Progression of complement C5a receptor antagonists towards clinical trials for Motor Neuron Disease

A/Prof Woodruff received his PhD in 2003 from The University of Queensland investigating the pharmacology of a newly discovered class of complement C5a receptor antagonists. His post-doctoral years were spent in the startup biotechnology company, Promics Ltd, where he assisted in the progression of these drugs to human clinical trials for rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis. He returned to UQ as an NHMRC Career Development Fellow in 2008, and is now leading a laboratory investigating the use of these drugs in diseases of the brain. Specifically, he has an active research program investigating complement-mediated neuro-inflammation in motor neuron disease (MND), and is elucidating the therapeutic potential of targeting complement as a treatment for MND. He has recently partnered with Alsonex Pharmaceuticals, an Australian-based biotech aiming to progress these C5a receptor into clinical trials for MND. In this seminar, he will present the journey from initial drug discovery, to potential clinical translation for MND and other brain diseases.