Company received $3.5 million to apply fragment-based drug design to discover inhibitors of the HIV integrase enzyme.
Avexa was awarded an Australian Government Commercial Ready Grant worth AUD$4.3 million, or about $3.5 million, to develop a new generation of HIV antiviral drugs using fragment-based drug design.
Avexa will work with Australian Commonwealth Scientific and Research Organization’s (CSIRO) Molecular and Health Technologies division to discover inhibitors of the HIV integrase enzyme, which conventional techniques are unable to identify. This program can also be applied to other antiviral targets.
The grant will contribute to funding the discovery and preclinical development. Avexa is developing novel anti-HIV drugs, which are targeted against the specific and unique functions of the virus. These drugs will have therapeutic potential for the treatment of many aspects of HIV infection, including new infections and infections which have become resistant to current drugs, according to the company.
