Relation Therapeutics has taken a major step forward in realising their ambition to establish a revolutionary approach to drug discovery with the opening of their flagship integrated wet–dry laboratory. Located in the heart of London’s Knowledge Quarter, the 5,500 sq ft laboratory and offices provide a home for the 35-strong, cross-disciplinary seed-stage company, in close reach of collaborators and partners including globally renowned academic research centres and major pharma companies. Leveraging high-resolution biology, machine learning and clinical insights, the team at Relation Therapeutics is determined to discover life-changing medicines.
Relation’s integrated wet-dry laboratory is revolutionizing the drug discovery process, combining functional genomic techniques with powerful computational power and machine learning. By combining these two technologies, the Lab-in-the-Loop helps to generate meaningful insights from human cell genomic data, allowing the machine learning engine to make informed requests for new experiments to improve its predictive capabilities. This innovative approach cuts through an otherwise undecipherable combinatorial space, ultimately increasing the probability of successful drug discovery and development.
The Francis Crick Institute, under the leadership of its CEO Sir Paul Nurse, celebrated the grand opening of Relation Therapeutics’ new base in London’s Knowledge Quarter. This latest addition to the city’s thriving bioscience sector aims to unlock the potential of machine learning to uncover new drugs through an in-depth exploration of gene, protein and drug interactions. Sir Paul Nurse declared that such an endeavour holds tremendous potential for uncovering new treatments and therapies.
Relation Therapeutics is delighted to announce the appointment of Dr. Edith M. Hessel, a former GSK R&D executive, as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). Dr. Hessel brings a wealth of experience in the biotech industry, having pioneered the development of target discovery platforms, advanced therapeutics from inception to clinical proof of concept, and even founding her own biotech companies. As a VP at GSK, Dr. Hessel created the Refractory Respiratory Inflammation Discovery Performance Unit, adding multiple novel targets to GSK’s pipeline. At Relation Therapeutics, Dr. Hessel will be responsible for leading the drug discovery direction of the company and ensuring the progression of its pipeline to the clinic.
Edith Hessel is thrilled to be part of Relation’s mission to revolutionize drug discovery by exploring undiscovered molecular target spaces for potentially life-saving medicines. With a world-class team and access to the UK’s most powerful supercomputer, NVIDIA Cambridge-1, Relation is leveraging cutting-edge technology and top-tier computational capacity to analyze experimental data, clinical insights and high-resolution biology to develop more effective medicines and improve patient outcomes.
Relation has taken the initiative to develop a revolutionary therapeutic to target the condition of osteoporosis – a metabolic bone disease characterized by low bone mass and deterioration of bone architecture. With an estimation of ten million people suffering from osteoporosis in the USA alone1, and 32 million people over 50 in Europe2, the need for an effective and safe treatment is imperative. Fortunately, Relation is utilizing their proprietary machine learning engine, SelectomaticTM, to identify indications where their integrated platform can provide the most transformative therapeutics. Current treatment options are limited and have concerns over safety, uptake, and effectiveness, making the development of Relation’s new therapeutic a much needed solution.
Bone biology can now be understood with unprecedented detail thanks to the use of single-cell profiling. This breakthrough technology gives us the chance to develop the next-generation of treatments for osteoporosis. Our machine learning engine is perfectly suited to this area of medical research, providing us with the opportunity to make a real difference in a field where significant unmet need still exists. Dr. David Roblin, Chief Executive Officer, is thrilled to have this chance to make a lasting impact.
At Relation Therapeutics, the team is on a mission to change lives with life-altering medicines. Led by Dr. Charlie Roberts, the company’s Chairperson, Relation has a long track record of success in the biotechnology industry. In June 2022, the company raised $25 million in seed funding, backed by a formidable list of investors including DCVC, Magnetic Ventures, Khosla Ventures, OMERS Ventures, and Firstminute Capital. The success of Dr. Roberts’ previous venture, Freenome, landed a whopping $1 billion from Roche and Novartis. With an almost unfathomable amount of money and connections, the potential of Relation Therapeutics is limitless.
About Relation
Relation is a revolutionary biotechnology company that is revolutionizing the way we understand biology. Their innovative approach combines the best of both wet and dry laboratory techniques – from human genetics to single-cell profiling – along with machine learning to gain unprecedented insights with real world applications. Located in the vibrant city of London, Relation is pushing the boundaries of biotechnology and redefining the way we view the living world.