CRT - Development Laboratories

CRT's biotherapeutic and drug discovery laboratories are based at the prestigious Wolfson Institute for Biomedical Research at University College London. Our laboratories build on exploratory research to create attractive commercial opportunities through collaboration with research institutes worldwide.

We develop potential small molecule and biological cancer therapies from the discovery stage as far as in vivo proof of concept studies. With more than 45 highly experienced scientists drawn from pharma, biotech and academia, CRT has knowledge and expertise in all areas of early drug discovery and biotherapeutic development.

Projects are actively managed, according to a development plan and agreed milestones, by CRT's Senior Scientists with support from our Scientific Advisory Board. Therapeutic candidates are out-licensed for further development following identification of a suitable partner.

Track Record

Our R&D programmes are pivotal for the progression of drug discovery and biotherapeutic programmes originating from academic cancer research and have resulted in the completion of licenses with international biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Two example case studies of biotherapeutic development and drug discovery, Magic Roundabout and PKD, exemplify some of the ways in which CRT initiates development of new cancer therapies and diagnostics.

Current Development Programmes

A wide and expanding pipeline of therapeutics is actively under development within CRT’s laboratories. Development programmes focus on novel targets in areas such as signal transduction, DNA repair, angiogenesis, DNA vaccines and epigenetics.

Strategic Commercial Alliances

To complement and extend our in-house capabilities, CRT has formed strategic alliances with specialist drug discovery companies. Through such partnerships, specialist expertise in structure-based and natural product-based drug development is applied to our programmes.

Development Funding

Development funds have been established by CRT and Cancer Research UK as one route to support the translation of academic research from target drug discovery to preclinical development. This funding can facilitate collaborative drug discovery programmes with CRT's laboratories.