New collaboration mitigates risk in drug discovery process with artificial intelligence and in vitro “avatar” clinical trials
CHERRY HILL, N.J., April 22, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vyant Bio, Inc. (“Vyant” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: VYNT), an emerging leader in novel drug discovery techniques, announces a collaboration that will seek to de-risk the development of small protein therapeutics. In partnership with Ordaōs Bio (“Ordaōs”) and Cellaria, Inc. (“Cellaria”), the Company is unveiling a model for rapid iteration of therapeutic design using artificial intelligence and in vitro ‘avatar clinical trials’ that will enable the design, development, and testing of potential therapeutics on specific patient populations, during preclinical development. The goal is to provide an early detection system of a drug’s efficacy in different patient cohorts, prior to clinical trials.
The collaboration capitalizes on the unique capabilities of each company to design, manufacture, and test small-protein therapeutics that target multiple biomarkers derived from whole genome sequencing of patient populations. Using proprietary AI, Ordaōs will generate in silico protein sequences, designed to bind specific disease targets, and will serve as a blueprint for the collaborative team’s experts in in vitro and in vivo preclinical drug discovery, to produce the protein and rapidly iterate the structure using a highly efficient expression system. Using Cellaria’s Patient Specific Cell Model Cohorts, the purified protein will be critically evaluated for target binding and further optimized to improve performance across an array of disease-specific genetic biomarker expressing cells. Once fully optimized by the team, Vyant Bio’s objective will be to deliver regulatory readiness and a maximally de-risked drug candidate. The combined solution will provide data and human-based insights not usually available until after a costly clinical trial.
“Vyant Bio is committed to transforming the way that drugs are discovered by quickly adapting to exciting new technologies and combining capabilities in ways that leverage their strengths,” stated Jay Roberts, CEO of Vyant Bio. “Our collaboration with Ordaōs and Cellaria allows us all to work together to design and develop superior therapeutics and position them to be as successful as possible before they get into the clinic.”
Cellaria Inc. uses cell biology in novel ways to provide insights into how a therapeutic may perform in specific patient populations, prior to clinical trials. In this collaboration, Cellaria provides the means for scientists to test how a drug will perform in a range of patient cohorts. The Cellaria in vitro and 3-D Models of tumor and metastatic niches are directly linked to a patient’s disease state and enable multiple parametric deep data sets in genomics, proteomics, and combinatorial analysis.
“Working with the Ordaōs and Vyant Bio teams has been incredibly important for us. Seeing the wealth of patient data and cells used so seamlessly to inform and guide the design of a therapeutic is highly rewarding,” stated David Deems, President and Founder of Cellaria Inc. “We are developing a repeatable process that leverages well defined patient cohorts to learn as much as possible prior to embarking on a clinical trial.”
Ordaōs uses generative AI technology to accelerate the mini protein drug discovery and development process. In this collaboration, Ordaōs provides a pipeline of digitally optimized therapeutics for further development. The company was founded by David Longo, a Stanford and Harvard-trained AI and biotech scientist, and Ulo Palm, MD, PhD, a 30-year veteran of clinical drug discovery and development at Allergan, Novartis, and Schering Plough.
“We are very excited about working with Vyant Bio and Cellaria to further our vision for transforming the way we bring therapeutics to patients. At Ordaōs, we believe that designing, rather than discovering, drugs is now possible with AI and will allow us to think bigger when we envision the impact we can have on people’s lives.” said David Longo, CEO of Ordaōs.
Ülo Palm, Ordaōs’ Chief Medical Officer, added that “the ultimate goal is to use modern AI to design the next generation of highly effective and safe biologics for treating cancer and inflammatory diseases thereby creating transformative treatment options for potentially millions of patients worldwide. We expect that this new approach will significantly accelerate drug R&D overall and get the new drugs to patients much faster than with the traditional drug development approach. Patients who suffer from chronic and life-threatening diseases cannot wait. That is why this new collaboration is so important.”
The three companies will continue to refine their strategies for drug design and development through a series of projects targeting cancer, pancreatic, and autoimmune disorders. As the project evolves, the therapeutic de-risking strategy will further incorporate the human-based biology and analytical software of StemoniX, a wholly owned subsidiary of Vyant Bio.
About Vyant Bio, Inc.
Vyant Bio, Inc. (“Vyant Bio”) is emerging as an advanced biotechnology drug discovery company. With capabilities in data, science (both biology and chemistry), engineering, and regulatory, we are rapidly identifying small and large molecule therapeutics and derisking decision making through multiple in silico, in vitro, and in vivo modalities. Leveraging these modalities, Vyant Bio is able to capitalize on repurposed and novel compounds and then partner with others to further develop and commercialize valuable therapeutics and new treatments for patients. Vyant Bio operates two wholly-owned subsidiaries, StemoniX and vivoPharm and is empowering the discovery of new medicines through the convergence of novel human biology and software technologies.
StemoniX develops and manufactures high-density, at-scale human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell-derived neural and cardiac screening platforms for drug discovery and development. Predictive, accurate, and consistent, these human models enable scientists to conduct research quickly and economically with improved outcomes in a simplified workflow. Through collaborations with drug discovery organizations, StemoniX tests compounds in-house, creates new cell-based disease models, and operationalizes custom human iPSC-derived disease models at large scale for high-throughput screening. With leading-edge iPSC technologies and data science, StemoniX is helping global institutions bring the most promising medicines to patients.
vivoPharm offers proprietary preclinical test systems supporting clinical diagnostic offerings at early stages valued by the pharmaceutical industry, biotechnology companies, and academic research centers. vivoPharm is focused on precision and translational medicine to drive drug discovery and novel therapies. vivoPharm specializes in conducting studies tailored to guide drug development, starting from compound libraries, and ending with a comprehensive set of in vitro and in vivo data and reports, as needed for Investigational New Drug filings. vivoPharm operates in The Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International (AAALAC) accredited and GLP compliant audited facilities.
About Ordaōs Bio
Ordaōs employs a powerful proprietary AI engine and biological expertise to allow researchers to see critical patterns and relationships in their data, unlocking previously unattainable and actionable insights to design—rather than discover—novel therapeutic molecules. This will enable Ordaōs to accelerate medical research, design complex therapeutic candidates and predict the outcomes of clinical trials.
About Cellaria , Inc.
Cellaria identifies disruptive ways to develop new in vitro and 3-D Models of tumors and metastatic niches that are more directly linked to the patient’s disease state and enable multiple parametric deep data sets in genomics, proteomics, and combinatorial analysis. Their capabilities include drug compound testing, enrollment, and collection of patient specimens for model development, defining and monitoring clinically relevant characteristics for each clinical disease category and across patient cohorts. This approach provides more in-depth insight into the heterogeneity of patient characteristics in a disease category and provides information about the stability and utility of the patient-specific model over time.
For more information, please visit www.vyantbio.com; www.ordaos.bio and www.cellariainc.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements pertaining to Vyant Bio Inc.’s (formerly Cancer Genetics, Inc.) expectations regarding future financial and/or operating results, and potential for our services, future revenues or growth, or the potential for future collaborations and strategic transactions in this press release constitute forward-looking statements.
Any statements that are not historical fact (including, but not limited to, statements that contain words such as “will,” “believes,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “expects,” and “estimates”) should also be considered to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, risks inherent in our attempts to adapt to the global coronavirus pandemic, achieve profitability and increase sales of our pre-clinical services, maintain our existing customer base and avoid cancelation of customer contracts or discontinuance of trials, raise capital to meet our liquidity needs, realize the anticipated benefits of the merger with StemoniX, Inc., and other risks discussed in the Vyant Bio, Inc.’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, along with other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. Vyant Bio, Inc. disclaims any obligation to update these forward-looking statements.
Vyant Bio Investor Contact
Jennifer K. Zimmons. Ph.D.
Investor Relations
Zimmons International Communications, Inc.
Email: jzimmons@zimmonsic.com
Phone: +1.917.214.3514