LSTM’s Professor Mark Taylor presented a plenary lecture at the 6th International Symposium on Current Trends in Drug Discovery and Research (CTDDR-2016) in India over the weekend.
The symposium was hosted by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) India at their Central Drug Research Institute (CDRI) in Lucknow, which is the premier centre for drug discovery research in India. CTDDR-2016, highlighted cutting edge advances in drug discovery and development for infectious diseases including malaria, filarial, leishmanial, HIV and tuberculosis as well as non-communicable conditions such as diabetes, obesity, cancer as well as reproductive and bone disorders.
The four days included key note lectures, oral and poster presentations from scientists at leading institutions across the world covering research and interventions from basic sciences to translational biomedical research, as well as providing a single platform for in-depth assessment of the challenges associated with drug design in these areas.
Professor Mark Taylor, LSTM’s head of Parasitology and Director of the A•WOL Consortium, presented a plenary lecture entitled: The discovery and development of macrofilaricides: The A∙WOL experience, which was enthusiastically received at the meeting. Professor Taylor also discussed future collaborative links between LSTM and CSIR with CSIR Director Dr. Madhu Dikshit and Dr. Shailja Bhattacharya.
The A•WOL consortium consists of both academic and industrial partners funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, whose aim is to develop news drugs against onchocerciasis (river blindness) and lymphatic filariasis (elephantiasis).