Biomolecular Engineering & Biophysical Processes
Engineering Biomolecules for Therapeutic, Diagnostic, and Sensor Applications
The rich chemistry and precise sequence programmability of biomolecules like proteins and nucleic acids make them highly valuable as therapeutics, diagnostics, and sensors. Engineering these biomolecules has been greatly accelerated in recent years with technological advances such as AI-enhanced design, deep sequencing, and automation. This session will spotlight diverse applications of biomolecular engineering to the development of therapeutics, diagnostics and sensors in both academia and industry. Relevant topics include, but are not limited to, protein engineering, DNA/RNA engineering, innovations in library generation, new screening approaches, high throughput technologies, novel applications of engineered biomolecules, and computational strategies (including machine learning) to protein or biomolecule design and engineering. Abstracts that discuss new tools for introducing non-standard nucleotides, amino acids, or post-translational modifications to biomolecules, or new approaches for engineering biomolecule stability, functionality, and manufacturability are also encouraged.
Emerging Technologies for Biotherapeutic Developability, Stability, and Biophysical and Analytical Characterization (BPAC)
The accelerated pace of biotherapeutic development demands rapid and confident selection of candidates for progression. A critical aspect of this is understanding the mechanisms of physical and chemical degradation, conformational and colloidal stability, and non-specific interactions, and evaluating the impact of various physicochemical and solution properties on Drug Substance and Drug Product manufacturing processes. Additionally, comprehensive characterization of the biologics’ structural stability and integrity, including post-translational modifications, is critical at all stages of drug development and manufacturing, from upstream production through downstream purification to late-stage drug product development including process qualification, to identify potential critical quality attributes (CQAs) and shelf life. This session explores recent advances in academic, industry, and government settings, focusing on computational and experimental approaches for assessing and predicting the developability and stability of diverse biologics and novel modalities. This session will also feature state-of-the-art high-resolution biophysical and analytical methods designed to achieve comprehensive product quality assessment and continually improve product stability for global distribution. The innovative talks presented in this session will cover a wide range of biopharmaceuticals, including peptides, proteins, oligonucleotides, monoclonal and multispecific antibodies, viral and non-viral gene and cell therapies, and vaccines.
Biomolecule Structure and Function
Understanding the relationship between sequence, structure, and function in proteins and other biomolecules is crucial for elucidating the molecular mechanisms and interactions within biological systems. Advances in biomolecule discovery, design, and engineering continue to provide insights into their structures and functions. This foundational knowledge underpins a wide range of biotechnological applications, including the development of novel biotechnologies and safe, effective biologics. This session welcomes presentations that employ experimental and/or computational approaches to investigate how primary and higher-order structures of biomolecules and proteins, as well as their post-translational modifications, influence biomolecular function and behavior in vitro and in vivo.
Enzyme Engineering for Biocatalysis
Enzymes enable the synthesis of structurally complex molecules under ambient or otherwise mild-conditions, and they offer sustainable means of building a striking variety of chemicals. Recent years have witnessed the expansion of biocatalytic processes across the pharmaceutical and fine chemical industries. Advances in enzyme engineering have enabled the assembly of sophisticated biocatalytic cascades and accelerated the design and optimization of enzymes with novel functions and stabilities (e.g., activity at high temperatures or in mixed solvents). This session invites abstracts focused on enzyme engineering, broadly defined. Topics include advances in process development; the design, discovery, and evolution of enzymes and biocatalytic systems; and high throughput screens, structure-function analyses, modeling, and applications of machine learning (ML)/artificial intelligence (AI) techniques. Papers relevant to biocatalytic cascades, green chemistry, environmental and waste management, biocatalysis under non-natural conditions (e.g., organic solvents), or that highlight applications in the pharmaceutical, biofuel, food, textile, detergent, and paper industries are particularly encouraged. Unlisted topics relevant to enzyme engineering and biocatalysis are also welcome.