Actar - Idea-to-innovation tool for researchers

Actar is a drug discovery company based on the Karolinska Institutet campus in Stockholm, Sweden. The company is a part of the Karolinska Institutet’s innovation system.

Actar explores innovative drug targets in multiple therapeutic areas resulting from academic research at top European institutions. Actar collaborates with the academic researchers to perform drug discovery based on these targets. Aiming to discover proprietary compounds with validated effect in relevant disease models, Actar brings its expertise in drug research and project management together with therapeutic area competency of the academic researchers. Drug-like compounds active against these targets are identified, characterized and divested, or further developed in collaboration with larger pharmaceutical companies.

Presently, Actar is performing discovery research in several therapeutic areas. Screening and lead optimisation are being done in oncology (e.g. GLI, Tankyrase, PAK-4), neuroscience as well as infection. Two projects (PGE and VEGF) have been spun-out as independent companies (www.novasaid.com and http://www.karolinskadevelopment.com/clanotech.html ). For these companies, project management and further compound development is done by Actar AB on contract basis.

Actar is the commercial partner in several VINNOVA-funded consortia as well as three EU FP7 consortia:

• NABATIVI - Novel Approaches to Bacterial Target Identification, Validation and Inhibition http://ec.europa.eu/research/health/infectious-diseases/antimicrobial-drug-resistance/projects/007_en.html
• MOLPARK - Molecular mechanisms of neuronal restoration: novel approaches for Parkinson's Disease http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=FP7_PROJ_EN&ACTION=D&DOC=1&CAT=PROJ&RCN=90184
• METAFIGHT - Understanding and fighting metastasis via dissection of the Core Invasive Machinery http://www.metafight.eu

WHAT ARE THE SCIENTIFIC AND COMMERCIAL OBJECTIVES?

Since Actar’s activities entail novel targets and technologies spanning multiple therapeutic areas, the objective for each project may vary. The scientific effort is thereby tailored to best explore the commercial opportunities of the target. However, Actar’s commercial objective is usually to seek external funding, divest the project or enter into collaboration with a larger pharmaceutical company within 3-5 years.

This is achieved by:

• Performing screening to find compounds that selectively interact with the target
• Performing incremental chemical modifications to the compounds to improve efficacy and druggability
• Reaching in vivo proof-of-principle for selected compounds
• Securing intellectual property rights for compounds and methods