Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. CRL and Valo Health, Inc. recently announced an advanced product candidate for the treatment of different forms of lupus and other autoimmune indications with significant unmet needs. The discovery marks the first using Logica, an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered drug development solution that translates biological insights into optimized preclinical assets.

Alongside Valo Health and Flagship Pioneering’s in-house drug development unit, Pioneering Medicines, Charles River looks forward to further leveraging the power of Logica to advance this program into lead optimization.

Importance of Charles River and Valo’s Combined Offering

Logica, the result of a strategic collaboration between Charles River and Valo Health, is the industry’s first computation-powered, unified target-to-candidate offering. The platform leverages the integration of Valo Health’s AI-powered Opal Computational Platform and Charles River’s leading expertise in drug discovery and preclinical development.

Logica is comprised of two products — Logica Advanceable Lead (Logica-AL) and Logica Candidate (Logica-C). The former integrates Valo’s DNA-encoded libraries and Opal Computational Platform with Charles River’s expertise in high-throughput screening to produce potent, advanceable leads. Meanwhile, the Logica-C platform uses those leads and trained predictive models to rapidly advance a clinical program to deliver a candidate that will ultimately be ready for IND (Investigational New Drug)-enabling studies.

According to Charles River, the identification of this first lead candidate provides proof of concept for Logica as an engine to accelerate and enhance drug discovery in a critical therapeutic area.

More Developments Within Charles River

Last month, the company signed an agreement with Singapore General Hospital (SGH) to provide Current Good Manufacturing Practice-compliant master cell banking and next-generation sequencing-based services for use in cell line characterization. SGH will use cord blood to derive and manufacture allogeneic chimeric antigen receptor T-cells for cancer treatment.

CRL’s Industry Prospects are Favorable

The global autoimmune disease diagnostics market was worth $5.39 billion in 2023, according to Grand View Research, and is projected to grow at a compound annual rate of 6.2% through 2030. Rising awareness regarding the severity of autoimmune diseases and advancements in technology such as laboratory automation are the factors fueling the market’s growth.

Updates From Charles River’s Industry Peers

In the autoimmune diagnostics space, Charles River is joined by several prominent MedTech players who are also advancing in other areas of their operations. Take a look at their latest developments.

Thermo Fisher Scientific TMO has launched the CorEvitas Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) Registry to address a critical unmet need for collecting robust, objective real-world data on this chronic autoimmune disease. Complementing the Registry, the CorEvitas SLE biorepository collects blood specimens linked to clinical data to support a range of additional use cases, including drug discovery and biomarker development.

In addition, the company recently announced a Technology Alliance Agreement with the Chan Zuckerberg Institute for Advanced Biological Imaging. The partnership focuses on developing new technologies that enable researchers to better visualize human cells, driving scientific advancements. Drawing on its deep expertise in electron microscopy, Thermo Fisher introduced the Vulcan Automated Lab, designed to boost productivity, increase yield and reduce operating costs for semiconductor manufacturers.

Healthcare giant, Abbott ABT provides a broad spectrum of specific protein assays that enable the diagnosis and management of many immune system-related diseases. Recently, the company announced FDA Investigational Device Exemption for its Coronary Intravascular Lithotripsy system to evaluate the treatment of severe calcification in coronary arteries prior to stenting. The clinical trial will enroll up to 335 people in 47 sites in the United States, where coronary artery disease remains a major concern with more than 20 million adults affected.

Furthermore, Abbott’s REALITY study demonstrated long-term pain relief for patients implanted with the proprietary BurstDR spinal cord stimulation at a four-year follow-up.  The company is also set to launch a new unified patient app, NeuroSphere Digital Health, which improves communication and supports patients through their entire care journey — from early education to post-implant follow-up.

Clinical Diagnostics provider, Bio-Rad BIO has an Immunology Diagnostics portfolio comprising solutions for autoimmune disease testing and infectious disease serology. The company recently entered into a binding offer to purchase all equity interests in Stilla Technologies. The acquisition, however, remains subject to consultation with relevant employee representatives, regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, and is anticipated to close by the end of the third quarter of 2025.

Additionally, Bio-Rad led a Series C funding round of $105 million for Geneoscopy, Inc., to support the development and commercialization of ColoSense — an FDA-approved, non-invasive colorectal cancer screening designed for use with the company’s QXDx ddPCR platform. The investment will also help advance diagnostic innovations for inflammatory bowel disease.

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