Repurposing Epigenetic Therapy for Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy to facilitate the innovation and growth of a N.Ireland Cardiac Drug Development Company

SignaCor is the first, clinical stage, drug development company based in N.Ireland, dedicated to the treatment of heart disease. A company that emerged from Queen's University Belfast research, SignaCor's first treatment is an old chemotherapy drug being repurposed for treatment of a form of heart disease called hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

Currently, there are limited treatment options for patients with symptomatic HCM and these treatments only relieve symptoms, they do not target the underlying cause. The drug being developed at SignaCor is a first-in-class treatment that can reverse damage to the heart as well as preventing further deterioration of heart function, and is commencing Ph2a clinical trials in Northern Ireland in 2025\.

During this project, and in parallel to the Ph2a clinical trial, SignaCor will work with our partner Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC), Queen's University Belfast (QUB) and other highly experienced drug development experts from across the UK to perform additional key research into our first heart therapy to further differentiate SignaCor's product from competitors and to position the company to raise private investment and partner with pharma companies.

Key research activities being undertaken during the project include:

1. Identifying novel clinical biomarkers with the expert biomarker team at MDC;
2. Performing head to head studies against a competitor treatment;
3. Working with orphan drug designation experts to apply to the EMA and FDA for orphan drug designation status; and
4. Working with clinical experts to develop the Ph2b clinical trial plans for SignaCor's lead product and engage with regulators.

Finally, during the project, SignaCor will work with experienced pharma clinical operations experts to develop a scalable Quality Management System for the company that will be a key building block for regulatory compliance on all future company drug development work.

SignaCor's goal is to leverage the experience gained by the SignaCor team on this project working with expert partners, along with private investment unlocked as a result of this project, to advance our lead product through clinical development, rapidly grow the company in N.Ireland and expand the company's clinical pipeline to other heart disease therapies.

The project represents an opportunity for a N.Ireland company to develop a first in class product that could have global patient impact, and, importantly, grow a sustainable cardiology drug development company based in N.Ireland, offering employment opportunities for life science graduates and attracting life science talent from across the globe to N.Ireland.