The Galician biotech company Lincbiotech, headquartered in Ourense with laboratories in Santiago de Compostela, will lead a project funded by the prestigious European Innovation Council (EIC) through the Pathfinder Open 2022 call. The project aims to develop molecules (protein degraders) that leverage the internal mechanism of cells to eliminate proteins that, when secreted excessively, lead to serious diseases. The project also involves the Neuroaging Group of the Santiago Health Research Institute (IDIS) as a partner, along with four other entities from Belgium (SYNABS), Portugal (Universidade Minho), and the United Kingdom (HULL University). These protein degraders have the potential to contribute with novel treatments to prevalent diseases such as neurological or autoimmune conditions.
The EIC Pathfinder Open call, one of the most competitive in the European Union, funds projects at the forefront of knowledge proposing the application of state-of-the-art technology for developing innovative solutions to major challenges in European society, including health, energy, and the environment. In 2022, 858 proposals were submitted to the EIC Pathfinder Open call, and only 57 proposals were selected, less than 7 percent of the total.
A pioneering project
The funded research will develop new molecules, protein degraders, that leverage the internal mechanism of cells to eliminate proteins that, under certain circumstances, lead to serious diseases. One of these pathologies is diabetic foot.
The research initiative led by Lincbiotech will study the efficacy of these novel molecules to fight this disease, which affects 25 percent of diabetes patients and often leads to hospitalization and amputation of the lower limbs. Approximately five percent of patients with diabetic foot die a year after the first symptoms of the disease, and this percentage rises to 42 percent after five years of symptom onset. The protein degraders proposed by Lincbiotech will help control the excess inflammation thus promoting proper healing and the appropriate closure of wounds.”
