Decoding Cancer Complexity via the Largest Multi Omic Spatial Atlas
PLUS: One recent deal bringing AI and CryoEM together.
Hello! I'm Andrii Buvailo, and this is my weekly newsletter about all things ‘tech + bio’: technologies, breakthroughs, and great companies on the cutting edge. If you've received it, then you either subscribed or someone forwarded it to you. If the latter is the case, subscribe by pressing this button:
Now, let’s get to this week’s topics...
In the field of oncology, one of the most intriguing advancements is the development of spatial omics -- a group of technologies that allow for the mapping of cancer cells and their immune environment at high resolution. This technology holds significant potential for illuminating our understanding of complex tumors and fostering the discovery of novel treatments.
Spatial omics combines next generation seq/high level multiplexing with imaging modalities, which gives depth and clarity to our insights into the spatial distribution of gene expression, cell-state transitions, and cell-cell interactions. — St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Owkin, a French and US-based AI-driven biotech company, in collaboration with NanoString and other globally recognized cancer research institutions, recently launched a quite notable project - MOSAIC (Multi Omic Spatial Atlas In Cancer) - that takes a leap into utilizing spatial omics at scale.
The $50 million venture, announced at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting, is designed to generate and analyze an extraordinary volume of spatial omics data. MOSAIC aims to utilize this data, combined with artificial intelligence, to decipher key relationships between a tumor and its environment, with a goal of unlocking the next wave of treatments for some of the most difficult-to-treat cancers.
This project's scale far surpasses previous efforts in the field. MOSAIC's analysis will encompass data from 7,000 patients across multiple types of cancer, making it over a hundred times larger than any existing spatial omics datasets. Owkin, NanoString, and their research partners plan to explore this expansive dataset for immune-oncology disease subtypes, hoping to identify biomarkers and develop novel therapies.
Spatial omics technologies enable researchers to scrutinize tumors at near single-cell resolution. By offering a detailed map of molecular interactions, this technology allows scientists to gain an intricate understanding of a tumor's structure, revealing the molecular activity of tumor and immune cells. Combining spatial omics with patient data and AI, the MOSAIC project aims to open a new chapter in oncology research.
"The convergence of spatial omics, multimodal patient data, and AI will power the next revolution in oncology research, unlocking the next wave of breakthrough treatments for patients,"
— said Thomas Clozel, Co-founder, and CEO of Owkin.
A collaboration of this scale is indeed a rarity. It brings together diverse stakeholders, including Owkin's machine learning expertise, NanoString’s powerful spatial biology platforms, and top-tier clinically annotated cancer samples from globally leading cancer research centers.
Following the analysis of patient data using NanoString's spatial omics technology, combined with other medical data, Owkin will leverage its AI and machine learning expertise to develop a data platform to uncover novel cancer biology and potential therapies. The MOSAIC project will initially focus on various cancers with high unmet medical needs, including non-small cell lung cancer, triple-negative breast cancer, diffuse large B cell lymphoma, ovarian cancer, glioblastoma, mesothelioma, and bladder cancer.
As always, only time will reveal the ultimate impact of MOSAIC. Yet, the scale and ambition of this project offer a significant opportunity for both scientific breakthroughs and advancements in patient care. Let’s wait for the future news from the team!
CryoEM Meets Artificial Intelligence
CryoEM is on the rise, and it is a great match for the ongoing adoption of machine learning technologies in biology research and drug discovery.
Here is an interesting graph for CryoEM (credit -- Curreio), showing that the number of cases of using CryoEM for solving protein structures with a resolution of 2Å-5Å has increased sharply from 2013 to 2019. It could be interesting to know how the trend is doing these days. If you have seen statistics on this -- leave a link in the comments, please.
In a recent development, Iktos, a French AI-focused company specializing in new drug design, and Curreio, Inc., a Japanese cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) expert, have entered into a collaboration agreement. The partnership aims to leverage the power of artificial intelligence (AI) and cryo-EM technology to expedite the discovery and design of novel preclinical drug candidates for an undisclosed therapeutic target.
Did you know…?
The presence of biomarkers significantly increases the success rate of clinical trials in oncology — up to 12 times — as evidenced by a comprehensive study that screened over 10,000 trials across four types of cancer.
Brief Explainer: In this study authors analyzed data across four types of cancer - breast cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, melanoma, and colorectal cancer, from 1998 to 2017. The researchers used multi-state Markov models to track the progress of 745 drugs through clinical trials based on their biomarker status. The results showed that the likelihood of drug approval was five times higher when biomarkers were involved. Specific figures for breast cancer, melanoma, and non-small cell lung cancer were even higher, with a 12, 8, and 7‐fold increase respectively. The study also found that exploratory biomarkers, even before they are fully validated, improved the success rates in oncology trials, therefore recommending their early and aggressive adoption.