luciole's cofounder, in collaboration with Vilhelm Bohr, M.D., Ph.D., Chief of the Laboratory on Molecular Gerontology at the National Institute on Aging, and of co-founders, R. Stephen Lloyd and Amanda K. McCullough at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU).  Luciole was formed as a spinout from OHSU with exclusive, worldwide license to commercialize proprietary small molecule OGG1 activators based on the Lloyd/McCullough discoveries. For further information, visit www.luciolepharma.com.

About Cyclica 

Cyclica is the partner of choice for data-driven drug discovery. We advance molecules that embrace the complexity of disease. Our work spans dozens of collaborations with large pharma and biotech as well as several joint ventures. We are a passionate team of biotech and pharma professionals, biologists, chemists, and computer scientists who live and labour at the intersection of our collective expertise. To learn more about Cyclica and how we partner, please visit www.cyclicarx.com.

Source: Luciole Pharmaceuticals