Start/end date: December 2024 – November 2027
Funding Agency/Programme: Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy – Innovation Agreement.
Partnership: Coordinator: MERCK SERONO S.p.A. Partner: BIOVIIIX SRL; Università degli Studi della Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Dipartimento di Medicina di Precisione; Fondazione Ri.MED; Istituto Europeo di Oncologia – IEO.
Abstract: the NABUCCO project aims to develop new therapeutic and diagnostic strategies for colorectal cancer, one of the main causes of cancer death. The Ri.MED Foundation plays a key role in the project, exploiting a multidisciplinary approach that integrates computational and medicinal chemistry, cell biology, structural biology, and biophysics. In detail, through virtual screening approaches combined with biochemical and cellular screening, Ri.MED contributes to the identification of potential inhibitors of therapeutic targets of interest in colorectal cancer. For the most promising candidates, ligand-target interactions are then characterized both by computational approaches, such as molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations, and biophysical approaches, such as NMR and calorimetry. This allows to understand the inhibition mechanism at the atomic level of the selected molecules and to optimize the ligand-target interaction by medicinal chemistry approaches. The work carried out by the Ri.MED team therefore contributes to the preclinical validation of new lead compounds, ensuring a solid support for future clinical studies. The ultimate goal is to improve therapeutic options for colorectal cancer, reducing toxicity and personalizing treatments based on the molecular profile of patients, with a significant impact on survival and quality of life.
Ri.MED Principal Investigator and Coordinator: Caterina Alfano
Other Ri.MED collaborators: Marco Buscetta; Chiara Cipollina; Claudia Coronnello; Maria De Rosa; Elisa Monaca; Ugo Perricone; Raffaele Sabbatella.