The aminopyrazole class of compounds originally from Pfizer has shown promising early profiles for the treatment of both visceral leishmaniasis and cutaneous leishmaniasis. Profiling of current and new leads in a panel of drug-sensitive and drug-resistant strains of Leishmania, exploration of the in vivo dose response, pharmacokinetics, and initial in vitro safety assays are all underway. The ongoing lead optimization programme in collaboration with Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited and supported by the GHIT Fund aims to select an optimized lead.

Project updates

2019

Further work on the back-ups from this series is currently on hold; however, new chemical spaces continue to be investigated through the Open Synthesis Network, a collaborative project that engages master’s and undergraduate students in research for neglected diseases.

2018

Further work on the back-ups from this series is currently on hold as efforts focus on the lead compound DNDI-5561. However, new chemical spaces continue to be investigated through the Open Synthesis Network, a collaborative project that engages master’s and undergraduate students in research for neglected diseases.

2017

DNDI-5561 was nominated as a new pre-clinical candidate from the aminopyrazole series in October 2017. Four back-up compounds are well advanced and offer similar profiles to DNDI-5561. Additional studies, including preliminary toxicology assessments, are being planned to further understand the safety profiles of these compounds and to identify the best back-up to DNDI-5561.

2016

Preparation of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) and formulation for the second generation leads to enable the exploratory toxicology studies early 2017.

2015

The project moved into the lead optimization stage in January 2015, with GHIT Fund support and expert scientific assistance from Takeda from April 2015.