Foreword

I arrived at the University of Dundee two years ago. One of the impressive things I have found has been seeing the translational activities across the University, whereby fundamental discoveries are developed into new technologies and products. This is happening in multiple areas across the University. One of the key examples of this is the Drug Discovery Unit (DDU). Work from the DDU has led to five compounds being moved into clinical trials. Last year, we were all excited with the first clinical results of the malaria compound developed in the DDU and subsequently being taken into trials by Merck KGaA. The compound was able to cure people who volunteered to be infected with malaria with a single dose of compound. We are excited to hear that the compound is now about to start field trials with patients in Africa and look forward to hearing the results of these as they emerge.

The DDU has developed numerous interactions across the University of Dundee and more widely across the University sector. Through these interactions, predominantly with groups working on novel areas of biology, the DDU has been instrumental in turning novel biological discoveries into drug discovery opportunities. Importantly, the DDU has a track record of commercialising these programmes to further drug discovery and development either through licencing or co-development partnerships, with success in recent years in areas such as oncology and neurodegeneration. The DDU and Wellcome Centre for Anti-infectives Research (WCAIR) also work with numerous groups to develop and implement new technologies, such as computational chemistry, within the drug discovery process making a step change in drug discovery in neglected tropical diseases.

It is now nearly three years since the COVID-19 pandemic started; an experience that has highlighted the threat of infectious diseases. The DDU has a major focus on infectious diseases, especially those affecting Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). For the diseases that the DDU has been working on, there is an urgent need for new medicines, due to the development of resistance to current drugs and/ or current medicines being ineffective or non-existent. I think that this is an incredibly important area of work, and one that the University of Dundee fully supports. Not only does the DDU develop potential drug candidates for these diseases they also are at the forefront of drug discovery and innovation in this area and the training of development of scientists in LMICs.

One of the initiatives that I have championed as Vice Chancellor, is our African Initiative. I am very happy to see the DDU tackling diseases endemic in Africa such as malaria, tuberculosis, schistosomiasis, cryptosporidiosis and leishmaniasis. Furthermore, it is exciting to hear about the collaborations that the DDU have with African Universities. Of particular note is Ghana, where the DDU and the WCAIR, are working with scientists to establish a Drug Discovery Hub in Ghana. This venture involves joint research programmes, networking to bring together scientists within Ghana and training, both in Ghana and online and with scientists coming to Dundee as part of a training programme. It is pleasing to see this work advancing and scientists from both the DDU and WCAIR being involved in this partnership.

The key to the DDUs success lies with the incredibly committed and talented scientists and academic related staff within the DDU. They have worked tirelessly through the many stresses of the COVID pandemic and continue to work hard with the goal of developing new medicines. It is very pleasing to see the high international reputation of our staff and the leadership that the DDU is playing in international consortia and collaborations.

I look forward to new developments within the DDU, as we see current projects progress and future projects initiated with the development of new partnerships continuing their success in collaborative drug discovery.

Professor Ian Gillespie Principal & Vice-Chancellor University of Dundee