MetaboStem uses computational design to develop cancer treatments

The biotechnology company MetaboStem, a spin-off of the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO), has signed an agreement with Mind the Byte to offer tailor-made computational services to develop antitumour drugs.

The MetabosTem compounds specifically target cancer stem cells (CSC). CSC are responsible for resistance to cancer treatment, metastasis and recurring tumours. MetabosTem is the first company attempting to make use of the metabolic vulnerability of CSC for cancer treatment. The most advanced drug, MS-001, is the first product of its kind in the preclinical phase, and has showed initial success against highly aggressive tumours, against which there is currently no effective treatment.

The current partnership with Mind the Byte aims to gain further knowledge about how the compounds work, and improve drugs in development.

The company's co-founders, Dr. Javier Menéndez (president and scientist) and Dr. Inma Valle (CEO), explain that access to Mind the Byte technology, as well as interaction with the company's team of experts, "will allow us to optimise our R+D processes and accelerate the progress of candidate compounds towards clinical trials". Menéndez is currently head of the Metabolism & Cancer Group-Program Against Cancer Therapeutic Resistance (ProCURE) at the Catalan Institute of Oncology in Girona (ICO-Girona).

Apart from the services offered on the SaaS platform, Mind the Byte works regularly with spin-off and start-up biopharmaceutical and biotechnology companies in the initial R+D phase to develop new treatments. "We will apply our technology and expertise to help them make the leap from laboratory to business, speeding up the time to market and streamlining the process" said Dr. Alfons Nonell-Canals, CEO of Mind the Byte, who heads a team of ten engineers, bio-computer technicians and computational chemists based at the Barcelona Science Park (PCB) and the Copenhagen Bioscience Park (COBIS).