National Cancer Institute - NCI Division of Cancer Treatment and ...

In 2001, NCI began Rapid Access to NCI
Discovery Resources, or R·A·N·D, a program
to provide DTP resources to academics in
the earliest stages of finding promising
therapeutics.
Recent advances in chemistry, mole-
cular biology, bioinformatics, and high-
throughput screening methods have
increased the number of agents that
can be screened and studied, but often
require a large investment in equipment
that most academics cannot afford. With
the help of R·A·N·D, DTP hopes to accelerate
the rate at which new compounds are
studied for fighting cancer. Examples of
preclinical discovery tasks that DTP can
provide through R·A·N·D include, but are
not limited to:
■ Recombinant production and characterization
of molecular target proteins
■ Development and implementation of
high-throughput screening assays
■ Chemical synthesis for library generation,
structure-activity studies, and lead
optimization
■ Bioassay-directed natural product
isolation and characterization
■ Early formulation, as well as
pharmacokinetic, pharmacology, and
toxicology studies
R·A·N·D is not a mechanism for obtaining
grants. To access the laboratory-based
services of the R·A·N·D program, academic
researchers can submit applications to
DTP twice a year, on April 1 and October 1.
The applications, which provide a detailed
summary of the proposed project, are
reviewed by a panel of extramural experts
who assess the strength of the hypothesis,
■ ■ ■
Natural products are a leading source of therapeutics—
anticancer agents included. For instance, some 60 to 65 percent
of all anticancer drugs are derived from natural products.
novelty, and cost-benefit ratio. Once an
application is accepted, R·A·N·D services
are performed at no cost to the investigator
by DTP laboratories. All output from
the project is returned to the originator
for further investigation.
Among the recipients of R·A·N·D services
is Dr. Robert Silverman, Cleveland Clinic
Foundation, whose research group is
developing an assay suitable for highthroughput
testing to aid in the discovery
of a novel drug for late-stage prostate cancer.
DTP will test compounds and perform
computer-assisted analysis of the molecular
targets. Dr. Nicholas Farrell, Virginia
Commonwealth University, also benefited
from R·A·N·D services after the program
synthesized a potential anticancer compound
for ovarian cancer and non-small
cell lung cancer in sufficient quantities
for his group to conduct pharmacokinetic
studies.
Drug Discovery and
Development Initiative
National Cooperative Drug
Discovery Group Program—
for Academics and Industry
http://dtp.nci.nih.gov/branches/gcob/
gcob_web3.html
Contact:
Mary K. Wolpert, Ph.D.
301-496-8783, wolpertm@exchange.nih.gov
DTP’s National Cooperative Drug Discovery
Group (NCDDG) program, initiated in 1983,
partners NCI-funded academic researchers
with private-sector organizations to fund
cooperative agreements (U19s) in support
of a multidisciplinary approach to the
D E V E L O P M E N T A L T H E R A P E U T I C S P R O G R A M ■ 101