Bordeaux, May 15^th, 2025 – On May 6–7, Bordeaux hosted the 10th edition of MEET2WIN, the European partnering convention dedicated to the fight against cancer. Organised by the French platform MATWIN (a 100% subsidiary of Unicancer), the event brought together more than 300 international stakeholders – researchers, major groups, biotechs, startups, investors, and support organizations – united by a shared ambition: to accelerate innovation in oncology.

A unique platform in Europe, MATWIN has been bringing together the academia, industrial, and entrepreneurial world for 15 years to accelerate the transformation of research projects into concrete clinical solutions. This model is powered by the commitment of 14 pharmaceutical company partners*, which directly involve their R&D World executive decision-makers to evaluate and support innovation with a high medical impact in the field.

‘As a key and valuable player in this innovation pipeline, our MATWIN subsidiary has already supported nearly 500 projects, enabled the creation of over 50 startups, trained almost 250 entrepreneurs, and contributed to launching numerous clinical trials over the past fifteen years. This is an outstanding achievement for such a small organization!’ — reports Jean-Yves Blay, President of Unicancer.

Fabrice Barlesi, President of MATWIN and CEO of Gustave Roussy comments: ‘MATWIN is a key driver of innovation in oncology, working in synergy with the recently established Paris Saclay Cancer Cluster. It is only by joining forces that the ecosystem will be able to truly transform research into concrete solutions for patients.’

MEET2WIN, a catalyst for innovation at the heart of the European ecosystem

The MEET2WIN convention, the high point of this dynamic, has established itself as a strategic crossroads between science, funding and technology transfer, a catalyst for added value and growth.

One of the event’s highlights was the selection of the three awarded 2025 projects by the prestigious MATWIN international board, uniting Oncology R&D decision-makers from the 14 partner pharma companies and academic experts from leading European cancer research centres.

• Best drug-based Innovation: Developed at the Lead Discovery Center (LDC) in Dortmund, Germany, Tim Bergbrede’s project has led to a novel inhibitor of POLRMT – a key enzyme in cancer cell proliferation. This first-in-class preclinical candidate compound, already patented by the LDC, has shown safety, selectivity, and efficacy in multiple animal models in mono and combination therapy. It offers promising potential for the treatment of breast cancer, lymphoma, and other currently untreatable cancers.
• Best Technological Innovation: Founded in 2024 and based in Saint-Mande, Brink Therapeutics is developing next-generation recombinase technology to revolutionize genome editing. Using an approach combining directed evolution, metagenomic exploration, and Artificial Intelligence, this TechBio designs enzymes capable of inserting, deleting or modifying DNA sequences with unprecedented precision, paving the way for safer and more effective gene therapies. Its main objectives is to enable the production of CAR-T cells directly in the body, making theses therapies more accessible on a large scale.
• Best Precision Medicine / Diagnostic Innovation: Co-founded in 2020 by Institut Curie and Home Biosciences, One Biosciences is developing a groundbreaking technology that analyzes cancer cells one by one, from patient samples. By combining single-cell technologies and artificial intelligence, it uncovers the molecular mechanisms driving each tumor’s behavior and resistance to treatment. This enables clinicians to make more informed therapeutic decisions and helps biopharma improve clinical trial outcomes – opening the door to more effective, personalized, and targeted precision medicine.

These three projects have all benefited from the MATWIN accelerator programme, a six-month strategic support package including mentoring/coaching, early due diligence and preparation for meetings with industry. A support which proved to be decisive for over 300 accompanied projects since the program was launched in 2009.

In addition to the MATWIN board, other panels also awarded a number of companies during the event:

• The OUI jury (Oncology Upward Investment) – composed of around 15 European investors –awarded two promising companies for their investment potential: Pan Cancer T (Netherlands) and Evariste (UK).
• The QUICK PITCH jury, composed of MATWIN board members and the full MEET2WIN audience, awarded two innovative projects led by Recobia Therapeutics (Strasbourg) and Pan Cancer T (Netherlands).

This was another successful operation for MATWIN for this 10th anniversary edition of MEET2WIN which confirmed the growing impact of the event, with nearly 300 European participants, over 1,000 business meetings, around 30 speakers, and high-level conferences on immuno-oncology, Artificial Intelligence, paediatric oncology, innovation business models, and pathways to translating research into real solutions for patients.

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About MATWIN

MATWIN, a 100% subsidiary of Unicancer, is a French open-innovation platform dedicated exclusively to oncology. For the past 16 years, the platform has offered various support actions (expertise, accelerator programs, events, etc.) to boost the development of innovative cancer-related projects. Its activities are backed by a longstanding partnership with 14 global pharma companies committed to advancing impactful innovation in oncology* (Amgen, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, Boehringer Ingelheim, Daiichi Sankyo, Exact Sciences, GlaxoSmithKline, insitro, MSD, Pierre Fabre, Pfizer, Sanofi, Servier, and Takeda). Since 2021, MATWIN also coordinates the OncoSTART consortium dedicated to oncology entrepreneurship, which brings together 14 expert organizations in cancer research and innovation.

MATWIN press contact: Lucia Robert – lucia.robert@matwin.fr

About LDC

Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC) was established in 2008 by the technology transfer organization Max Planck Innovation, as a novel approach to capitalize on the potential of excellent basic research for the discovery of new therapies for diseases with high medical need. LDC takes on promising early-stage projects from academia and transforms them into innovative pharmaceutical leads and antibodies that reach initial proof-of-concept in animals as well as candidate nomination. In close collaboration with high-profile partners from research and industry, LDC is building a strong and growing portfolio of small molecule and antibody leads with exceptional medical and commercial potential.

LDC sustains a long-term partnership with the Max Planck Society and its institutes as well as with KHAN-I and KHAN-II, and has formed alliances with AstraZeneca, Bayer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck KGaA, Daiichi Sankyo, Qurient, InvIOS, Novo Nordisk, Cumulus Oncology, Nodus Oncology, JT Pharmaceuticals, KinSea Lead Discovery AS, HLB Pharma, the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research, e.g. In addition, LDC also works with leading translational drug discovery centers and with various investors to provide its assets for company creation.

Further information available at: www.lead-discovery.de

About KHAN-I

KHAN Technology Transfer Fund I GmbH & Co KG (KHAN-I) is an early-stage life sciences venture fund with € 70 million under management. Their mission is to create value through cooperative drug development partnerships with academic innovators in Europe. KHAN-I focuses on first-in-class therapies for attractive markets with a high unmet medical need. The fund is managed by Khanu Management GmbH, an experienced team of professionals with proven track records in early-stage drug development and academic spin-offs as well as pharma licensing and partnering. KHAN-I received an investment from the European Investment Fund (EIF) with the support of InnovFin Equity, and with the financial backing of the European Union under Horizon 2020 Financial Instruments and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) under the Investment Plan for Europe.

KHAN-I is also supported by Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH (AWS with funds provided by the Austrian Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs and the Austrian Foundation for Research, Technology, and Development), Max Planck Foundation, and Thyssen’sche Handelsgesellschaft mbH. In addition, KHAN-I sustains a preferred partnership with the Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft e.V.).

Further information available at: www.khanu.de

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Contact: pr@lead-discovery.de

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Dortmund, October 12, 2016 – Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC) and the biotech company UGISense AG are about to initiate a collaboration to jointly develop innovative drugs using the proprietary Ugimeres^TM antisense platform. Additionally, LDC will acquire a minority stake in UGISense AG during a first 1.2 million Euros financing round involving several private investors. The partnership aims at combining the potential of the innovative Ugimeres antisense platform with LDC’s drug discovery expertise and target know-how to maximize synergies and jointly commercialize successful projects.

“We see the Ugimeres platform as a highly exciting addition to our own in-house drug discovery technologies. We believe that the drug class of peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) offers enormous potential especially in the innovative field of microRNAs and for so far ‘undruggable’ targets”, says Dr. Bert Klebl, CEO of the LDC. “We look forward to working closely with the UGISense team and to jointly advance our first pilot projects”.

“We are very excited about the successful financing of UGISense AG and welcome our new partner LDC. This partnership will allow us to focus closely on the high-quality development and commercialization of Ugimeres as innovative drugs for targets with high unmet medical need”, says Dr. Thomas Lindhorst of UGISense AG’s executive board.

About UGISense AG

UGISense AG is a biotech company dedicated to developing new and innovative antisense drugs in collaboration with partners from the industry and academia. The developments are made on the basis of a proprietary platform technology, i.e. the Ugimeres^TM. The company, which was first established in 2016, is being financed by private investors and has been accredited by the Federal Office of Economics and Export Control (BAFA) (within the scope of their Venture Capital Grants program).

About Ugimeres^TM

Ugimeres^TM are short oligonucleotide sequences capable of interacting with single-stranded DNA or RNA by forming a double strand. Thanks to said double-strand formation, disease-relevant proteins will be specifically prevented from forming altogether or will be reduced to only a modified stage. This makes it possible to therapeutically influence the development of diseases at a very early stage of intervention. Structurally, Ugimeres^TM are derived from peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) to which important pharmacological functions have been added by way of chemical modifications.

For more details please go to: www.ugisense.com

Contact

Dr. Thomas Lindhorst
T. +43 (0)664 9123146
E. thomas.lindhorst@ugisense.com

UGISense AG
c/o Nordwind Capital GmbH
Residenzstrasse 18
80333 Munich

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Dortmund, June 7, 2016 – Researchers from the Lead Discovery Center (LDC) in Dortmund, Germany led by Dr. Bert Klebl and McGill University in Montréal, Canada led by Dr. David Y. Thomas will work closely together to identify novel tools for protein trafficking and folding diseases drug discovery.The 3-years research initiative between LDCand McGill University will be funded for a total of $1M.

The project is the first to be funded under the Canada/Germany Program, a joint collaboration between the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi), through its ZIM Program,and the CQDM consortium in Canada.Falling under the broader Canada/Europe initiative, the Canada/Germany Program aims to support novel and potentially transformative next‐generation technologies with the potential to improve, enhance or accelerate the state of the art and drug development process.

“We are proud of the fruits that bear our partnership with BMWi. The creative and innovative aspects of this project are the reasons we fulfill our missions and organize international funding programs,” said Diane Gosselin, President and CEO at CQDM. “This public‐private partnership is willing to develop new expertise and to expand into new markets, and these collaborative efforts will certainly strengthen research in Canada and Germany.”

“This project is the outcome of a great collaboration with LDC scientists on an important research topic. The project aims at addressing a need in biopharmaceutical research that is still understudied and unmet. ER stress is implicated in many diseases and Dr. Klebl and I will work at developing new tools for its study thanks to the funding initiative of CQDM and ZIM,” said Dr. David Y. Thomas at McGill University.

“We are very excited to embark on this international collaboration together with Dr. Thomas from McGill University. It truly is a team effort that draws its strength from our complementary expertise and deep insights into the biology,”said Dr. Bert Klebl, CEO at LDC. “This public private partnership pulls together multidisciplinary scientific resources and may lead to the discovery of new targets, a better understanding of off targets of known drugs and eventually to the identification of novel drug candidates for protein trafficking diseases.”

About the Project: Protein trafficking and misfolding under scrutiny

One third of the proteins encoded in our DNA transit through the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) inside cells. The ER has several distinct mechanisms to check the integrity and proper folding of these proteins. Some protein trafficking respiratory diseases result from an overzealous quality control system that recognizes mutant proteins that are otherwise functional and tags them for degradation before they reach their correct location. This complex quality control system is achieved through a network of interacting enzymes called kinases. ER quality control is an understudied field of biology and could represent a goldmine of new targets to treat many diseases including neurodegenerative disorders, diabetes and cancer. We have shown that inhibitors of some of these kinases affect the accuracy of the ER quality control system and are able to correct trafficking defects responsible in some diseases. The aim of this project is to generate a platform to study the most important players responsible for the proper trafficking of proteins. This collaborative project will leverage the expertise of each researcher to generate a set of validated tools and chemical probes to interrogate the protein kinases involved in protein trafficking which could allow to identify new targets for the development of novel ER related diseases therapies.

About CQDM

CQDM is a pharma-based consortium active in early research whose mission is to fund the development of innovative tools and technologies to accelerate drug discovery. Unique in the world, CQDM’s business model is based on a collaborative approach where all stakeholders share the costs of biopharmaceutical research and benefit from its results. CQDM also provides a common meeting ground where academia, governments, and the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries converge to address numerous complex medical challenges. CQDM receives financial support from Merck, Pfizer, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, GlaxoSmithKline, Eli Lilly Canada, Janssen, Novartis Pharma Canada, Sanofi Canada, as well as from Quebec’s Ministry of Economy, Science and Innovation (MESI) and from the Government of Canada under the Business-Led Networks of Centres of Excellence Program (BL-NCE).

For more information:www.cqdm.org

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Dortmund, May 11, 2016 – The Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC), Max Planck Innovation GmbH and Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH have signed an agreement providing Boehringer Ingelheim with the option to receive the exclusive rights to a new lead compound for the treatment of schizophrenia to be discovered and developed at the LDC.

The novel approach builds on ground-breaking research results from Prof. Moritz Rossner and his team at the Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine in Göttingen. He will work closely together with the LDC team to identify and optimize novel compounds with strong therapeutic potential and develop it further to the stage of a validated pharmaceutical lead with in vivo efficacy. Moritz Rossner holds also a Professorship at Ludwig Maximilians University, Munich and is a co-founder of Systasy Bioscience GmbH.

Schizophrenia is a chronic, severe and disabling mental disorder ranked among the 12 most debilitating diseases by the World Health Organization. It affects about 1 in 100 people worldwide, changing the way they behave, think and perceive the world. Although anti-psychotic medications and psychosocial interventions can effectively reduce symptoms and improve patients’ lives, there remainsa strong need for new drugs truly addressing causative mechanisms and cognitive impairment.

Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder

which affects how a person behaves,

thinks and perceives the world.

“Schizophrenia is an incredibly complex disorder which dramatically changes the life of the individual affected,” says Prof. Rossner. “We believe our approach holds strong potential to improve the treatment options for patients, and this collaboration with the LDC and Boehringer Ingelheim is a great opportunity to advance it from our laboratory into pharmaceutical development.”

In this early discovery project Boehringer Ingelheim will take a seat on the project development team and will pay an option fee. In addition, the company will allocate internal resources to the programand support collaborating partners to strengthen the early development work. Once the project has attained proof-of-concept in relevant invivo models Boehringer Ingelheim can exclusively license the lead at pre-defined terms for subsequent preclinical and clinical development. Any revenue the LDC may receive from commercialization will be shared with the academic inventors and collaborating institutions.

“Since the LDC’s inception, we have been in close contact with Boehringer Ingelheim, establishing a relationship based on mutual trust over the years. We very much appreciate their expertise and commitment to driving forward innovative therapeutic approaches,”says Dr. Bert Klebl, CEO of the LDC. “It is a great pleasure for us to be launching our first joint project in the field of mental disorders, which we believe is often underestimated. We see strong commercial opportunities here, and there is already a strong line-up of promising projects in this area from our academic network.”

About Max Planck Innovation
Max Planck Innovation is responsible for the technology transfer of the Max Planck Society and, as such, serves as a link between industry and basic research. With its interdisciplinary team it advises and supports scientists in evaluating their inventions, filing patents, and founding companies. Max Planck Innovation offers the industry unique access to the innovations of the Max Planck Institutes, and therefore performs an important task: the transfer of basic research results into products, which contributes to economic and social progress.

Further information at: www.max-planck-innovation.de

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LDC and Roche will jointly advance innovative drug discovery projects

Dortmund, January 21, 2016 – The Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC) and Roche will collaborate to identify and leverage innovative therapeutic opportunities that address diseases of unmet medical need across several disease areas.

Projects will be sourced from the LDC’s academic partners, including leading universities and institutes from the Max Planck Society and the Helmholtz Association, as well as from Roche’s innovation network. The partners will work together to advance projects from as early as target level up to the identification of a preclinical candidate. Over an initial three year period, LDC will act as a translational incubator for Roche and carry out small molecule projects in close collaboration with the scientific inventors and their academic institutions.

“We are delighted to team up with Roche, the world’s largest biotech company,” says Dr Bert Klebl, CEO of the LDC. “We are impressed by their deep expertise across many disease areas and the perfect cultural fit with our team. We are definitely on the same wavelength regarding our approach to early drug discovery and share a mission to transform academic innovation into tangible benefits to patients.”

Upon attainment of a predefined milestone, Roche has option rights to an exclusive license. The terms and conditions of collaboration and licensing will be agreed on a project-by-project basis to ensure a fair balance of investments and potential returns between the partners. Any revenue the LDC may receive from a potential future commercialization will be shared with the academic inventors and collaborating institutions. Roche’s contributions will include research funding and possibly in-kind support required for optimal project progress, such as access to compound libraries.

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