Immunoprecise Antibodies announced it is collaborating in a multi-company effort with the laboratory of Dr. Frederick Dyda at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and Dr. M. Javad Aman at Integrated Biotherapeutics (IBT), to better understand the molecular binding interactions of potential therapeutic antibody candidates resulting from IPA's SARS-CoV-2 programs aimed at treating or preventing COVID-19.

This research consortium unites three reputable teams for lead antibody characterization, using Cryogenic Electron Microscopy (Cryo-EM) to determine the structural details of antibodies bound to the spike protein from the SARS-CoV-2 virus. IBT will provide the well-characterized trimeric spike protein ectodomain and the receptor binding domain (RBD) against which IPA's antibodies will be characterized using Cryo-EM performed in Dr. Dyda's laboratory. 

Cryo-EM is a microscopy technique that uses an electron beam as its primary energy source (instead of a light beam), which allows for much greater resolution and magnification than with a traditional microscope and is emerging as a mainstream technique in structural biology. An initial cooling of the sample to cryogenic temperatures enables determination of the macromolecular structures under analysis, in this case, the atomic resolution that can be used to elucidate the precise epitopes targeted by IPA's antibodies in their molecular binding interactions with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The data will shed light on the Company's understanding of how their lead candidate antibodies neutralize the virus that is causing COVID-19.

"The tripartite collaboration will deliver detailed, molecular-level understanding of how our lead antibodies interact with and neutralize the pathogenic SARS-CoV-2 spike protein", said Yasmina Abdiche, CSO of ImmunoPrecise. "This information is critical in elucidating their mechanism of action and informing their combination into therapeutic cocktails that aim to provide potent and long-lasting protection against COVID-19 and emerging virus variants."

"We welcome this synergistic collaboration with ImmunoPrecise and the NIH towards delineation of critical sites of vulnerability in the SARS-CoV-2 that can lead to development of safe and effective immunotherapies for COVID-19", said M. Javad Aman, President and CSO of IBT.

Dr. Dyda has a PhD from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a senior investigator at the Laboratory of Molecular Biology of the NIDDK and studies molecular details of macromolecules by producing high resolution images (Cryo-EM) to look at changes in protein structure using high-resolution images, as these usually relate to the function of the protein. He is an avid publisher in top-tier peer-reviewed journals such as Cell and Nature.

Dr. Aman has a PhD from Johannes Gutenberg-Universitat Mainz and did his Post-doc at NIH and the University of Virginia. He leads Integrated Biotherapeutics, a technology company in Maryland, and serves there as President and CSO. He leads their scientific programs and specializes in viral and bacterial diseases, with over 110 peer-reviewed publications.