The E&M: "Luca AI Cell Nears Development of Next-Generation Antiviral Therapeutics"

THE E&M announced on the 6th that its affiliate Luca AI Cell (hereinafter ‘Luca’) is making visible progress in the development of next-generation antiviral therapeutics.

The LEAD™ therapeutic being developed by Luca is a peptide-based antiviral agent that specifically recognizes and attacks certain curvatures (degree of bending) on the lipid-based surface of viruses.

Antiviral agents are treatments that directly kill viruses that have invaded the body, differing in mechanism from vaccines that reduce the probability of viral infection or alleviate symptoms. Representative examples include Pfizer’s COVID-19 treatment ‘Paxlovid’ and Roche’s influenza treatment ‘Tamiflu’.

Existing antivirals such as Paxlovid and Tamiflu recognize and attack only specific proteins on the virus surface, thus targeting only one type of virus. In contrast, Luca’s LEAD™ therapeutic attacks any virus with a certain curvature, enabling it to simultaneously target viruses such as COVID-19, Japanese encephalitis, Zika, and dengue viruses.

A company representative explained, “Normal cells, which are larger in size, are not affected, and only viruses with a diameter of 200 nanometers or less are targeted,” adding, “Luca is the only company worldwide developing a broad-spectrum antiviral based on this principle.”

Currently, Luca’s LEAD™ peptide therapeutic is undergoing efficacy testing against various types of viruses in collaboration with domestic and international research institutions.

Through the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), efficacy verification is being conducted on about 30 different viruses. Additionally, at Brazil’s UFMG (Federal University of Minas Gerais) and Thailand’s Chulalongkorn University (a WHO collaborating center), efficacy evaluations using animal models are underway for COVID-19, dengue virus, and rabies virus.

Previously, the ‘antiviral therapeutic using peptides’ led by Dr. Namjun Cho, Luca’s Chief Technology Officer, was selected last year for the AViDD (Antiviral Drug Discovery) program supported by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) (affiliated with Stanford University’s SyneRx Center), recognizing it as a broad-spectrum antiviral therapeutic prepared for the next pandemic.

A company representative stated, “We are currently in discussions with major domestic and international pharmaceutical companies for joint development and licensing out (LO) to expedite clinical progress of the LEAD™ peptide antiviral therapeutic.”

In addition, Luca is accelerating the development of gene therapies utilizing its proprietary artificial lipid bilayer technology and drug delivery system (DDS) manufacturing technology.

Based on lipid nanoparticles (LNP), this therapy targets various diseases such as pulmonary and ocular disorders. Dr. Cho said, “We have completed production facilities applying our proprietary core technology for mass production, which is the key to this business,” and added, “We are currently co-developing new drugs with various partners domestically and internationally, and rapid results are expected.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.