Dr. Jin Wang, Michael E. DeBakey, M.D., Endowed Professor in Pharmacology and director of the new Center for NextGen Therapeutics at Baylor College of Medicine, discussed the center's role in supporting researchers within Baylor College of Medicine, the Texas Medical Center, and beyond.
The Center for NextGen Therapeutics (CNGT) focuses on developing multispecific drugs using advanced biological and biomedical research at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Wang stated, "Our mission is to accelerate the discovery and development of novel therapeutics that address unmet medical needs and improve patient outcomes."
Dr. Wang highlighted a gap in resources for biologists and physician-scientists who understand diseases and targets but lack funding for drug discovery screening. The center aims to bridge this gap by covering initial costs for target-agnostic screens and matching them with disease-focused scientists.
"Our strategy is molecule oriented, similar to the concept of phenotypic screen," said Dr. Wang. Using proteomics technologies, the center conducts comprehensive screens across the entire proteome to identify proteins that could be targeted by small molecules. This process results in a library of molecules available for researchers.
"For example, we screen many molecules, even thousands of molecules, and we can get a list of proteins that are affected by these molecules," explained Dr. Wang. "Biologists will look at the list to see whether their favorite target is there, and we can provide the particular molecule they need."
Once researchers validate a compound's efficacy, CNGT offers collaborative co-development opportunities focusing on optimizing its drug-like properties.
Dr. Wang’s background in chemistry led to creating this center through his work on drug discovery projects such as SRC 3 inhibitors with Dr. Bert O’Malley and Alzheimer's treatments with Dr. Hui Zheng at the Huffington Center on Aging.
"In 2016, I started working on these so-called targeted protein degraders," noted Dr. Wang. This technology involves degrading proteins completely in cells to address both enzyme-dependent and independent functions.
Additionally, CNGT works on antibody drug conjugates designed to deliver potent compounds into specific tissues or tumors.
Regarding collaboration with the Center for Drug Discovery, Dr. Wang emphasized complementary strategies: "The Center for Drug Discovery applies DNA-encoded libraries to screen against targets of interest... Our center uses the 'molecule-first' strategy for drug discovery."
Dr. Raymond Deshaies from Amgen has defined different transformative waves in biopharmaceuticals focused on effective treatment delivery strategies. According to Dr. Wang, "Right now, we are on what Dr. Deshaies describes as the fourth wave," which focuses on multispecific drugs like antibody drug conjugates and molecular matchmakers aimed at addressing healthcare industry needs.
