Novel technology used to synthesise complex peptides

ONI BioPharma has succeeded in producing an antibiotic using its DPOLT technology, a solid phase synthesis platform for manufacturing bioactive peptides. The antibiotic belongs to the lantibiotics class, which were discovered 80 years ago but their use has been hindered by the lack of a cost-effective method of producing sufficient quantities. Differentially Protected Orthogonal Lantionine Technology (DPOLT) has now overcome this problem to produce a synthetic analogue of MU1140, ONI’s lead antibiotic candidate.

Dr Jeffrey Hillman, chief scientific officer, ONI BioPharma, said, ''In addition to MU1140, DPOLT technology will allow us to synthesise all 50 of the known lantibiotics and to conveniently modify their structures in order to improve their usefulness as antibiotics for the treatment of infectious diseases. In effect, DPOLT should provide a much needed pipeline of antibiotics at a time when drug-resistant bacteria are on the rise.''

Further development of the technology is now underway, with ONI retaining the services of Almac Sciences to assist with this.