About WEHI

Strong science in cytokines, molecular signalling and cell death leads to effective drug targets

Track record

WEHI’s mission is Mastery of disease through discovery. By focusing resources on molecules identified as most likely to have clinical application and working through effective collaborations, WEHI has become the leading discoverer of validated novel drug targets in Australia and has established a world position.

Prominent successes include Granulocyte-Colony Stimulating Factor (G-CSF) and Granulocyte Macrophage-Colony Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF), discovered in the 1980s, now with combined global sales well in excess of $2 billion. Leukemia Inhibitory Factor (LIF), discovered in the 1990s, is being commercialised by Serono for several reproductive health indications. Zenyth Therapeutics (formerly AMRAD) is developing GM-CSF receptor antagonists for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

Research focus

A key focus continues to be cytokines (chemical messengers between cells) and the signalling circuitry within cells that ensures appropriate responses to these vital molecules. The examples below illustrate how integration of world class research in genetics, molecular biology, structural biology and animal models at WEHI is making a major contribution to the identification of novel targets for new drugs and therapies for major human diseases.

• Suppressors of Cytokine Signalling (SOCS) proteins, discovered at WEHI, serve to dampen the proliferative response of cells and keep it within appropriate bounds. Several of these molecules have been validated as targets for the design of inhibitors to treat, for example, autoimmune and infectious diseases.
• Triggering of the cytokine IL-13 receptor α1, discovered at WEHI within the CRC for Cellular Growth Factors, in which Zenyth Therapeutics is the commercial partner, plays an essential role in the development of asthma. Zenyth Therapeutics/Medarex have recently entered into an agreement to develop antagonists to this receptor for therapeutic intervention.
• In a new drug development program, world-leading molecular and structural biologists at WEHI have combined forces to target molecules at the heart of the inbuilt cell death program. Such “upstream” targets are likely to provide safer and more effective therapeutics to promote the demise of cancer and autoimmune cells on the one hand, and prevent untoward cell death in degenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s on the other.
• Overactive signalling by the Epidermal Growth Factor (EGF) receptor family plays an important role in many cancers, including breast cancer. WEHI was an integral part of the team that won the global race to determine the structure of two of these receptors. These detailed molecular maps will now enable the team to develop a new class of anti-cancer drugs based on rational drug design. The strategy is to search for small molecules that bind tightly to the receptor and block its activation.

Future

These examples from the new frontiers of medical research illustrate how more effective therapies will be discovered, based upon detailed knowledge of the “signals” and “switches” controlling biological responses.

---

Back to the top...

---

This page was last modified 09:15 AM (EST) on Wednesday, December 7, 2005.

---