Radius licenses drug candidates from University of Illinois

Estrogen receptor-beta (ER-beta) agonists selectively bind and activate the ER-beta receptor. There are two forms of estrogen receptor: The first form of the receptor to be discovered was ER-alpha, which primarily regulates reproductive functions. More recently, a second form of receptor was identified as ER-beta, which functions in a different role in a wide variety of tissues in the body, including the immune system and the central nervous system.

There is a growing body of evidence that drugs that activate estrogen receptor-beta may prove to be a new class of therapeutics for the pain and inflammation associated with endometriosis, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

The newly licensed compounds were discovered by Dr John Katzenellenbogen, Swanlund Professor of Chemistry.

“This agreement launches an important initiative to develop a new class of drugs to treat inflammation, with particular applications in treating some of the major unmet needs in women’s health today,” said Dr C. Richard Lyttle, president and CEO of Radius. “We are excited about building on the significant discoveries made by John Katzenellenbogen and his team at the University of Illinois, and we aim to develop ER-beta therapeutics that are true advances in the treatment of endometriosis, RA, and IBD.”