News

CD3 announces investment in Enedra Therapeutics to advance drug discovery programmes from its proprietary CASPAROV platform for difficult to treat cancers
May 6, 2025

CD3 announces investment in Enedra Therapeutics to advance drug discovery programmes from its proprietary CASPAROV platform for difficult to treat cancers

Enedra Therapeutics, a London-based drug discovery and development company, has secured venture financing and non-dilutive funding through UKRI’s Innovate UK Future Economy Investor Partnerships programme…
KU Leuven joins EndLyz Therapeutics’ fight against Parkinson’s disease
April 10, 2025

KU Leuven joins EndLyz Therapeutics’ fight against Parkinson’s disease

EndLyz Therapeutics, a UK-based biotech company, announces a collaboration with KU Leuven professor Peter Vangheluwe and the Center for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3). Together…
Assembly of coronavirus particles as a new target for the development of potent antiviral drugs
March 27, 2025

Assembly of coronavirus particles as a new target for the development of potent antiviral drugs

In a new Nature publication, we uncover a new strategy to combat coronavirus infections. Together with our collaborators we discovered coronavirus inhibitors that prevent the…
Sue Foden – In Memoriam
November 10, 2025

Sue Foden – In Memoriam

Sue Foden, a member of our investment committee, unexpectedly deceased on Tuesday, November 4, 2024. Sue served as a member of our Investment Committee for…
Harrold van Barlingen – In Memoriam
January 18, 2025

Harrold van Barlingen – In Memoriam

Harrold van Barlingen, a member of our investment committee, passed away on Tuesday, January 7, 2025. As a member of our investment committee since 2017,…
CD3 and the KULeuven Lab of Cellular Transport Systems Join Forces with SandboxAQ to Speed Identification of New Therapies for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease
November 29, 2024

CD3 and the KULeuven Lab of Cellular Transport Systems Join Forces with SandboxAQ to Speed Identification of New Therapies for the treatment of Parkinson’s Disease

With the support of The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF), CD3 and the Lab of Cellular Transport Systems (LCTS), led by Prof.…
Substantial Open Philanthropy funding to prepare against influenza pandemics
May 3, 2024

Substantial Open Philanthropy funding to prepare against influenza pandemics

Professor Lieve Naesens of KU Leuven's Laboratory of Virology and Chemotherapy (Rega Institute), in collaboration with CD3, acquires substantial Open Philanthropy funding to prepare against…
Janssen Announces Promising Antiviral Activity Against Dengue in a Phase 2a Human Challenge Model
October 26, 2023

Janssen Announces Promising Antiviral Activity Against Dengue in a Phase 2a Human Challenge Model

Janssen shared Phase 2a data of our Dengue antiviral. Good news: JNJ-1802 induced antiviral activity against dengue virus in humans!   More information can be…
Official opening of the Belgian VirusBank Platform
October 26, 2023

Official opening of the Belgian VirusBank Platform

Together with its partners at the KU Leuven Rega Institute and Cistim Leuven vzw, CD3 is proud to announce the official opening of the VirusBank…
CD3 raises 70.5 Million Euros for its fourth fund
October 19, 2023

CD3 raises 70.5 Million Euros for its fourth fund

The Centre for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3) today announced the successful closure of CD3 IV, raising 70.5 million euros. This investment brings the total…
Janssen Announces Novel Dengue Antiviral Demonstrates Efficacy in Pre-Clinical Data Published in Nature
April 28, 2023

Janssen Announces Novel Dengue Antiviral Demonstrates Efficacy in Pre-Clinical Data Published in Nature

BEERSE, BELGIUM, March 15, 2023 – The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson (Janssen) announced the publication of new data in the journal Nature…
KU Leuven announces collaboration and license agreement with Gilead Sciences for the development of new antivirals against the respiratory syncytial virus
May 17, 2022

KU Leuven announces collaboration and license agreement with Gilead Sciences for the development of new antivirals against the respiratory syncytial virus

KU Leuven’s Rega Institute for Medical Research and the Centre for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3) today announced that they recently entered into a collaboration…
Aligos Therapeutics Selects Drug Candidate ALG-097558, a Potent Ritonavir-Free Oral Protease Inhibitor for the Treatment and Prevention of COVID-19
April 5, 2022

Aligos Therapeutics Selects Drug Candidate ALG-097558, a Potent Ritonavir-Free Oral Protease Inhibitor for the Treatment and Prevention of COVID-19

SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., April 04, 2022 - Aligos Therapeutics (Nasdaq: ALGS), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on developing novel therapeutics to address unmet…
Biohaven Enters Exclusive License and Research Collaboration Agreement with KU Leuven to Advance First-in-Class TRPM3 Antagonists for the Treatment of Pain
January 10, 2022

Biohaven Enters Exclusive License and Research Collaboration Agreement with KU Leuven to Advance First-in-Class TRPM3 Antagonists for the Treatment of Pain

Biohaven Therapeutics Ltd., a subsidiary of Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. (NYSE: BHVN), along with CD3 and LICR at KU Leuven, announced today that they…
KU Leuven develops very potent antiviral against dengue
October 6, 2021

KU Leuven develops very potent antiviral against dengue

Researchers at the KU Leuven Rega Institute and CD3 have developed an ultrapotent inhibitor of the dengue virus, which causes the tropical disease known as…
CD3 and VIB Enter into an Exclusive License and Research Collaboration with SpringWorks Therapeutics to Develop TEAD Inhibitors for Addressing Biomarker-Defined Cancers
May 6, 2021

CD3 and VIB Enter into an Exclusive License and Research Collaboration with SpringWorks Therapeutics to Develop TEAD Inhibitors for Addressing Biomarker-Defined Cancers

TEAD inhibition holds great promise as a therapeutic approach as the Hippo pathway is genetically altered in up to 10% of cancers. In mesothelioma, an…
Aligos and KU Leuven collaborate to develop a therapeutic candidate targeting coronavirus
July 2, 2020

Aligos and KU Leuven collaborate to develop a therapeutic candidate targeting coronavirus

Aligos Therapeutics, Inc. (Aligos), a private biotechnology company focused on the development of targeted antiviral therapies directed against chronic hepatitis B (CHB), COVID-19 and therapeutics…
A new cause of Parkinson’s disease unravelled
January 30, 2020

A new cause of Parkinson’s disease unravelled

Biomedical scientists at KU Leuven have discovered that a defect in the ATP13A2 gene causes cell death by disrupting the cellular transport of polyamines. When…
FDA approves new cancer drug associated with KU Leuven discovery
July 9, 2019

FDA approves new cancer drug associated with KU Leuven discovery

The Food and Drug Administration in the United States of America has approved XPOVIOTM (also known as selinexor), a medicine for patients with relapsed refractory…
Cytura Therapeutics to Develop a New Class of Drugs Targeting Genomic Instability in Cancer
April 23, 2019

Cytura Therapeutics to Develop a New Class of Drugs Targeting Genomic Instability in Cancer

Cytura Therapeutics announced the successful closure of a seed financing round. The funding is provided by a syndicate led by Thuja Capital Healthcare (Seed) Fund…
CD3, VIB and Beactica announce drug discovery alliance targeting inflammatory diseases
February 28, 2019

CD3, VIB and Beactica announce drug discovery alliance targeting inflammatory diseases

KU Leuven’s Centre for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3), VIB and Beactica AB, the Swedish drug discovery company, are proud to announce a new partnership.…
Grünenthal and KU Leuven join forces to develop an innovative non-opioid pain treatment
April 12, 2018

Grünenthal and KU Leuven join forces to develop an innovative non-opioid pain treatment

Grünenthal, KU Leuven’s Centre for Drug Design and Discovery (CD3) and the Laboratory of Ion Channel Research (LICR) announced today that they have entered into…
VIB, CD3 and Galapagos NV enter into a license deal for the development of MALT1 inhibitors
January 10, 2018

VIB, CD3 and Galapagos NV enter into a license deal for the development of MALT1 inhibitors

VIB, the Centre for Drug Design and Discovery of KU Leuven (CD3) and Galapagos NV signed an exclusive license and collaboration agreement for the development…
Rewind Therapeutics secures 15.2 million euro to develop novel remyelination therapies for MS
January 4, 2018

Rewind Therapeutics secures 15.2 million euro to develop novel remyelination therapies for MS

Rewind Therapeutics completed a €15.2 million Series A financing to develop novel re-myelinating therapies for patients suffering from Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and other myelin-related diseases.…
Matthias Versele joins the Centre for Drug Design & Discovery as Director of Drug Discovery Biology
February 24, 2017

Matthias Versele joins the Centre for Drug Design & Discovery as Director of Drug Discovery Biology

The Centre for Drug Design & Discovery (CD3) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Matthias Versele as Director of Drug Discovery Biology. Within…
CD3 and Rega Institute hunt for Zika virus inhibitors with the support of EU
October 28, 2016

CD3 and Rega Institute hunt for Zika virus inhibitors with the support of EU

In the context of the ZIKAlliance consortium, the KU Leuven Laboratory of Virology, led by Prof. Johan Neyts, will join forces with the Leuven Centre…
CD3 closes 60 million euro fund to turn academic research into new medicines
October 3, 2016

CD3 closes 60 million euro fund to turn academic research into new medicines

The Centre for Drug Design & Discovery (CD3) has launched a 60 million euro fund to turn innovative biomedical research of academic institutions and small…
Hit Discovery Constance GmbH: a new European hub for HTS and compound management
January 14, 2014

Hit Discovery Constance GmbH: a new European hub for HTS and compound management

Constance (Germany), January 14th, 2014 – Today Hit Discovery Constance GmbH (HDC), a new joint venture organisation between Lead Discovery Center (Dortmund/Germany), Centre for Drug…