Alchemia licenses VAST tech to SDP

Australian drug developer Alchemia has entered into a drug-discovery agreement with Melbourne-based SDP Technology to develop anticancer  drugs targeting the enzyme sphingosine kinase 1 (SK1) using Alchemia's  VAST chemistry.

Under the terms of the deal, SDP will have rights to the structural data  from the initial screen and to develop molecules using Alchemia's VAST  chemistry. In exchange for these, Alchemia will be granted 5% of the  fully-diluted equity in SDP with a further equal tranche of shares and  options if a molecule based on its chemistry is advanced into the  clinic.

SDP has screened a library of compounds synthesized by Alchemia that are  specifically designed to inhibit the kinase family of enzymes. As a  result, SDP has identified a number of compounds with promising activity  against SK1. More detailed analysis of those compounds is now underway.