Hybrigenics divests patents to focus on USPs

Paris, France-based Hybrigenics says that it is concentrating its research efforts on ubiquitin-specific proteases (USPs) and their inhibitors in cancer, as a result of which it has divested the patent portfolio of Semaia, its Dutch subsidiary, on the Wnt-pathway and the EPAC targets.

USPs are a family of cysteine-proteases implicated in the regulation of protein degradation, a natural area of expertise for Hybrigenics since its foundation in the study of protein-protein interactions. Breakdown of proteins regulates many important cellular functions, including cell proliferation. Hybrigenics scientists have identified and validated several USPs involved in the control of cell proliferation. Because uncontrolled cell proliferation is one of the hallmarks of cancer, these selected USPs represent particularly attractive new targets for cancer therapeutics. Hybrigenics researchers have also discovered and patented original chemical families of USP inhibitors exhibiting antiproliferative activity and currently undergoing lead optimization in vivo.