Tel Aviv University enters a Joint research collaboration with a global pharma company on protein degradation platform

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL, October 8^th, Tel Aviv University (TAU) through Ramot, its Business Engagement Center, announce the signing of a collaboration agreement with Novartis to explore several applications and uses of a novel platform for identified new targets and modulators of the ubiquitin pathways developed by Prof. Gali Prag from the TAU School of Neurobiology Biochemistry and Biophysics.

Prof. Gali Prag has developed a unique patent pending platform for identifying new targets and modulators of the ubiquitin pathways. Prof. Prag’s work has been published in high impact publications such  nature methods (Nat Methods. 2016 Nov;13(11):945-952.) which has caught the attention of several prominent players in this field. This technology has already received first investment from the Tel Aviv University Momentum Fund, in order to develop its own ubiquitin modulation pipeline.

The platform is a genetic selection tool that utilizes Escherichia coli, which lacks deubiquitylases, to identify interactions along ubiquitylation cascades. Co-expression of split antibiotic resistance protein tethered to ubiquitin and ubiquitylation target together with a functional ubiquitylation apparatus results in a covalent assembly of the resistance protein, giving rise to bacterial growth on selective media. It can be applied to discover drugs modulating the ubiquitin pathway.

“We are honored to enter into this collaboration with Novartis which is already creating a synergy between the scientific teams and we believe that this is the first step in a long-term collaboration aimed to develop drugs targeting ubiquitin pathway.” Said Shlomo Nimrodi, CEO of Ramot.

About Tel Aviv University

Tel Aviv University (TAU) – Israel’s largest and most comprehensive institution of higher learning – is home to over 30,000 students studying in nine faculties and over 125 schools and departments across the spectrum of sciences, humanities and the arts.

Situated in Israel’s cultural, financial and technological capital, TAU shares Tel Aviv’s unshakable spirit of openness and innovation – and boasts a campus life as dynamic and pluralistic as the metropolis itself. Tel Aviv the city and Tel Aviv the university are one and the same – a thriving Mediterranean center of diversity and discovery.

Consistently ranked in the top 20 in the world in terms of scientific citations and among the top 100 universities internationally, Tel Aviv University is also Israel’s first choice for students, and its graduates are the most sought after by Israeli companies.

About Ramot at Tel Aviv University

Ramot is the Business Engagement Center at Tel Aviv University, Israel’s largest research and teaching university. Founded in 1956, Tel Aviv University is located in Israel’s cultural, financial and industrial center. Rooted in both academic and corporate arenas, Ramot is uniquely positioned to cultivate the special relationships between these two compelling worlds, creating win-win connections that support fertile, ground breaking research while providing companies with discoveries that give them a crucial competitive edge. For more information, visit https://www.ramot.org.

 

Media Contact – Ramot at Tel Aviv University

Maya Kotler, +972.52.605 7144

maya.kotler@ramot.org