A cooperation agreement was signed today between spin-off companies of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) and the Guangzhou General Pharmaceutical Research Institute of the Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited for the development of novel targeted anticancer drugs and other new drugs from natural sources. An effort to modernize Chinese medicine writ large, the agreement signals advances in the development of novel drugs and healthcare products.
Following 12 years of meticulous research, Prof Liang Chun, Associate Professor of the Division of Life Science and Center for Cancer Research at HKUST and his research team have decoded a new anticancer mechanism, the effectiveness of which having been validated in cell and animal models. On top of that, a screen platform for anticancer drugs was successfully set up. With the help of the research team led by Prof Jiang Zhihong of the Macau University of Science and Technology, a highly effective agent against a wide spectrum of cancers with low toxicity to normal cells was found from plant extracts. To further develop new drugs and the corresponding technologies, Prof Liang’s research team has founded Enzynomics (HK) Limited and Intelgen (HK) Limited under the aegis of Technology Transfer Center at HKUST and HKUST R&D Corporation Limited. In the name of the above companies, a collaboration agreement was signed with the Guangzhou General Pharmaceutical Research Institute at a ceremony held in the city of Guangzhou.
Dr Eden Woon, HKUST Vice-President said during the ceremony, “The collaboration between Prof Liang’s research team and the Guangzhou General Pharmaceutical Research Institute marked an important milestone in the development of novel targeted anticancer treatments, and I earnestly wish the team early success on this tremendous task. Life science is one of the key research areas of HKUST, and its research outputs have been world-leading. In the days to come, we will continue to strive for innovation and excellence in the fields of life science, new drugs development and so on.”
In addition to HKUST representatives the signing ceremony was well attended by a number of eminent guests including Mr Wang Dong, Vice-Mayor of Guangzhou Municipality, Mr Xie Xuening, Director-General of Bureau of Science and Information Technology of the Guangzhou Municipal Government, Mr Ye Jingtu, Deputy Director-General of Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology amongst different levels of government, as well as Mr Li Chuyuan, General Manager of Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited, Mr Ying Jun, Executive Deputy Director of the Guangzhou General Pharmaceutical Research Institute.
The cooperation between HKUST and the Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited has been lasting for 20 years. HKUST was founded in 1991, and the next year saw the first agreement being entered into by HKUST Biotechnology Research Institute and the Guangzhou General Pharmaceutical Research Institute. Since then their joint outcomes have been constantly put to use in Hong Kong and the Mainland, making major contributions to pharmaceutical study and research commercialization on both sides.
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