[LUM#17] Biotechnology from Montpellier

Sys2Diag: A Revolution in Diagnostics

High-performance, affordable, and easy-to-use diagnostic tests—that is the mission of the Sys2diag laboratory. “A historic laboratory for innovation in medical diagnostics in France and Europe,” emphasizes its director, Franck Molina. A pioneer in innovation, but also a pioneer in public-private partnerships, the Laboratory for Modeling and Engineering of Complex Biological Systems for Diagnostics is the result of an alliance between the CNRS and the Alcen Group. “This structure allows us to accelerate innovation by combining fundamental research with medical applications,” notes the recipient of the 2020 CNRS Innovation Medal. And applications abound at Sys2Diag. This is evidenced by the speed with which the company developed the EasyCov rapid saliva-based COVID-19 screening test, which is just the tip of the iceberg. For Franck Molina has a whole arsenal of diagnostic tests up his sleeve, each more revolutionary than the last. Starting with the first blood-based psychiatric test developed by Alcediag for bipolar disorder and depression, which can even help assess and anticipate the risk of suicide attempts in patients.

While this one requires a blood sample, others are non-invasive. The secret behind them? Synthetic biology, which makes it possible to design and program artificial cells—like biomachines—to perform unnatural tasks. The result: self-tests that can be performed anywhere without going through a laboratory. Sys2Diag has thus developed, in partnership with Skillcell, the world’s first urinary test for insulin resistance, called IDIR. “It’s the first pre-diabetes test, which means you can identify a risk of diabetes before it even develops.”

These tests will also be available… at the sidelines of stadiums, thanks to a saliva-based concussion test that can be used in real time during a game. “It allows us to objectively assess the severity of the concussion to determine the appropriate follow-up care, whether for professional players, amateurs, or even children,” explains Franck Molina, who has successfully turned this idea into reality. The researcher is now working on a groundbreaking test aimed at objectively assessing… well-being. “We’ve identified the markers involved, but we can’t talk about them yet.” Better safe than sorry.

See also:

EasyCov's First Launch

Ciloa: packages full of therapeutic promise

These tiny natural vesicles could well revolutionize medicine, and yet just a few years ago, no one would have bet on them. “For a long time, exosomes were considered the cell’s trash cans, ” recalls Robert Mamoun. He sees them quite differently. “In fact, an exosome is more like a package.” Why such an analogy? “We can modify both the proteins on its surface and those inside, which makes it a package whose destination address and contents can both be changed.” These are properties whose full therapeutic potential the Inserm virologist recognized as early as 2008. “Thanks to exosomes, we can, for example, mimic a virus that would have no pathogenic power; this is the basis for an ideal, completely natural vaccine.”

To explore this potential, Robert Mamoun co-founded the company Ciloa in 2011 with virologist Bernadette Trentin; the company was incubated at the University of Montpellier for eight years. And while Big Pharma companies have now recognized the value of exosomes, the Montpellier-based company remains “the oldest and most experienced in the world in this field of research.”

This research isn’t limited to vaccines; it also enables the development of therapeutic antibodies and new drugs, particularly in oncology. “We can attach a targeting moiety to the exosome, which then delivers an anti-cancer drug directly into the tumor. This results in a more targeted—and therefore more effective—treatment while minimizing side effects, ” explains Robert Mamoun. Another target for exosomes is diabetes . “Our technology enables the delivery of a protein that acts at the root cause of diabetes by preventing insulin resistance; it’s very effective.” With a patent filed in 2021, Ciloa is at the forefront of this research and hopes to begin clinical trials in humans by the end of 2023.

Biodol: Relieving Chronic Pain

This offers hope of relief for the 7 to 9% of the population who suffer from chronic neuropathic pain—that is , “pain caused by nerve damage that has lasted for more than three months and persists even after the underlying cause has been treated, ” explains Jean Valmier. This “pain-disease” against which no medication is truly effective… for now. The researcher at the Montpellier Institute of Neuroscience (INM) has made a major breakthrough in understanding the mechanism responsible for this persistent pain. One of the keys to this breakthrough is FLT3, a receptor located on the neuron that is activated by a molecule called FL. “It is their interaction that triggers a chain reaction in the sensory system, leading to chronic pain. If we inhibit this receptor, the pain disappears.”

All that remained was to find that elusive inhibitor to silence the pain… To achieve this, Jean Valmier founded Biodol Therapeutics in 2015 alongside Fabien Granier and Didier Rognan. Thousands of molecules tested and four patents later, the company—which now has six employees—is the only one in the world working on these drug candidates. “We’re fairly confident because we have two chemical series yielding very promising results and at least one molecule that should be selected as a preclinical candidate by the end of 2022, which means human trials could begin in 2024.”

A glimmer of hope is on the horizon for the nearly 4 million patients in France who live with pain every day. “ This is a huge public health issue, ” emphasizes Jean Valmier. “For patients, of course, but also for doctors who are at a loss because there’s little they can do, and finally for the pharmaceutical industry, because a drug like this would be a blockbuster, as they say.” A Montpellier blockbuster, coming soon to theaters.

See also:

EasyCov's First Launch

SeqOne Genomics: More Targeted Treatments Through Personalized Medicine

The goal of personalized medicine is to understand the specific characteristics of a disease in order to provide better care for patients. This approach requires access to the “personal blueprint” that is each individual’s genome, as well as the ability to decipher and interpret the thousands of mutations scattered throughout our DNA sequences. This is where the startup SeqOne Genomics comes in, offering high-performance genomic data analysis solutions for personalized medicine. Its goal is to improve clinical care for patients with cancer and rare and hereditary diseases. Founded in 2017 with support from SATT AxLR, the University of Montpellier, and Inserm, the company has already won numerous awards, including the iLab Prize and the Hélène Starck Prize—which honors young researchers supported by the ARC Foundation—and boasts a strong position in the French market. A winning model for SeqOne Genomics, which has just reached a new milestone in early 2022 by raising €20 million to accelerate the deployment of genomic medicine. The company aims to build on this success by investing in a new area of development: “the market for biopharmaceutical companies developing new therapies, ” says Jean-Marc Holder, Head of Strategy and Innovation at SeqOne Genomics. The promise of more targeted treatments through a better understanding of disease mechanisms is also what personalized medicine is all about.

See also:

• SeqOne Genomics is expanding internationally
• SeqOne Genomics: Boosting COVID-19 Testing Capacity