Belfast-based AI precision medicine platform Sonrai Analytics has announced a strategic partnership with German biotechnology company Plectonic Biotech to accelerate the development of next-generation cancer immunotherapies. The collaboration focuses on advancing Plectonic's logic-gated antibody (Logibody) immunotherapy technology across multiple cancer types, combining artificial intelligence with innovative DNA nanotechnology to create more precise and safer cancer treatments.
AI-Powered Target Discovery and Validation
As part of the project, Sonrai will apply its advanced AI technology and bioinformatics expertise to identify and validate ultra-specific antigen combinations to guide Plectonic's tumor-targeting while minimizing impact on healthy cells. The company's AI-driven, multi-modal approach integrates single-cell RNA sequencing with proteomic mass spectrometry datasets to quantitatively assess antigen co-expression patterns in tumor versus healthy tissues, covering both solid and blood cancer indications.
This high-resolution approach is powered by Sonrai's cloud-based advanced analytics platform and integrated bioinformatics pipelines, enabling scalable, multi-omics analysis to accelerate target discovery and validation workflows. The technology aims to determine how antigens co-express in cancerous versus non-cancerous cells across different cancer types.
Revolutionary Logic-Gated Antibody Technology
At the core of the project is Plectonic's proprietary Logibody technology – a logic-gated antibody platform that acts as a molecular switch, triggering an antibody-mediated immune response only in the presence of specific tumor antigens. Plectonic Biotech, a spin-out from the Technical University of Munich established in 2022, has developed a nanoswitch that links immune cells to tumor cells through a two-step process.
The mechanism works by having one antibody first bind to a tumor target, which then activates a second antibody that recruits and activates immune cells. This approach aims to increase treatment precision while reducing toxicity, thereby lowering side effects for patients compared to conventional immunotherapies.
Leadership Perspectives on the Collaboration
"This project demonstrates the power of AI and multi-modal analysis to tackle complex biomedical challenges, accelerating the development of next-generation immunotherapies," said Prof. Darragh McArt, CEO and Founder of Sonrai Analytics. "We're honored to support Plectonic as they advance their groundbreaking immunotherapy technology, reflecting our mission to bring safer, more effective cancer treatments to patients."
Dr. Klaus Wagenbauer, CEO and Founder of Plectonic Biotech, emphasized the strategic importance of the partnership: "Working with Sonrai represents a crucial step in validating and refining our Logibody technology across a range of cancer types. By leveraging Sonrai's AI platform, we will be able to identify the most promising therapeutic targets and accelerate our path to clinical trials. This brings us closer to delivering therapies that offer hope to cancer patients while dramatically reducing the burden of treatment-induced side effects."
Company Backgrounds and Future Implications
Sonrai Analytics, established in 2018 and headquartered in Belfast, focuses on improving patient outcomes through AI-powered technologies for advanced drug therapies. The company has previously partnered with early-stage US biotech AOA Dx in May 2024 to develop diagnostic tests for ovarian cancer in symptomatic women.
The synergy between Sonrai's cutting-edge data science capabilities and Plectonic's breakthrough DNA nanotechnology aims to fast-track the development of the Logibody platform. This collaboration represents a significant step toward delivering more precise cancer immunotherapies that could offer improved outcomes for patients while minimizing treatment-related side effects across multiple cancer indications.
