Ana Martínez awarded the best-protected invention by the Spanish Office of Patents and Trademarks

Ana Martínez, who leads the Translational Medicinal and Biological Chemistry Group at the Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas Margarita Salas, was awarded the best-protected invention by the Spanish Office of Patents and Trademarks (OEPM). The researcher received the prize for a patent useful in the treatment of neurological diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Specifically, the awarded patent, granted in 2018 and still unlicensed, is entitled “CDC7-Inhibiting purine derivatives and their use for the treatment of neurological conditions”. It focuses on specific purine derivatives (one of the two chemical compounds which cells use to make the building blocks of DNA and RNA) capable of inhibiting CDC7 kinase activity. In pathologies such as ALS or Alzheimer's, there is hyperphosphorylation of TDP-43 (a nuclear protein critical for the survival of nerve cells) and the subsequent formation of clusters induced by the enzyme CDC7.

The ceremony of the First Edition of the Awards for the Best Invention Protected by Industrial Property Rights took place on June 1 in the School of Industrial Organization. The act was attended by the researcher Carmen Gil, also a leader of the group behind the patent, on behalf of Martínez. The act was chaired by the Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism, María Reyes Maroto.

More information:
CSIC Press Release (in Spanish)