LabGenius’ research collaboration with Sanofi yields positive results

The presentation debuted data from LabGenius’ antibody discovery platform, confirming that a panel of optimised NANOBODY candidates met the pre-defined success criteria for the collaboration, whilst also maintaining favourable production characteristics. 

In 2021, LabGenius and Sanofi initiated a multi-year collaboration in the area of inflammation that combined LabGenius’ capabilities in machine learning (ML), robotic automation, and synthetic biology with Sanofi’s expertise in the therapeutic development of NANOBODY heavy chain variable domains.

In the readout of results, LabGenius confirmed that the 10 most improved NANOBODY variants demonstrated up to a 7-fold improvement in the desired property of interest, whilst maintaining the potency of the starting molecule.

All variants also expressed well in Escherichia coli and showed minimal tendency for aggregation. Further detailed mutational analysis showed that each of the variants included unique combinations of non-intuitive mutations, which proved essential for performance. 

Maria Wendt, global head of digital and biologics strategy and innovation at Sanofi, said: “LabGenius successfully delivered an exciting and innovative example of NANOBODY optimisation using ML. This perfectly complements Sanofi’s Large Molecule Research strategy to infuse all aspects of biologics discovery and development with the latest in computation and AI.”

Speaking about the partnership’s success, Dr. Gino Van Heeke, chief scientific officer at LabGenius, commented: “Lead optimisation is a critical part of the antibody discovery process, and these impressive results continue to demonstrate the platform’s potential to accelerate the development of molecules with unique and important properties.”

Dr. James Field, CEO and founder of LabGenius, added: “We’re delighted with the outcome of this research collaboration. These results further validate our platform’s unique capabilities, and we believe that continued efforts in this area will ultimately translate into a positive outcome for patients.”