Calico (company)

For other uses, see Calico (disambiguation).
Not to be confused with Coleco.
Calico LLC
Subsidiary
Industry Health care, Biotechnology
Founded September 18, 2013 (2013-09-18)
Founders Google
Arthur D. Levinson
Headquarters 1170 Veterans Blvd, South San Francisco, California, United States
Key people
Arthur D. Levinson (CEO)
Parent Google (2013–2015)
Alphabet Inc. (2015–present)
Website calicolabs.com

Calico LLC is an independent research and development biotech company established in 2013 by Google Inc. and Arthur D. Levinson with the goal of combating aging and associated diseases.[1] In Google's 2013 Founders' Letter, Larry Page described Calico as a company focused on "health, well-being, and longevity." The company's name is an acronym for "California Life Company".[2][3]

In August 2015, Google announced plans to restructure into Alphabet Inc., wherein Google and Calico would become two of the subsidiaries of the new company along with others.[4] This restructuring was completed on October 2, 2015.

Partnerships

In September 2014, it was announced that Calico, in partnership with AbbVie, would be opening up a R&D facility focused on aging and age-related diseases, such as neurodegeneration and cancer. Initially, each company will invest $350 million, with an option for each to add an extra $500 million later on.[5] In the same month, Calico announced a partnership with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and 2M Companies regarding drug development for neurodegenerative disorders.[6]

In 2015, the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard announced a partnership with Calico to "advance research on age-related diseases and therapeutics",[7] a further partnership also was announced with the Buck Institute for Research on Aging.[8] Also in 2015, Calico announced a partnership with QB3 based on researching the biology of aging and identifying potential therapeutics for age-related diseases[9] and one with AncestryDNA based on conducting research into the genetics of human lifespan.[10]

NAMPT enhancer

Calico has licensed experimental drug compounds P7C3 analogues involved in enhancing the activity of the enzyme nicotinamide phosphoribosyltransferase, which plays a role in nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide biosynthesis. P7C3 compounds have previously been shown in a number of publications to be beneficial in animal models for age-related neurodegeneration.[11][12] The partnership involves upfront and milestone payments for development of the compounds into therapeutics.[13]

Modulators of Integrated Stress Response

Calico has entered into collaboration with Peter Walter and his lab at UCSF to develop their technology which modulates the Integrated Stress Response (ISR), a set of biochemical pathways activated in response to stress. The research has the potential to tackle "age-related cognitive decline".[14]

See also

References

  1. "Google announces Calico, a new company focused on health and well-being". 18 September 2013.
  2. Pollack, Andrew; Miller, Claire Cain (18 September 2013). "Tech Titans Form Biotechnology Company". New York Times. Retrieved 18 January 2015.
  3. Page, Larry. "2013 Founders' Letter".
  4. Womack, Brian (10 August 2015). "Google Creates New Company Called Alphabet, Restructures Stock". Bloomberg. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  5. "AbbVie and Calico Announce a Novel Collaboration to Accelerate the Discovery, Development, and Commercialization of New Therapies". 3 September 2014.
  6. "UT Southwestern researchers discover novel class of NAMPT activators for neurodegenerative disease; Calico enters into exclusive collaboration with 2M to develop UTSW technology". 11 September 2014.
  7. "Broad Institute and Calico announce an extensive collaboration focused on the biology of aging and therapeutic approaches to diseases of aging".
  8. "Google's Calico continues its partnering romp on aging R&D with Buck collaboration".
  9. "Calico and QB3 announce partnership to conduct research into the biology of aging and to identify potential therapeutics for age-related diseases". 24 March 2015. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  10. "AncestryDNA and Calico to Research the Genetics of Human Lifespan".
  11. "NAMPT neuroprotection". doi:10.1038/scibx.2014.1112.
  12. "P7C3 Neuroprotective Chemicals Function by Activating the Rate-Limiting Enzyme in NAD Salvage". doi:10.1016/j.cell.2014.07.040.
  13. "UT Southwestern researchers discover novel class of NAMPT activators for neurodegenerative disease; Calico enters into exclusive collaboration with 2M to develop UTSW technology".
  14. "Calico Licenses Technology from Acclaimed UCSF Laboratory".

External links

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