title: The SULSA Assay Development Fund: accelerating translation of new biology from academia to pharma.
abstract: With industry increasingly sourcing preclinical drug discovery projects from academia it is important that new academic discoveries are enabled through translation with HTS-ready assays. However, many scientifically interesting, novel molecular targets lack associated high-quality, robust assays suitable for hit finding and development. To bridge this gap, the Scottish Universities Life Sciences Alliance (SULSA) established a fund to develop assays to meet quality criteria such as those of the European Lead Factory. A diverse project portfolio was quickly assembled, and a review of the learnings and successful outcomes showed this fund as a new highly cost-effective model for leveraging significant follow-on resources, training early-career scientists and establishing a culture of translational drug discovery in the academic community.
authors.affiliation: European Screening Centre Newhouse, University of Dundee, Biocity Scotland, Newhouse, Lanarkshire ML1 5UH, UK. Electronic address: s.mcelroy@dundee.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Stuart P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: McElroy
authors.affiliation: European Screening Centre Newhouse, University of Dundee, Biocity Scotland, Newhouse, Lanarkshire ML1 5UH, UK.
authors.forename: Philip S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.affiliation: NPSC Edinburgh, University of Edinburgh, Room 145/6 - Peter Wilson Building, The King's Buildings, Edinburgh EH9 3FH, UK.
authors.forename: Denise V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Barrault
mesh_terms: D055808:Drug Discovery; D004345:Drug Industry; D005376:Financial Management; D057166:High-Throughput Screening Assays; D006801:Humans; D013334:Students; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical; D014495:Universities