Insilico and Tenacia join forces to tackle brain diseases with AI

USA – Insilico Medicine, a biotech company known for its AI-driven drug discovery, has announced a new partnership with Tenacia Biotechnology, a firm focused on treatments for nervous system disorders.

This collaboration aims to develop advanced therapies for brain-related diseases by combining artificial intelligence with clinical expertise.

The two companies will work together in the early stages of drug discovery, focusing on Central Nervous System (CNS) diseases.

They plan to create small molecule drugs from scratch, pushing them forward to preclinical testing. A key goal is to design drugs that can cross the blood-brain barrier—an obstacle that often blocks effective treatment for many brain conditions.

Insilico will bring its powerful AI platform, called Pharma.AI, to the table. This platform helps researchers design new drugs quickly and accurately.

Since 2016, when Insilico first introduced the idea of using generative AI to design molecules, it has built a pipeline of over 30 drug candidates.

Ten of those have already received clearance to move to human trials. One of the company’s core focus areas is CNS diseases.

Tenacia adds its deep knowledge of brain biology and clinical development to the mix. With years of experience in treating nervous system disorders, Tenacia is well-positioned to help bring these AI-designed treatments closer to patients.

“This partnership allows us to expand our pipeline in CNS diseases,” said Dr. Xiaoxiang Chen, CEO of Tenacia.

“By combining Insilico’s powerful AI platform with our clinical experience, we hope to discover treatments that can truly change patients’ lives.”

Insilico’s CEO, Dr. Alex Zhavoronkov, added, “We’re excited to show how AI can help solve one of medicine’s toughest challenges—getting effective drugs into the brain. This collaboration with Tenacia will help us push those boundaries.”

The news comes shortly after Insilico announced a new drug candidate, ISM8969, which targets inflammation-related brain diseases like Alzheimer’s and epilepsy. ISM8969 is able to cross the blood-brain barrier and shows promise in early tests.

Insilico’s approach is not just about new drugs—it’s also about speed. Most drug discovery efforts take years, but Insilico has cut the timeline down to just 12–18 months from discovery to preclinical testing. The company reports a 100% success rate in moving from design to IND-enabling stages.

In early 2024, Insilico published a study in Nature Biotechnology showing how its lead drug, ISM001-055, was discovered entirely by AI and is now in Phase II clinical trials. Early results show the drug is safe and effective.