Grant funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will support the rapid and efficient design and synthesis of novel small molecules

Chemify Receives Grant to Design and Discover New Drug Leads for Tuberculosis and Malaria Using Digital Chemistry Technology

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Tim Ingersoll
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Chemify, a deep tech chemical science company combining chemistry, robotics and AI at scale to digitally design, discover and make new molecules, announced today that it has been awarded a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to discover new drug leads for treating tuberculosis (TB) and malaria. By leveraging the company’s proprietary Chemputation technology and workflow, Chemify aims to deliver unmatched drug design and discovery outcomes and potential drug candidates to positively impact the lives of patients worldwide.

TB is the second-leading infectious disease in the world, affecting over 10 million people worldwide in 2022 and leading to over 1 million deaths. While antibiotics can be effective in treating TB, multidrug-resistant TB (a form of TB which does not respond to first-line drugs) continues to be a major hindrance in successfully treating many patients. Malaria is a life-threatening disease that remains a major burden globally, especially in African regions. In 2022, there were almost 250 million cases and over 600,000 deaths within 85 countries. Several antimalarial medicines are available to patients, but the ever-growing resistance to some therapies have prevented complete and effective treatment responses.

Chemify will design, make, and discover compounds using its Chemputation technology – an automated, seamlessly-controlled digital chemical stack with cheminformatics, robotics and AI to uniquely connect the digital design, planning and multiplexed synthesis of novel small molecules. Potential leads will be iteratively optimized using the Chemputation-driven AI during each development cycle. Lead compounds will then be further analyzed and developed by undisclosed partners.

“TB and malaria are major global health challenges that impact millions of lives every year. Thanks to the support of the Gates Foundation, we can use our digital chemistry technology to expedite the discovery of novel small molecule therapeutics that can reduce the prevalence and socioeconomic burdens of these two deadly diseases,” said Dr. Lee Cronin, CEO of Chemify. “Chemify’s unique Chemputation technology integrates the design and synthesis of novel drug candidates with unprecedented speed. We are excited about our progress in forming additional biotech and pharma collaborations to enhance patient outcomes worldwide.”

About Chemify

Chemify is a deep tech chemical science company reimagining the research, discovery and synthesis of novel molecules for medicines and advanced materials by revolutionizing the field of chemistry through digitalization. Chemify enables digital chemistry by turning code into molecules through the process of Chemputation, which combines robotics and artificial intelligence for the design and synthesis of superior molecules much faster than current methods. Based in Glasgow, Scotland, Chemify was founded by CEO Professor Lee Cronin and spun out from the Digital Chemistry Laboratory at the University of Glasgow to digitalize chemistry on a global scale for the benefit of all humanity. Learn more at Chemify.io and follow them on X/Twitter.

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“Thanks to the support of the Gates Foundation we can use our digital chemistry technology to expedite the discovery of novel small molecule therapeutics to reduce the prevalence and socioeconomic burdens of TB and malaria" - Dr. Lee Cronin, Chemify CEO