AmorChem supports orphan drug development

Montreal-based venture capital fund AmorChem LP is investing in the research of Dr Pascal Chartrand to develop a therapeutic treatment for myotonic dystrophy, a rare hereditary disease for which there is no current cure. AmorChem will provide an undisclosed amount of funding to Univalor, the technology transfer and commercialization arm of the Univ of Montreal, its affiliated schools and hospitals. The work will be conducted by NuChem Therapeutics, which is a medicinal chemistry contract research subsidiary of AmorChem — the latest addition to the GeneChem portfolio of funds. Its limited partners are Investissement Québec, FIER Partenaires, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Merck & Co. Chartrand is a researcher with the Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal, which employs 425 people and is an independent institution affiliated with the U of M….