News 09.15.2004
Genstruct and Berlex Biosciences Collaborate on Breast Carcinoma Research
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., September 15, 2004 - Genstruct Inc., a knowledge-driven discovery company, announced today that it has entered into an agreement with Berlex, Inc., a U.S. affiliate of Schering AG, Germany (NYSE: SHR, FSE: SCH), to characterize the regulatory mechanisms for breast cancer. The goal is to uncover the causal mechanisms for the initiation of breast cancer to better understand the genes, proteins and metabolites that play crucial roles in the development of this disease.
"This is a great opportunity for us to apply our Oncology Knowledge Assembly(TM) models to the causal analysis of breast cancer," said Keith O. Elliston, Ph.D., president and CEO of Genstruct. "We are pleased to collaborate with a leading diagnostic and therapeutic company like Berlex and believe that this project has great potential."
Genstruct will collaborate with Berlex's oncology team to identify mechanisms of action for breast carcinoma. To define the molecular causes of breast carcinoma, Genstruct will utilize its Molecular Epistemics(TM) discovery platform to customize its Oncology Knowledge Assembly(TM) model for breast cancer, and to interrogate this model using computer-aided causal reasoning.
"Working with Genstruct adds the newest technology to our scientific teams' search for the answer to what is driving breast cancer cells to grow - going beyond data mining, high throughput screening and other technologies that have helped the biopharmaceutical industry more rapidly identify therapeutic targets," says Harald Dinter, PhD, scientific director of oncology research, Berlex. "Now we will work with Genstruct to define the cascade of molecular actions that lead to the onset and advancement of breast cancer and validate Genstruct's model of breast cancer through molecular tests in our laboratories. As a company that specializes in both oncology and women's healthcare, we at Berlex hope this collaboration will lead to new therapies that impact the disease earlier in its course."
Genstruct's Oncology Team recently presented results from its independent research in the area of prostate carcinoma at IBC Life Sciences' 9th Annual Drug Discovery Technology (DDT) World Congress. The presentation at DDT, which described both probable molecular causes and mechanisms involved in androgen-dependent prostate carcinoma, won third place in the scientific poster competition.
About Breast Cancer
More than 200,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States this year alone, according to the American Cancer Society, and nearly 40,000 women will lose their lives to this disease. One out of eight women will develop breast cancer during her lifetime, making it the most common form of cancer in American women.
About Berlex
Committed to developing novel diagnostics and therapeutics that address unmet medical needs, Berlex, Inc., a US affiliate of Schering AG, Germany (NYSE: SHR), develops and markets diagnostic imaging agents, treatments in the areas of female healthcare and dermatology, as well as specialized therapeutics for life-threatening and disabling diseases in the fields of the central nervous and cardiovascular systems, oncology, and gastroenterology. Berlex has business operations in New Jersey, California and Washington. For more information, please visit www.berlex.com.
About Genstruct
Genstruct is a knowledge-driven discovery company focused on pioneering new approaches to the understanding and treatment of complex diseases in the areas of oncology, metabolic disorders, and inflammation. Genstruct has developed a platform for the discovery of compound mechanisms of action (MOA) and biomarkers called the Molecular Epistemics(TM) Platform. This platform comprises a suite of patent-pending technologies that model and analyze compound MOA and disease mechanisms: the Knowledge Assembly(TM) process which enables rapid, ongoing construction of addressable biological models and the Epistemics Engine(TM) System for mining and refining the models for mechanism discovery and validation. Genstruct engages in internal discovery and external development partnerships that apply the Molecular Epistemics Platform to accelerate and increase the output of drug discovery and development programs. The Company was founded in 2001 by a team including Flagship Ventures, and is based in Cambridge, Mass. For more information please visit www.genstruct.com.