SRI International to Present Strategies to Defeat Antibiotic Resistance at BioJapan 2008
SRI International, an independent nonprofit research and development organization, announced today that Krishna Kodukula, Ph.D., executive director of SRI's Center for Advanced Drug Research (CADRE), will present at BioJapan 2008 in Yokohama, Japan, October 15-17. Dr. Kodukula will discuss the impact of acute drug resistance and SRI’s evaluation of new and existing drug targets to develop the next generation of antibiotics.
Emerging antibiotic-resistant infectious and neglected diseases, including those caused by Staphylococcus, Vibrio and Shigella, are challenging healthcare resources worldwide. According to a 2007 report to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation from Resources for the Future, the global costs of hospital-acquired infections are estimated to be as high as $29 billion annually.
"There is a need for novel therapies that combat new and existing antibiotic resistant strains," said Dr. Kodukula. "As part of SRI's mission to solve important problems in global health, CADRE is conducting research to understand the progression of this resistance and then use that knowledge to help develop broad-spectrum antibiotics for global use."
Dr. Kodukula's team is applying proteomics approaches to the discovery of new therapeutics, diagnostics, and vaccines for infectious and neglected diseases. Knowledge gained from this research has the potential to lead to the development of combination therapies and the next generation of antibiotics.
For more information about Dr. Kodukula's presentation and BioJapan 2008, please visit:
http://expo.nikkeibp.co.jp/biojapan/eng/index.html.
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About SRI International's Center for Advanced Drug Research (CADRE)
SRI established the Center for Advanced Drug Research (CADRE) to improve the productivity of the pharmaceutical industry, help our nation respond to biothreats, and develop life-saving treatments for neglected and orphan diseases. CADRE's mission is to create new therapeutics, diagnostics, and vaccines for infectious and neglected diseases and for biodefense. CADRE combines SRI's well-established expertise in drug discovery, computational biology, and preclinical development with a new proteomics laboratory to develop these solutions.
About SRI International’s Center for Infectious Disease and Biodefense Research
SRI's Center for Infectious Disease and Biodefense Research is dedicated to benefiting humankind by creating new technologies for defeating the world’s most significant infectious disease threats. The Center employs state-of-the-art tools and broadly applicable approaches to increase understanding of infectious disease mechanisms, identify and validate new molecular targets for disease intervention, and develop small molecule and protein-based therapeutics as well as vaccines.
With decades of experience in anti-infective research, SRI is uniquely positioned to discover and develop drugs of the future to treat bacterial and viral infections. SRI’s research successes in this area include halofantrine, used to treat malaria, and vidarabine, used to block the spread of herpes simplex virus. The Center has ongoing programs in the discovery and development of broad-spectrum antibiotics, new antiviral agents, and treatments for diseases common in developing nations such as tuberculosis. Center researchers are also developing countermeasures for bioterrorism pathogens.
About SRI International
Silicon Valley-based SRI International is one of the world's leading independent research and technology development organizations. SRI, which was founded by Stanford University as Stanford Research Institute in 1946 and became independent in 1970, has been meeting the strategic needs of clients and partners for more than 60 years. Perhaps best known for its invention of the computer mouse and interactive computing, SRI has also been responsible for major advances in networking and communications, robotics, drug discovery and development, advanced materials, atmospheric research, education research, economic development, national security, and more. The nonprofit institute performs sponsored research and development for government agencies, businesses, and foundations. SRI also licenses its technologies, forms strategic alliances, and creates spin-off companies. In 2007, SRI’s consolidated revenues, including its wholly owned for-profit subsidiary, Sarnoff Corporation, were approximately $450 million.
