The hunt for new cystic fibrosis (CF) therapies is increasingly going digital, as the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation taps Antiverse to turn one of the field’s most challenging proteins into a viable drug candidate through AI antibody design.
The collaboration aims to develop biologics targeting the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) protein, a feat that has long eluded traditional pharmaceutical development.
Overcoming the membrane protein barrier
While current CF treatments rely on small molecule modulators to correct protein folding, targeting the extracellular region of the CFTR protein remains a significant challenge. As a membrane ion channel, the CFTR protein is notorious for having small, dynamic domains that are difficult to interrogate.
Antiverse’s ‘lab-in-the-loop’ platform combines seven years of generative model training with rapid experimental validation. This approach allows the biotech to design epitope-specific antibodies with optimised physicochemical properties in record time.
Murat Tunaboylu, CEO, Antiverse, told Tech Funding News: “We [co-founder Ben Holland] bonded over the idea of using machine learning to solve biological problems that are simply too complex for traditional methods. That shared belief became the foundation of Antiverse.”
Accelerating R&D timelines
For pharmaceutical industry, a key potential advantage of this approach is the reduction in R&D timelines. Conventional discovery methods for complex membrane proteins typically take one to two years. Antiverse claims its AI-powered modelling can produce a therapeutic-grade antibody in under four months. Under the agreement, Antiverse will optimise antibodies using hyper-expressing cell lines before handing the programmes to the CF Foundation for testing in native cell models.
Expanding the AI pipeline
The partnership coincides with Antiverse’s $9.3m Series A funding round, signalling investor confidence in the ability of AI to tackle G-protein coupled receptors and ion channels.
“We were intentional about partnering with investors who understand technically demanding innovation at the intersection of AI and therapeutic antibody development,” Tunaboylu told BioXconomy.
Beyond CF, Antiverse is already collaborating with top 20 pharma partners on oncology and central nervous system disorder treatments.
