Enamine Joins Agora Open Science Trust and Variational AI to Advance Open-Science Discovery of PRMT6 Inhibitors
KYIV, UKRAINE, March 24, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Enamine, a leading integrated drug discovery contract research organization (CRO) has today announced its participation in an open-science collaboration with Variational AI and the Agora Open Science Trust. This initiative aims to advance the discovery of novel small-molecule inhibitors targeting PRMT6, which is a therapeutic target implicated in Spinal and Bulbar Muscular Atrophy (SBMA), a rare neuromuscular disorder currently lacking approved treatments that slow or halt the progression of the disease.
The initiative brings together expertise in medicinal chemistry, generative artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, structural biology, pharmacology, and preclinical development across a global network of partners, including the Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC), the University Health Network (UHN) (https://www.uhn.ca/), the University of Oxford (https://www.ox.ac.uk/), the Venetian Institute of Molecular Medicine (VIMM) (https://www.vimm.it/en/), and Charles River Laboratories (https://www.criver.com/). In keeping with Agoraโs open science principles, all data generated through the project, including molecular structures, assay results, and progress updates, will be made publicly available.
๐๐ง ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ญ๐๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง-๐๐๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฆ๐๐ฐ๐จ๐ซ๐ค
The collaboration operates within a fully transparent ๐๐๐ฌ๐ข๐ ๐งโ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐โ๐ญ๐๐ฌ๐ญโ๐๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ณ๐ (๐๐๐๐) framework that integrates AI-driven molecular design, rapid compound synthesis, and biological testing. Variational AI applies its ๐๐ง๐ค๐ขโข generative AI platform to design novel PRMT6 inhibitor scaffolds and discover lead candidates.
To ensure rapid execution and reduce downstream attrition, the initial Enkiโข generation is constrained to ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐ฑ๐ญ๐๐ง๐๐๐ ๐๐ก๐๐ฆ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐, ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ฑ๐๐๐๐, the worldโs largest synthetically validated chemical space. By embedding synthetic feasibility directly into the design process, the collaboration emphasizes speed, learning, and iteration.
โThis collaboration demonstrates how early discovery can move faster when generative AI is paired with synthetically validated chemical space. Enamineโs xREAL Space enables the DMTA cycle to operate as intended โ transforming the make step from a bottleneck into a strategic engine for rapid iteration, accelerating the identification of a novel PRMT6 inhibitor series.โ
โ ๐๐ซ๐ฒ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ง๐ข๐ฎ๐ค, ๐๐๐, ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐.
โBy coupling Enkiโs generative design capabilities with Enamineโs synthetically validated REAL/xREAL space, we dramatically improved the design step of the DMTA cycle, allowing the program to rapidly identify and validate additional PRMT6 inhibitor series.โ
โ ๐๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ฆ, ๐๐๐, ๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐
โThis collaboration reflects a highly transparent and collaborative approach to rare disease drug discovery. By partnering with industry leaders such as Variational AI and Enamine, we can combine advanced AI-driven molecular design with world-class chemistry capabilities to accelerate the discovery of PRMT6 inhibitors for SBMA and expand therapeutic opportunities for this underserved disease.โ
โ ๐๐ซ. ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง, ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐ข๐๐๐ง๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ข๐ฌ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐ญ ๐๐ญ ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ
๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐โ๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฒ๐๐ฅ๐
Within the partnership, Enamine contributes its expertise in the โ๐ฆ๐๐ค๐โ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ฉ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐๐, which is often the primary bottleneck in early discovery programs. Enamineโs contributions include:
โข Access to synthetically validated chemical space
โข Rapid synthesis of novel compounds
โข Iterative SAR exploration through analog and scaffold-based synthesis
๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐
Enamine Ltd., headquartered in Kyiv, Ukraine, is a scientifically driven integrated drug discovery contract research organization (CRO). Enamine maintains the worldโs largest and most reputable collections of building blocks (over 350,000), screening compounds (over 4.7 million), and a vast database of synthetically feasible chemical structures โ ๐๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐. The company offers an extensive portfolio of expertly designed libraries for hit discovery, including Diversity, Fragment, Covalent, Bioactive, and Targeted Libraries, and delivers fully integrated discovery services spanning advanced organic synthesis, library synthesis, medicinal chemistry, high-throughput screening (HTS), and preclinical biology to support life sciences and pharmaceutical research worldwide. For more information, please visit www.enamine.net
๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐
Variational AI is a generative AI drug discovery company redefining the unit economics of small-molecule drug discovery and development. Based in Vancouver, Canada, Variational AI has developed Enkiโข, a proprietary generative AI foundation model that designs novel, optimized small-molecule drug candidates with improved potency, selectivity, and synthesizability to help partners accelerate early discovery and lead optimization. The companyโs multidisciplinary team of machine learning and drug discovery experts aims to transform how transformative therapeutics are discovered by leveraging state-of-the-art generative AI. For more information, please visit www.variational.ai
๐๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ข๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ญ
Agora Open Science Trust is a Canadian charity whose mission is to accelerate the discovery and development of affordable new medicines through open science. Agoraโs first initiative โ M4K Pharma (โMedicines for Kidsโ) โ is using open science to drive preclinical and clinical development of a novel ALK2 inhibitor for the treatment of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a rare pediatric brain cancer. Agoraโs pipeline of collaborative open science drug discovery programs has recently expanded to include programs for Spinal Bulbar Muscular Atrophy (SBMA), a rare genetic neuromuscular disorder, and Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC), a rare liver disease โ both of which currently have no approved treatment.
Agora continues to welcome collaborative funding partners whose support will help advance M4K2009 into clinical evaluation and sustain its mission to develop affordable medicines through open science.
You can support its mission at https://www.agoraopensciencetrust.org/donate-to-our-mission
Oleksii Gavrylenko
Enamine Ltd
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