This team tirelessly synthesized and tested over 10,000 derivatives, eventually identifying a compound with exceptional anti-cancer activity and no toxicity – Sendurai Mani

When I was a master’s student, during a conversation with my dear friend, Dr. Pradheep Kumar Challiyil, the potential of plant-based treatments for cancer was unveiled to me. This revelation inspired me deeply, leading me to seek the wisdom of my grandmother, a practitioner of plant-based remedies. She recommended a specific plant that showed promise as a potential cancer cure.

Fueled by this idea, Dr. Challiyil and I diligently extracted and characterized the chemical compound from that plant, discovering its remarkable tumor-killing properties. However, due to the limitations of patenting natural compounds, I decided to develop a derivative of the compound to create an anti-cancer molecule.

To advance this groundbreaking work, I approached various investors and potential partners, including Mr. Samir Somaiya, Chairman and Managing Director of Godavari Biorefineries (from the Somaiya Group) in Mumbai. Mr. Somaiya shared my vision and was eager to have Godavari Biorefineries, a research and knowledge-driven company, take on the challenge of drug discovery by collaborating with me on this venture. Thus, Sathgen Therapeutics was born as a division of the company, dedicated to bringing this opportunity to fruition.

In 2007, we founded Sathgen Therapeutics, a company with a mission to develop small molecules for combating cancer. Our team, comprising chemists, cell biologists, computer modeling experts, and informaticians, including Dr. Sangeeta Srivastava, Dr. Prashant Kharkar, Dr. Maithili Athavale, Dr.Rakhee Bajaj, Dr. Apoorva Ugarkar, Dr Deepa Arora and many others. This team tirelessly synthesized and tested over 10,000 derivatives, eventually identifying a compound with exceptional anti-cancer activity and no toxicity.

Sathgen’s commitment to finding novel solutions in the fight against cancer remains unwavering, driven by collaboration, innovation, and dedication. Today, as a division of Godavari Biorefineries, Sathgen Therapeutics completed doing the of the first cohort of patients as part of the Phase 1 trials of this remarkable compound among cancer patients. Sathgen’s goal is to swiftly bring this extraordinary molecule to the forefront of cancer treatment for the benefit of patients worldwide.