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Clinical approval of an anti-cancer drug to begin clinical trials

20 March 2024
A drug funded by UniServices has been approved for clinical trials in China.

LX-132 received approval for clinical trials by the (NMPA) of China. A ceremony was held on December 12, 2023, in Park Hyatt Guangzhou, to mark this achievement.
 
LX-132 is a compound that can inhibit the fibroblast growth factor receptor family which plays a role in the abnormal growth of many types of cancer. Its invention is a collaborative project led by Associate Professors and (both Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of ߣߣƵmedical oncology researchers and investigators based at the ), as well as Professors Ding Ke and Lu Xiaoyun ().

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Associate Professors Adam Patterson (7th left) and Jeff Smaill (8th left) with the other delegates

The successful long-term partnership between the Maurice Wilkins Centre and the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has extended to include (Guangzhou) and the . This collaboration demonstrates the scientific and technological innovation that can be made possible through international cooperation.

“We’ve been collaborating with our Chinese colleagues for over 10 years to get to this stage. It would not have been possible without funding from the , and the ” said Associate Professor Jeff Smaill.

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Associate Professor Jeff Smaill
“We’ve been collaborating with our Chinese colleagues for over 10 years to get to this stage. It would not have been possible without funding from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, the Health Research Council of New Zealand and the China-Maurice Wilkins Centre Collaborative Research Program.”

Associate Professor Jeff Smaill

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Associate Professor Adam Patterson

UniServices is the main commercial partner of this joint intellectual property and played a major part in licensing this invention to Salustier Biosciences who supported its research and will be taking it to preliminary clinical trials in Guangzhou hospitals to evaluate the safety and maximum dose of the compound in cancer patients. 

Associate Professor Patterson says, “our future goals include establishing a clinical trial site for LX-132 in New Zealand and beginning global commercialisation in 2025.”

“Our future goals include establishing a clinical trial site for LX-132 in New Zealand and beginning global commercialisation in 2025."

Associate Professor Adam Patterson

We are proud to be a part of this project and look forward to seeing its next steps towards making a difference in the lives of cancer patients all around the world.