Medivir AB has announced that it has entered a research collaboration with the Drug Discovery and Development Platform (DDD) at SciLifeLab on potential inhibitors of SARS CoV-2. Through the collaboration, DDD will get access to Medivir’s unique proprietary protease-targeted compound library.

The aim of the collaboration is to find potential inhibitors of the main protease of SARS CoV-2, an essential non-structural protein, Mpro, required for virus replication. DDD will mine the Medivir-developed unique protease-targeted compound library to identify putative inhibitors and evaluate active compounds as potential drug development candidates. Data for up to 100 top-inhibitors will be released on-line and will be freely available for drug development to combat Covid-19.

The project is led by Kristian Sandberg, Associate Professor at Uppsala University, Co-Director of SciLifeLab’s DDD Platform, and principal investigator of the project Nevermore COVID. The project is part of the national COVID-19 research program at SciLifeLab, which is funded by Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation with a total of 50 MSEK. The project aims at establishing a pre-competitive, open science collaboration at SciLifeLab, engaging both industry and academic research groups in Sweden and abroad, for the discovery of antivirals for SARS CoV-2.

SciLifeLab has established a national Covid-19 research program together with universities across the country. One part of this program involves the finding of novel inhibitors and drug-leads to block the virus and its effects in human cells. This new collaboration between Medivir and SciLifeLab DDD platform is an excellent example of a public-private partnerships between industry and Swedish universities that could enrich and enhance this program” said Professor Olli Kallioniemi, Director of SciLifeLab.

We are very happy to be able to contribute some of our unique resources in the protease field to the collaborative effort addressing this important medical need together with the SciLifeLab DDD” said Professor Fredrik Öberg, Chief Scientific Officer at Medivir.

About Medivir

Medivir develops innovative drugs with a focus on cancer where the unmet medical needs are high. The drug candidates are directed toward indication areas where available therapies are limited or missing and there are great opportunities to offer significant improvements to patients. Collaborations and partnerships are important parts of Medivir's business model, and the drug development is conducted either by Medivir or in partnership. Medivir's share (ticker: MVIR) is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm's Small Cap list.

About SciLifeLab and the Drug Discovery and Development Platform

As a national hub for molecular biosciences in Sweden, SciLifeLab develops and maintains unique research infrastructure, services and data resources for life science. SciLifeLab coordinates research communities in health and environmental science, recruitment and training of young scientists, and fosters collaborations with industry, health care, public research organizations and international partners. SciLifeLab is jointly operated by its four founder universities: KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm University and Uppsala University.

The Drug Discovery and Development (DDD) Platform at SciLifeLab is a national resource focused on assisting academic researchers and, when possible, industry to progress biological discoveries into new drug candidates and potential treatments for the benefit of patients. The platform offers integrated drug discovery efforts, industry standard infrastructure, expertise, and strategic support.

Learn more about SciLifeLab