Orbit Discovery, a functional screening service company, is highly focused on using the novel bead and a microfluidic technology platform to enhance functional peptides screening. A team of world-class researchers is working continuously towards translating this technology into advanced human therapeutics for partners and collaborators.
The biopharmaceutical company Orbit Discovery has been awarded Euro 472,000 in a grant to help it expand its microfluidics screening capabilities in peptide drug discovery. This technology will help increase the efficiency of peptide therapeutics discovery for challenging the drug target. In this approach, according to the company’s press release, the grant funds will go towards validating the microfluidic components or Orbit’s peptide discovery platform.
The Euro 472,000 Smart (National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent) grant was awarded by Innovate UK. It will facilitate the implementation of droplet-based microfluidics for cell-based functional screening and expand the capabilities throughput of Orbit’s peptide display platform.
Currently, Orbit is working towards advancing the discovery of peptide therapeutics candidates. This includes challengeable targeting of drugs by increasing the entire process efficiency and decreasing the risks and associated costs.
The Orbit’s high-throughput screening platform focuses on the multi-membrane spanning proteins, G-proteins coupled receptors. It is built to address difficult-to-access drug targets directly. The objective of this platform lies in rapidly identifying molecules to generate a therapeutically-relevant functional response earlier in the drug-discovery process. At the same time, it will diminish the polluting screening outputs with non-functional binders, which is frequently observed with other platforms.
According to Anthony Pitt, chief technology officer of Orbit Discovery, “This Innovative UK Smart Grant will prove to be effective in functional screening. The microfluidic platform will increase the functional screening capabilities from tens of thousands to millions of peptides. On the whole, it will effectively identify rare functional binders that are missing with traditional screening platforms”.
According to Neil Butt, chief executive officer of Orbit Discovery, “This has opened the door for Orbit to increase its commitment to R&D and create additional high-value service offerings to customers. This current functional screening platform will rule the market and create a major leap towards expanding the throughput and library size to be screened within the platform.”
