The pharmaceutical company Sulfateq, based in Groningen, has developed a drug that may combat a range of chronic diseases such as Alzheimer's, heart failure, kidney failure, and diabetes. Read more in this article from the Dagblad van het Noorden, published on February 24.

After years of preliminary research, the drug, named SUL-238, has been tested on humans for the first time since last week. In the pharmaceutical world, this is referred to as phase 1 of research into new drugs. It's not often that a Northern Dutch company makes it this far with a new medicine. "What makes our discovery unique for our region is that we've put together a new molecule," says Guido Krenning, Chief Scientific Officer (CSO) of Sulfateq. "We didn't continue with something that already existed; we created something completely new."

Alzheimer's

Of the drugs that reach this stage of research, an average of 7 percent actually make it to market. Krenning and CEO Kees van der Graaf believe that the chances of success for SUL-238 are much greater. If further research is successful, approval could be granted in 2028 to bring SUL-238 to market as a treatment for Alzheimer's and possibly also for heart and kidney failure. Sulfateq has partnered with a Turkish company to conduct human research.

Worked on it since 2011

It is exceptional for a small company like Sulfateq to come this far in the development of a new drug. It has been tested on hamsters, pigs, and mice with conditions. The Groningen-based company has been working on it since 2011. The research has been financed in large part by the revenues of other companies owned by Van der Graaf. One of them produces pregnancy tests.

Read the full article below.

Source: dvhn.nl, authors John Geijp and Stef Altena
Header image: Guido Krenning, Kees van der Graaf, and Daniel Swart of Sulfateq. Photographer: Jan Willem van Vliet