Agora Open Science Trust Secures Three Grants from Conscience’s DMOS Program to Advance Open Drug Discovery

Toronto, ON, Canada, February 28, 2025 – Agora Open Science Trust, a Canadian charity dedicated to creating affordable new medicines through open science, is proud to announce that it has been awarded three grants through Conscience’s inaugural Developing Medicines through Open Science (DMOS) program. This funding, bringing a total of CAD ~$2.45 million to Agora and its partners, will accelerate their collaborative research efforts in rare diseases overlooked by traditional industry R&D programs. These DMOS grants will help advance the following projects, each targeting a rare disease with no approved therapeutic options:

• IND-enabling studies for clinical investigation of an orally bioavailable, brain-penetrant ALK2inhibitor for the treatment of Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), a fatal pediatric braincancer.

• Hit-to-lead development of PRMT6 inhibitors for the treatment of Spinal Bulbar MuscularAtrophy (SBMA), a genetic neuromuscular disorder affecting movement and musclefunction.

• Exploring the preclinical efficacy of SYK inhibitors in Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis (PSC), arare liver disease.

“With Conscience’s support, we can accelerate the development of potential treatments for diseases that have long been underfunded and underserved,” said Dr. Peter Sampson, VP of Drug Discovery and Development at Agora Open Science Trust. “Our commitment to open science ensures that the discoveries we make will not only push scientific boundaries but will also remain accessible to researchers worldwide, maximizing impact.”

Each project brings together leading scientists and institutions, reinforcing Agora’s commitment to collaborative innovation. Our co-investigators on the DIPG project include Dr. David Uehling (Ontario Institute for Cancer Research) and Dr. Neil Vasdev (Centre for Addition and Mental Health). We are also pleased to collaborate with Dr. Rachel Harding (University of Toronto, Structural Genomics Consortium) and Dr. Mark Reed (UHN) on the SBMA project and Dr. Sonya MacParland (University Health Network), Dr. Gary Bader (University of Toronto) and Dr. Ian McGilvray (UHN) on the PSC initiative.

“These projects exemplify how open science can revolutionize the way we approach drug discovery,” added Max Morgan, CEO of Agora Open Science Trust. “By working together, sharing data, and leveraging multidisciplinary expertise, we can overcome barriers that have traditionally hindered drug development in diseases with limited treatment options.”

Agora Open Science Trust remains dedicated to its mission of fostering transparent, collaborative research to develop affordable medicines for significant unmet therapeutic needs. The organization looks forward to working with Conscience and its research partners to advance these critical projects.

For more information on Agora Open Science Trust’s initiatives, visit:

https://www.agoraopensciencetrust.org/affordable-medicines

Communications contact:

Sofia Melliou

Research Communications Specialist

communications@thesgc.org

About Agora Open Science Trust

Agora Open Science Trust is a Canadian charity whose mission is to accelerate the discovery and development of affordable new medicines through open science. Agora’s first initiative – M4K Pharma (‘Medicines for Kids’) – 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. Agora’s 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—both of which currently have no approved treatment.

About M4K Pharma

M4K Pharma is an open science drug development company wholly owned by Agora Open Science Trust. Agora incorporated M4K Pharma to pursue commercial development of the ALK2 clinical candidate arising from its collaborative DIPG research program. M4K Pharma is tasked with leveraging regulatory exclusivity rights and priority review voucher assets to attract late-stage commercial investment and partnerships focused on achieving affordable access to a clinically validated ALK2 inhibitor. Any M4K Pharma profits from these commercial efforts will be distributed to the Agora charity to support DIPG patient access initiatives and further open science research programs.