AelianBiotechnology
A Movement towards Smart Drug Screening

There has never been a more pressing need for quality drugs, medicines and vaccine more than now. With the COVID-19 pandemic proving to be a global menace, medical researchers and drug developers are now on a ticking clock to create a successful solution to end the pandemic. However, it has been long documented that drug trials and approval processes take years, and even decades to reach their conclusion. Therefore, a critical step in drug development entails understanding the reaction of drugs in the complex environment of a cell to improve the chances of them being approved by regulatory bodies. For quite some time, target-based drug discovery (TDD) was considered to be the way forward for more efficient drug development by pharmaceutical industries. But due to the limited success and huge expenditures that comes with it, there has been a recent inclination towards phenotypic drug discovery (PDD). As PDD is similar to empirical screening, it leads to identification of drugs without adequate knowledge of the identity of a specific drug target, thereby leading to more first-in-class drugs. Consequently, drug screening on a disease model and determining whether the drivers and endpoints of the model accurately reflect the disease need to be expertly handled by pharmaceutical industries. Assisting such companies and researchers to assess complex phenotypes and improve the scope of the drug screens is Vienna-based biotechnology company, Aelian Biotechnology. Founded in 2018, the company’s value proposition lies in combining CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) screening and single-cell RNA sequencing that facilitate genetic screening of complex phenotypes. “Our strong approach has significantly important implications that help in identifying novel drug targets or highlighting unknown mechanisms of actions of drugs,” says Ted Moser, the CEO of the company.

With Aelian’s unique technology, recognizing the critical genes and pathways that impact on the disease phenotypes becomes simpler. Its CROP-seq screening platform helps the clients to identify the molecular targets of potential drug candidates and enables PDD projects to proceed towards the subsequent steps in drug development.

Our CRISPR screening technology has the ability to perform thousands of genetic perturbations and profile transcriptional outcomes by RNA (ribonucleic acid) sequencing at single-cell resolution

The one-of-a-kind CRISPR screening provides overall and unbiased information of gene functions through its screens, while independently it provides simple results, such as life or death of target cells. By combining CRISPR screenings with single-cell sequencing, researchers and drug developers can leverage Aelian’s offering to obtain more in-depth screening capabilities. “Our CRISPR screening technology has the ability to perform thousands of genetic perturbations and profile transcriptional outcomes by RNA (ribonucleic acid) sequencing at single-cell resolution,” affirms the CEO of the company. Adding to the effectiveness of this technology is its adaptability that enables it to apply for a wide range of primary cells and other cell types.

Team Aelian believes that in order to obtain results in a critical field such as drug development, diversity and a work environment that promotes creativity is paramount. The company consists of experienced scientists hailing from various countries and is spearheaded by CEO Thomas Moser and CSO Tilmann Buerckstuemmer. With the perfect blend of Buerckstuemmer’s highly creative thinking and Moser’s financial and corporate development expertise, Aelian is one of the most sought after partners for companies looking to conduct drug screenings.

For the future, the company is making considerable efforts to improve its capabilities in drug screenings and assist its clients in achieving their deliverables. In addition to it, the company will leverage the upcoming trends in the drug development space to deliver effective medicines.