About Us

About Advanced Genetic Systems

Advanced Genetic Systems, Inc. (AGS) is a drug discovery company dedicated to pioneering novel classes of antiviral therapeutics.

At AGS we have focused our drug discovery efforts on an under-explored target, the Ribonucleoprotein (RNP) complex. RNPs are composed of interactions between structural RNA and proteins. Targeting RNPs is challenging due to the multiple roles, dynamic conformations, and chemical instability of these complexes. To address these challenges, we have developed two key tools. First, we have built a robust cell-based screening platform dedicated to targeting this class of interaction. Second, we have developed novel chemical strategies including the assembly and screening of custom libraries tailored to the chemistry of RNPs. 

Management Team: 

AGS was founded by Alan Frankel, Ph.D., Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics at UCSF and Robert Nakamura, Ph.D., a former UCSF scientist. 

Dr. Frankel is an internationally recognized expert in the field of RNA and RNA-protein interactions. His work on RNA-protein recognition using peptide model systems, computational and structural methods, and in vivo selection technologies has made major contributions to the field. 

Dr. Nakamura trained as a postdoctoral fellow at UCSF where he studied RNA-protein interactions of retroviruses. There he developed an in vivo screening platform to identify proteins that interact with an RNA target. It is this technology that forms the basis of the drug screening platforms at AGS. 

Scientific Collaborators: 

James Wells, Ph.D. UCSF Professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Director of the Small Molecule Discovery Center at UCSF/QB3