Nissan Chemical Corporation and Sanwa Kagaku Kenkyusho Co., Ltd., two Japanese companies, have announced they recently co-created an antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) for DRPLA. ASOs have emerged as a promising strategy for various neurodegenerative conditions, including DRPLA, by reducing the harmful levels of abnormal proteins that accumulate in cells.
Sanwa Kagaku plans to conduct a Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) study and proceed with clinical trials in Japan. GLP studies ensure the highest standards in drug development and help evaluate the potential safety and toxicity of a drug candidate before proceeding to clinical trials. The evidence from these experiments is gathered in a report, which is then submitted to the relevant drug regulatory agency for consideration and approval to start a clinical trial in humans.
The two companies presented a poster on their ASO at the 9th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nucleic Acid Medicine, held on July 15-18, 2024.
On June 26, 2024, Mr. Tomomichi Chonan (Acting General Manager of the Drug Discovery Unit, Planning Division of Nissan Chemical) and Mr. Shinji Hashimoto (Manager of Nucleic Acid Drug Discovery Promotion Group, R&D Planning Department of Sanwa Kagaku), spoke with a reporter from Nikkei Biotechnology & Business and published this announcement (in Japanese).
CureDRPLA will report updates on the development of this ASO for DRPLA as they become publicly available.