Nevrargenics, a Durham University spin-out company, has received the Bionow Project of the Year Award at the 2025 Bionow Annual Awards.
The award celebrates projects that have made a major step forward in research and innovation across the UK life sciences sector.
The winning project centres on Ellorarxine™, Nevrargenics’ lead drug programme, which is being developed as a potential new treatment for Motor Neurone Disease and Frontotemporal Dementia.
Judges praised the project as an important advance in the search for better treatments for these devastating conditions.
Our scientists have played a central role in the company from the beginning.
Nevrargenics was spun out from our top-rated Department of Chemistry, and the company’s work is built on years of collaboration between research teams at Durham and the University of Aberdeen.
Together, the teams designed and identified a lead drug candidate that could open up new ways of treating neurodegenerative disease.
Several Durham academics have been key to the company’s advancement.
Professor Andy Whiting, Emeritus Professor of Organic Chemistry, is the Chief Executive Officer and helped design the compounds now being developed.
Professor Ehmke Pohl, Chief Scientific Officer has contributed expertise in structural biology, pharmacology and pre-clinical research, while Dr Heather Allinson has supported the company’s growth through our research commercialisation work.
The Bionow Awards attracted a record 149 applications from 86 organisations, underlining the significance of Nevrargenics’ win.
The award is a strong example of how our research can lead to real-world impact, helping turn scientific discovery into promising new treatments that could improve lives in the future.
Our Department of Chemistry is ranked fifth in the UK in the Complete University Guide 2026. Visit our Chemistry webpages for more information on our undergraduate and postgraduate programmes.
