Akanocure Pharmaceuticals receives Bayer support to create novel antifungal agents

Company is developing effective, safe antifungal agents for crop-protection applications

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — One of the world’s largest multinational biotechnology and pharmaceutical corporations is providing support to an Indiana-based company to help farmers and growers combat crop loss due to fungal infections.

Mohammad Noshi, chief scientific officer and co-founder of Akanocure Pharmaceuticals Inc., leads one of 18 international projects to receive support from Bayer. Noshi is a recipient of the Grants4Ag Award, an annual initiative from Bayer to provide expertise and funding to researchers developing novel agricultural solutions. This year’s awards focused on transformative research and development and breakthrough technologies for the next generation of crop-protection solutions.

Noshi also received Bayer’s 2023 Testing4Ag Award. 

Akanocure is located at Purdue Research Park of West Lafayette and licenses Purdue University intellectual property through the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization. Akanocure also developed its own intellectual property that is directly related to the awards. The company has also received funding from Purdue Innovates. Noshi and Akanocure CEO and co-founder Sherine Abdelmawla are both Purdue alumni.

Mohammad Noshi, Akanocure Pharmaceuticals co-founder and chief scientific officer, analyzes a new antifungal compound for crops. (Purdue Research Foundation photo/Steve Martin) Download image

The impact of fungal infections

Noshi said fungal infections are so pervasive that the amount of loss in major crops due to fungal infections is enough to feed nearly 9% of the global population — and it could get worse.

“Crop loss due to fungal infection will continue to rise and become more complicated,” Noshi said. “Current fungal pathogens will mutate and develop a higher resistance to current antifungal agents. A new generation of antifungal candidates to address these global crop problems must be developed.”

Akanocure is developing antifungal agents with unique properties and mechanisms of action for crop protection. Noshi said the company’s technology addresses challenges often faced in development: the design, synthesis and larger-scale production of complex structures that are safe and effective.

“The high synthetic flexibility of our platform technology solves the manufacturing problem and ensures the continuous evolution of better candidates,” Noshi said. “We can fine-tune the physical and chemical properties of the compounds to achieve the highest degree of efficacy.”

Noshi said the compounds are designed to be safe for the environment and for human consumption.

“They are meant to target a broad spectrum of different species of fungi that affect different varieties of crops,” Noshi said.

Bayer’s impact

Noshi said Bayer’s support includes funding and access to resources that include mentoring and biological testing. Akanocure will leverage the support into the research and development of the novel antifungal compounds. 

Noshi and his colleagues are excited to receive the award from one of the world’s leaders in agriculture-related research and innovation. 

“Senior Bayer representatives told us that the Grants4Ag application process was extremely competitive. More than 90 proposals were received and only 18 received support. We feel very excited and honored to be one of these few recipients,” Noshi said. “The project itself is very exciting for Akanocure, and the opportunity to work with Bayer on our research is a humbling achievement.” 

About Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization 

The Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2023, the office reported 150 deals finalized with 203 technologies signed, 400 disclosures received and 218 issued U.S. patents. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2019 Innovation & Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Place from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. In 2020, IPWatchdog Institute ranked Purdue third nationally in startup creation and in the top 20 for patents. The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.

Writer/Media contact: Steve Martin, sgmartin@prf.org

Source: Mohammad Noshi, mnoshi@akanocure.com