Strategic Alliances
Palkion has entered into a sponsored research agreement with CrystalGenomics (CG), whereby CG is conducting a drug discovery program based on CG’s propriety X-ray crystallography and structure-based drug-design technology to identify HIF-PH inhibitors. Palkion’s name is loosely based on the Korean word for “discovery.”
Palkion has also established a collaboration with the University of California, San Diego to conduct certain preclinical research studies.
About ProQuest
Founded in 1998, ProQuest Investments is a healthcare venture capital firm with approximately $900 million under management. It has 12 deal professionals and three offices: its headquarters in Princeton and additional offices in San Diego and Montreal.
The firm invests in healthcare companies seeking financings ranging from seed to late-stage. Its portfolio reflects the rich diversity of the healthcare industry and exemplifies its commitment to fostering the growth of exceptional businesses. In addition to its breadth of experience across many sectors of the healthcare industry, it has special expertise in therapeutics, where innovations in drug discovery technologies and molecular analysis are transforming an enormous unmet medical need. With a proven superior track record and over 40 investments in such diverse therapeutic categories as oncology, pain and infectious disease, ProQuest Investments seeks to build long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships with outstanding entrepreneurs.
At the end of 2006, ProQuest Investments closed its fourth fund of $425 million. For more information, please visit www.proquestvc.com.
About CrystalGenomics
CrystalGenomics, Inc. is a novel drug discovery and development company with several developmental candidates in the areas of cancer, inflammation and novel antibiotics. Its lead candidate, CG100649, is a next-generation non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) with high safety and efficacy, which recently completed a Phase 2a of 248 patients for osteoarthritis in Europe. CG200745 is an oral/intravenous histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitor for cancer, and CG400549 is a novel antibiotic against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA), both of which are in pre-clinical studies in Europe. The company has competitive and proprietary platform technologies for structural biology, structure-based novel scaffold/lead design, lead optimization and candidate selection with ADMET capability. CrystalGenomics is headquartered in Seoul, Korea, and its subsidiary, CG Pharmaceuticals Inc., is located in Emeryville, Calif., for U.S. and European Union clinical management. The company has several strategic alliances with pharma/biotech companies, including Daiichi-Sankyo, Carna Biosciences, OncoTherapy Sciences, SBI-Biotech, YuYu Pharma, AmorePacific and Palkion with ProQuest. CrystalGenomics is publicly held with a listing on the KOSDAQ. For more information, please visit www.cgpharma.com/.