8 October 2021 - - US-based The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and US-based life sciences and materials science company Schrödinger, Inc. (NASDAQ: SDGR) have forged a two-year strategic research collaboration focused on accelerating and optimizing the development of Schrödinger's WEE1 inhibitor program, an investigational therapeutic approach designed to target the WEE1 kinase, the principals said.

The collaboration brings together the translational research and drug development expertise of MD Anderson's Therapeutics Discovery division with Schrödinger's expertise and drug development program for WEE1 inhibitors.

The goal of the collaboration is to accelerate and optimize the clinical development path for Schrödinger's WEE1 program through molecular biomarker-driven tumor type prioritization and patient stratification and to validate biomarkers to predict response or resistance to a WEE1 inhibitor.

The joint team will seek to prioritize clinical studies of a WEE1 inhibitor as a single agent in selected cancer indications and in rational combinations for defined clinical subpopulations.

Under the preclinical collaboration agreement, Schrödinger will join forces with researchers in MD Anderson's Translational Research to AdvanCe Therapeutics and Innovation in ONcology (TRACTION) platform, which leads cutting-edge translational biology research to rapidly position new therapies for clinical trials.

TRACTION is a core component of MD Anderson's Therapeutics Discovery division, an integrated team of clinicians, researchers and drug development experts working to advance impactful therapies that address patient needs.

MD Anderson and Schrödinger will jointly pursue translational studies, and Schrödinger will provide research support funding.

As part of the agreement, MD Anderson is eligible to receive certain payments based on the future development and commercialization of Schrödinger's WEE1 inhibitor compounds.

Schrödinger will have sole responsibility for the development, manufacture and commercialization of all compounds and products, and sole rights to all novel intellectual property that arises from this collaboration.

WEE1 is a gatekeeper checkpoint kinase that prevents progression through the cell cycle, allowing time for DNA repair to occur before cell division takes place.

Thus, inhibition of WEE1 allows for accumulation of DNA damage, triggering DNA breakage and apoptosis in tumor cells.

Schrödinger is developing tight-binding, selective WEE1 inhibitors with optimized physicochemical properties designed to be well suited for combinations with other DNA damage response therapies for the treatment of a range of solid tumors.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston ranks as one of the world's most respected centers focused on cancer patient care, research, education and prevention.

The institution's sole mission is to end cancer for patients and their families around the world. MD Anderson is one of only 51 comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Institute.

MD Anderson is No.1 for cancer in US News and World Report's "Best Hospitals" rankings. It has been named one of the nation's top two hospitals for cancer since the rankings began in 1990. MD Anderson receives a cancer center support grant from the NCI of the National Institutes of Health (P30 CA016672).

Schrödinger has pioneered a physics-based software platform that enables discovery of novel molecules for drug development and materials applications more rapidly and at lower cost compared to traditional methods.

The software platform is used by biopharmaceutical and industrial companies, academic institutions, and government laboratories around the world.

Schrödinger's multidisciplinary drug discovery team also leverages the software platform to advance collaborative programs and its own pipeline of novel therapeutics to address unmet medical needs.

Founded in 1990, Schrödinger has over 500 employees and is engaged with customers and collaborators in more than 70 countries.