Ruairidh Edwards
Translational Scientist Avacta Therapeutics
Ruairidh Edwards joined Avacta in 2022 and works on translational medicine for the pre|CISION® peptide–drug conjugate platform technology. He leads biomarker strategy, clinical translation and proof-of-mechanism studies supporting Avacta’s clinical development programmes. Prior to Avacta, Ruairidh completed his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Glasgow, where he investigated mitochondrial biology, before continuing this research as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Miami studying mitochondrial function in health and disease.
Seminars
Wednesday 1st April 2026
Establishing a Biomarker-Driven Approach to Guide Patient Selection for pre|CISION® Peptide-Drug Conjugates Using Tumour Targeting/Release & Payload Sensitivity Biomarkers
12:20 pm
- Avacta’s pre|CISION® peptide-drug conjugates comprise a peptide moiety bound to a cytotoxic payload by a linker that is specifically cleaved by FAP, a protease selectively overexpressed in the tumour microenvironment of many solid tumours
- AVA6000 (FAP-activated doxorobucin) is completing Phase 1b and has shown promising results, whilst AVA6103 (FAPactivated exatecan) is due to enter the clinic in Q1 2026
- A pan-cancer evaluation of FAP expression across multiple datasets supports the identification of tumour types most likely to benefit from FAP-activated pre|CISION® therapeutics
- Pan-cancer evaluation of DNA-damage response pathways enables identification of patient subsets most likely to benefit from payload-driven therapeutic activity
