At Mission Therapeutics, Sarah Almond serves as their Head of Pharmacology, but she wears many hats to help develop potential treatments for neurodegenerative conditions.    

Their main area of focus centers around research into deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs), which may impact neurodegeneration. By studying DUBs, Sarah and her team have been able to generate highly targeted and potent molecules that contribute to developing safe and effective therapeutics. In fact, one of these compounds (MTX325) is currently enrolled in a clinical trial to test its safety and pharmacokinetics ahead of effectiveness in treating Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition impacting the central nervous system. With the first patient dosing scheduled for later this year, they are hopeful it could be a gamechanger for treating these debilitating conditions.    

Join Sarah as we discuss Mission Therapeutics, the science behind DUBs, how collaboration with a CRO advanced their research, and what her thoughts are on the future of drug discovery and development for neurodegenerative conditions, among others.

Show Notes

• Mission Therapeutics 
• Poster: Development and validation of a high content-based assay to measure Tom20 loss in dopaminergic human neurons differentiated in vitro 
• Parkinson's Disease Studies | Charles River 
• Neuroscience | Charles River 
• Knockout or Inhibition of USP30 protects Dopaminergic Neurons in a Parkinson's Disease Mouse Model 
• Mission Therapeutics granted MHRA Clinical Trial Authorisation (CTA) for MTX325 for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease 
• Mission Therapeutics announces US FDA approval to initiate Phase II clinical trial of its lead asset MTX652 in Acute Kidney Injury