Scripps Research receives $50 million to advance therapies for tuberculosis, malaria and other global health challenges

LA JOLLA, CA – Scientists at Scripps Research’s drug development division, Calibr, have been awarded $50 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to deliver new preclinical candidates against the global threats of tuberculosis and malaria, as well as to support research into pandemic preparedness, vaccine development, new contraceptives and gut health programs.

The funding will also boost Calibr’s continued efforts to repurpose existing drugs through the groundbreaking ReFRAME initiative. The five-year award is a renewal of the Calibr flagship portfolio grant and brings the total commitment from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to $135 million between 2014 to 2024.

“Support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has allowed us to discover and advance several promising therapeutic candidates,” says Peter Schultz, PhD, chief executive officer of Calibr and Scripps Research. “The foundation’s continued generous support will tremendously accelerate our efforts to address unmet medical needs for millions of people around the globe.”  

Since its founding by Schultz in 2012, Calibr has advanced Scripps Research technologies and become a leader in non-profit translational research. Between 2014 and 2019, Gates Foundation support for Calibr fueled major drug development breakthroughs and helped establish a team of more than 30 staff members and a network of partners focused on leveraging Calibr’s drug discovery expertise and infrastructure to tackle global health problems.

With Gates Foundation support, Calibr launched ReFRAME, a best-in-class resource focused on discovering ways to repurpose existing drugs to target diseases such as HIV, tuberculosis and parasites that cause severe illnesses in children.

Calibr has generated five preclinical candidates against malaria, HIV and parasites and several additional preclinical candidate opportunities.