InterAx Biotech’s platform enables AI-based modification of drug candidates

Since inception, InterAx has been pushing the boundaries of current knowledge and practice in an inherently interdisciplinary combination of analytical science, systems biology and machine learning. The company has established a platform that combines cell-based real-time assays and proprietary computational algorithms to enable intelligent drug candidate design targeting the largest class of drug targets (G Protein-Coupled Receptors, GPCRs) – which counts for more than 30% of all approved drugs. The platform is already used by partners such as Lundbeck, Boehringer Ingelheim, and GPCR Therapeutics to in-depth characterise or describe specific signalling patterns of the drug targets of interest to finally help the partner to identify drug candidates with superior biological properties. 

Improving drug candidates

Thanks to its European Union’s SME Instrument Horizon 2020 Project PICARD with a total project volume of 2.49M EUR, InterAx expanded its drug discovery platform. The integration of Artificial Intelligence allows to actively determine how to modify the chemistry of drug candidates to achieve specific cellular responses - thus, drugs with better efficacy and safety profiles. “So, we are not only able to select the best molecule available among a set of drug candidates, but we can help to further improve the properties of such candidates to increase the success rate of following animal and finally human testing”, explains InterAx COO Luca Zenone.

The new platform is generating a great deal of interest. InterAx is already in discussions with multiple parties for collaborations employing its integrated platform in full - from big and medium pharma to classical biotech and the so called next-generation biopharmaceutical companies. Further details cannot be disclosed.

“I am very proud of the whole InterAx team for the successful achievement of the very ambitious goals set in our Picard H2020 project in such short time and with limited resources” explains Dr. Aurélien Rizk, CEO of InterAx Biotech. “The overall assessment of PICARD by the EU experts has been extremely good – the project has delivered exceptional results with significant immediate impact for the industry.”

(SK)