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WuXi AppTec and Cyclica to collaborate on drug discovery efforts

WuXi AppTec’s research service division and Canadian biotech Cyclica announced a partnership to develop programs looking into the development of small molecule polypharmacology.

The multiphase collaboration is also designed to help drive Cyclica’s biophysics and AI-supported platform, the two said.

WuXi will be looking specifically at how to leverage Cyclica’s cloud-based proteome Ligand Express screening platform as well as using Cyclica’s AI tech for predictive models for ADMET properties. The Chinese R&D company will also support the testing and optimization of Cyclica’s next generation of AI-based de novo drug design technology.

“What makes Cyclica’s value proposition unique is that they offer enabling solutions at various points across the value chain which we believe will help us take further steps in the right direction,” Dave Madge, vice president of WuXi’s research services division, said in a statement. “We are excited to apply, evaluate and support the growth of their technologies, and assess how they fit in our overall strategy to advance preclinical success.”

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Cyclica’s chief executive, Naheed Kurji, added that the partnership will allow Cyclica to advance its efforts to provide researchers with a platform built around a network of technologies that will support the design, screening and stratification of improved drugs.