OPKO Health links with Scripps on novel antimicrobials discovery

US drugmaker OPKO Health (NYSE: OPK) has announced a global license agreement with The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) for the development and commercialization of novel lipoprotein signal peptidase (Lsp) inhibitors developed and discovered using a proprietary high throughput screening technology funded and exclusively licensed by OPKO from TSRI.

“This technology is one of the best opportunities we have for the development of specific inhibitors of Lsp, which represents a remarkable target for the development of broad and novel antimicrobial agents, as it is highly conserved throughout the bacterial and mycoplasma kingdoms and no human homologues exist,” said TSRI professor Dennis Wolan, who led the research on this screening platform.

OPKO has agreed to fund additional work in Dr Wolan’s laboratory at TSRI and to move as rapidly as possible into clinical trials. No financial terms of the collaboration were disclosed.