IPA Acquires the Carterra LSA® Instrument to Enhance Antibody Discovery and Bolster Its AI Developments

Rhea-AI Summary

IPA (Immunoprecise Antibodies ) acquires the LSA instrument platform from Carterra, enhancing its drug development capabilities. The acquisition allows IPA to perform high throughput surface plasmon resonance-based antibody characterizations, significantly increasing its capacity for protein interaction analyses. This move aligns with IPA's focus on AI-driven drug design and expands its contract research organization capabilities.

Insights

Biotechnology Analyst

The acquisition of Carterra's LSA instrument platform by Immunoprecise Antibodies Ltd. represents a strategic enhancement of their high throughput screening capabilities. This technology enables more efficient antibody characterizations, which is a critical component in the early stages of drug discovery. The surface plasmon resonance technique used by the LSA platform is notable for its label-free interaction analysis, allowing for a more direct assessment of molecular interactions without the need for secondary labeling.

This efficiency gain in protein interaction analyses can potentially shorten the time to market for new therapeutics by streamlining the lead triaging process. However, the impact on the company's financials will depend on how effectively IPA integrates this technology into its existing workflows and translates it into faster, more cost-effective drug discovery services for its clients. The long-term success will hinge on the ability to leverage the data generated to enhance their LENSai technology for in silico drug discovery.

AI Technology Expert

The integration of LSA's high-throughput screening with IPA's AI-driven drug discovery platform, LENSai, could be a game-changer in the field. By feeding large volumes of data into machine learning algorithms, the quality of predictive models for drug efficacy and safety profiles is likely to improve. This could lead to a more targeted approach in drug development, potentially reducing the rate of late-stage clinical trial failures.

However, the real-world application of AI in drug discovery is still an emerging field and the effectiveness of these models in actual drug development pipelines remains to be proven. The ability of LENSai to optimize models for next-gen in silico drug discovery will be a key factor to watch. The industry will be observing closely to see if the promised efficiency gains translate into tangible outcomes like reduced drug development costs or improved hit-to-lead conversion rates.

Healthcare Investment Analyst

From an investment standpoint, the acquisition of the LSA instrument could signal to the market that IPA is aggressively pursuing growth in the AI-driven drug discovery space. This move may be viewed favorably by investors who are bullish on the integration of AI technologies in biopharma research and development. The ability to rapidly generate and analyze data can be a competitive advantage, potentially leading to a more robust pipeline of drug candidates.

However, investors should also consider the capital expenditures associated with such acquisitions and the time required to realize a return on investment. The market will be looking for evidence that IPA can convert the enhanced throughput and data generation into revenue-generating partnerships and successful drug candidates. It will be important to monitor how this technology affects the company's operational efficiency and whether it can maintain a lean cost structure while scaling up its capabilities.

Significant throughput of LSA to advance IPA’s diversity- and data-driven drug development and to enrich LENS^ai™.

VICTORIA, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- IPA (IMMUNOPRECISE ANTIBODIES LTD.) (the “Company” or “IPA”) (NASDAQ: IPA), an artificial intelligence-driven biotherapeutic research and technology company, today announced that it has acquired the LSA^® instrument platform from Carterra^®, a leading provider of high-throughput large and small molecule screening and characterization solutions. This instrument allows for high throughput surface plasmon resonance-based antibody characterizations thereby significantly increasing the Company’s capacity in performing various label-free protein interaction analyses including best-in-class kinetics, epitope binning, quantitation, epitope mapping, and blocking/neutralization assays.

IPA remains committed to expanding its contract research organization (CRO) capabilities and leveraging technology to drive innovation and efficiency, particularly in AI-driven drug design. Carterra’s LSA instrument delivers significant throughput in short time frames requiring only small sample volumes. This fits well with the company’s established high throughput capabilities and diversity- and data-driven drug discovery, delivering huge amounts of valuable data points at an early-stage to advance the lead triaging process. The efficiency gain resulting from the acquisition will not only expedite the Company’s in vitro characterizations for clients and partners, but also rapidly fuels LENS^ai with valuable data sets to optimize models for next gen in silico drug discovery and development utilizing their proprietary HYFTs to aggregate and integrate biological data.

“The significance of our LENS^ai technology extends beyond just the creation of an advanced tool,” says IPA’s Chief Executive Officer and President, Jennifer Bath, PhD. “It represents a strategic move to capture the growing interest in and huge potential of AI-driven drug discovery and digital biology. Complementing our well-established high throughput antibody discovery, production, and screening capabilities, Carterra’s LSA gets us closer to making ours the fastest and most cost-effective drug discovery workflow.”

“We couldn’t be more excited to join with IPA in changing the way drugs are discovered,” said Tim Germann, Chief Commercial Officer at Carterra. “The LSA has made the use of AI in antibody discovery a reality; nothing generates more data in as little time to train AI/ML engines.”

About ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Ltd.

ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Ltd. has several subsidiaries in North America and Europe including entities such as Talem Therapeutics LLC, BioStrand BV, ImmunoPrecise Antibodies (Canada) Ltd. and ImmunoPrecise Antibodies (Europe) B.V. (collectively, the “IPA Family”). The IPA Family is a biotherapeutic research and technology group that leverages systems biology, multi-omics modelling and complex artificial intelligence systems to support its proprietary technologies in bioplatform-based antibody discovery. Services include highly specialized, full-continuum therapeutic biologics discovery, development, and out-licensing to support its business partners in their quest to discover and develop novel biologics against the most challenging targets. For further information, visit www.ipatherapeutics.com.

About Carterra, Inc.:

Carterra, Inc. is a privately held company. Its HT-SPR technology provides large-molecule and small-molecule drug discovery customers with screening and characterization throughput and functionality that scales with omics-level applications, condensing months of work down to days. Our solutions have enabled multiple therapeutics and breakthrough research and helped academic and translational researchers and biopharmaceutical companies in oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and more. Carterra is based in Salt Lake City, Utah, and has Customer Experience Centers in San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Boston, Manchester, England, and Munich, Germany. Carterra products are available in Asia-Pacific and Oceania through our exclusive distributor, Revvity. To learn more, visit www.carterra-bio.com or connect with us on LinkedIn or X (Twitter).

Forward Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable United States securities laws and Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of words such as “potential”, “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “estimates”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking information contained in this news release includes, but is not limited to, statements relating to the expected outcome on the market, the life sciences, drug discovery and development, and statements relating to IPA’s expected increased revenue streams and financial growth. In respect of the forward-looking information contained herein, IPA has provided such statements and information in reliance on certain assumptions that management believed to be reasonable at the time.

Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements stated herein to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks, including, without limitation, the risk that the expected healthcare benefits including lowering development timeliness, and costs and that development of targeted treatments will not be achieved, in addition actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of factors and risks, as discussed in the Company’s Annual Information Form dated July 10, 2023 (which may be viewed on the Company’s profile at www.sedar.com), and the Company’s Form 40-F, dated July 10, 2023 (which may be viewed on the Company’s profile at www.sec.gov). Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results, performance, or achievements may vary materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information contained in this news release. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this release and, accordingly, are subject to change after such date. The Company does not assume any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, that may be made from time to time by us or on our behalf, except as required by applicable law.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240320099936/en/

IPA:

info@ipatherapeutics.com

Carterra:

Cheri Salazar

Sr. Marketing Manager

+1 (408) 594-9400

Source: ImmunoPrecise Antibodies Ltd.

FAQ

What did IPA announce in the press release?

IPA announced the acquisition of the LSA instrument platform from Carterra, a move to enhance its drug development capabilities.

What is the significance of the LSA instrument platform acquisition for IPA?

The acquisition allows IPA to perform high throughput surface plasmon resonance-based antibody characterizations, significantly increasing its capacity for protein interaction analyses.

How does the LSA instrument platform benefit IPA's drug discovery process?

The LSA instrument platform delivers significant throughput in short time frames, requiring only small sample volumes, which fits well with IPA's high throughput capabilities and diversity- and data-driven drug discovery approach.

Who is IPA's Chief Executive Officer and President mentioned in the press release?

Jennifer Bath, PhD, is IPA's Chief Executive Officer and President mentioned in the press release.

What technology does IPA focus on to drive innovation and efficiency in drug design?

IPA focuses on AI-driven drug design technology to drive innovation and efficiency in drug design.