Novochizol wins at novel drug delivery solutions contest by Boehringer Ingelheim

Novochizol SA, a biotech company with a unique chitosan-based drug formulation nanotechnology, today announced that it has been selected as one of the winners of the opnMe “innovative drug delivery solutions” contest. opnMe.com is Boehringer-Ingelheim’s open innovation platform providing free access to a well-characterized set of preclinical molecules, to benefit drug discovery. In addition, scientists are invited to submit their research proposals as part of calls for collaboration for select molecules which are shared only for a brief period on opnMe.com. The objective of a recent call was to stimulate scientific understanding, and development of potential new technologies, for delivery of compounds with challenging solubility. Of some seventy proposals submitted by various research groups, nineteen were selected, among which is Novochizol’s first-in- class technology of drug impregnation and emulsification.

According to opnMe group has the poor solubility of drug candidates consistently been a challenge in the discovery and development of novel medicines for patients. Designing and implementing strategies to address solubility challenges can require significant effort and time, a difficult task during candidate selection or early development when speed is essential. For academic researchers and technology developers the frustrating issue is access to contemporary drug candidates. The absence of such materials leads to feasibility programs using a set of well-worn model compounds that have limited relevance to current molecules.  The opnMe challenge aims to change this practice with the provision of a unique set of novel late-stage drug candidates to encourage and stimulate research and development to solve future solubility issues.

Novochizol API formulations have many interesting characteristics: bioadhesion at the site of administration, sustained release without systemic distribution, intracellular transport of active ingredients. But the most intriguing finding is Novochizol’s ability to formulate all classes of APIs: small molecules, nucleic acids, peptides, proteins, even viruses and cells. compound that cannot be formulated has yet to be found.

“We are thrilled to have been selected as one of the winners in a contest that is in essence a challenge to formulate very recalcitrant APIs. Of course, successful formulation of a drug candidate is only one of the many steppingstones in the complex journey of drug development. But it is an essential one, for even the most effective API offers no benefit if it cannot reach its biological target in a real-world setting. Winning this contest is thus ultimately about bringing to patients novel medicines that otherwise would never see the day”, said Yvan (Vanya) Loroch, CEO Novochizol SA.

Novochizol SA is now launching formulation experiments involving five Boehringer Ingelheim late-stage drug candidates with diverse physicochemical properties and a range of mechanistic targets.