About CD3
The Centre for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3), based in Leuven (Belgium), is a drug discovery centre and investment fund created to drive the translation of innovative basic research to the clinic. As investment fund, CD3 can invest in drug discovery projects as well as in spin-off companies and biotechs, while as drug discovery centre, it complements investments with an experienced drug discovery team and state-of-the-art infrastructure. The cornerstone of CD3’s activities are hand-in-hand collaborations with academic research groups and biotech or pharma partners, always aimed at discovering and developing new medicines. Successful collaborations lead to partnering with biotech or pharma or the creation of spin-off companies.
Innovative drug discovery with academic institutes
CD3 focuses on the discovery and development of innovative medicines for all kinds of diseases by building further on the enormous pool of innovative research and technologies of universities and spin-off companies. Collaborations are crafted around innovative biological or chemical insights from its academic partners, which are then supported with investments and industry-standard drug discovery capabilities of CD3. The new medicines that are born from these collaborative projects can then be further developed by pharma companies or form the basis for new spin-off companies.
Investing in drug discovery projects, start-ups and biotechs
CD3 was set up in 2006 by KU Leuven Research & Development (LRD) and the European Investment Fund (EIF). In 2016, CD3 launched a third fund of 60 million euro to broaden its scope and extend its capabilities. In addition to investing in collaborative drug discovery projects with academic research groups, CD3 invests in drug discovery start-ups and biotech companies. As an investment fund with an experienced drug discovery team at hand, CD3 provides these companies with invaluable guidance and support in their start up and growth process.
Strong track-record in co-creating new drugs
Over the years, CD3 has collaborated with academic research groups and companies in more than 30 projects in order to develop potential new medicines for various disorders, such as virus infections (HIV, Dengue virus, HRV), cancer, inflammatory and auto-immune diseases and CNS disorders such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease and pain. Many of these projects have led to the discovery of new potential medicines with innovative mechanisms-of-action. CD3’s track record of successful drug discovery collaborations with academic research groups is exemplified by the more than 15 deals it has established with pharma companies or with investors for the creation of new spin-off companies.
Our mission
Together with its partners, CD3 aims to discover new medicines that address some of the most serious medical needs of our time.
CD3 collaborates with academic research groups and small companies on innovative targets and complements the expertise of the research groups. CD3 coordinates and structures the drug discovery projects and the interactions between all players involved.
By lifting academic drug discovery research to a higher level, CD3 delivers to pharma and biotech industry potential drug candidates to in-license and further develop.
The operations of CD3 create benefits for all parties involved in drug discovery and development and ensure new drugs reach patients worldwide.
More about CD3
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CD3 relies on the experienced and dynamic research team of CISTIM to execute and supervise its drug discovery projects. We aim to discover new medicines that address some of the most serious medical needs of our time. Join us on this exciting journey!