The Autonomous University of Barcelona licenses two patents to biotech company Janus Developments
Janus will work to produce a medication to treat drug addiction and a vaccine for pasteurellosis, which affects many species of production animals.
The Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB) has licensed two patents to the biotechnology company Janus Developments to produce a medication to treat drug addiction and a vaccine for pasteurellosis, an infection that affects many species of production animals. Janus Developments specializes in managing the first stages of biomedical projects, orienting research results to the market, favoring expansion of patents to a number of countries and tackling the development stage of a product through the search for partners to carry out this development and take on the commercialization process for the final product.
The patent to develop a medication to prevent drug addicts from relapsing originated with a group of scientists from the Neurosciences Institute and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the UAB, headed by Dr. Jordi Ortiz, which researches new psychiatric medications to treat addictive behavior, mainly relapsing alcoholics and cocaine addicts. The study that led to the patent looked at the neuro-chemical mechanisms that participate in the desire to take drugs. Thus, the active ingredient chosen acts directly on the involved neuronal systems and reduces the risk of relapse.
The licensing agreement to manufacture a vaccine against the pathogen Pasteurella multocida, which causes pasteurellosi, was the result of work carried out by the Molecular Microbiology research group from the UAB Department of Genetics and Microbiology and two researchers from the Agrifood Research and TechnologyInstitute. The scientists focused their work on studying the virulence mechanisms of the bacterial pathogens relevant to animal production, with the aim of applying basic knowledge acquired to the rational design of vaccines. In this framework, research into Pasteurella multocida iron uptake mechanisms, which began in 1996, has led to the design and creation of vaccinal stock against this pathogen, which is responsible for significant economic losses in animal production.