Eyam Announces Artificial Intelligence Research Facility in Partnership with Mitacs

Wed, 31 May 2023 18:30:00 +0000
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*VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / May 31, 2023 / *Eyam announces today the opening of a new research facility in partnership with Mitacs, a national not-for-profit organization that empowers innovation through effective partnerships that deliver solutions to the world's most pressing problems. Eyam's new facility, Sentinel AI: Office of Pandemic Preparedness, will be dedicated to the preparation of the next pandemics by advancing the design of AI-informed smart vectors, next generation vaccines, therapeutics, and furthering the development of the Jennerator bioinformatics platform.

The launch of Eyam's Sentinel AI facility comes on the heels of the World Health Organization's (WHO) warning from Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Last week Dr. Tedros spoke of the potential surge and increased fatalities from another COVID-19 variant and warned the World Health Assembly forum in Geneva, Switzerland, about the importance of preparing for the next pandemic.

"We cannot kick this can down the road. When the next pandemic comes knocking - and it will - we must be ready to answer decisively, collectively, and equitably," emphasized Dr. Tedros.

He further highlighted the need for immediate action, stating, "If we do not make the changes that must be made, then who will? And if we do not make them now, then when?"

Eyam's facility aims to attract top talent from around the world to solve complex biological problems related to pandemic preparedness with the assistance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Jennerator platform. The facility will support researchers as they develop novel techniques to uncover the underlying mechanisms of diseases, identify potential drug targets, and accelerate the development of personalized medicine.

In addition to advancing state-of-the-art science, the facility will also offer training and educational opportunities. This will help bridge the gap between academia and industry, promoting the exchange of ideas and fostering the next generation of AI-directed medical researchers.

"We are thrilled to open the doors of our new office," said Ryan M. Thomas, CEO of Eyam. "Our goal is to create a collaborative environment that will spark innovation, advance our understanding of complex biological systems, and ultimately, prepare us for the next pandemic. We believe that AI and machine learning applied to data-rich omics techniques are going to greatly impact vaccine technologies and reduce the time to design effective vaccines. Eyam plans to be at the forefront of this revolution."

"The Jennerator platform has proven its value by being instrumental in the generation of several of our vaccine candidates already," said Paolo Ribeca, Director of Bioinformatics of Eyam. "We are looking forward to complementing its results with a number of cutting-edge methods based on linguistic models and other state-of-the art AI techniques. In order to do so, we'll leverage work done at the Sentinel AI facility."

Eyam's investment in this facility reflects its partnership with Mitacs to foster post-doctoral scientific research and drive economic growth in the region.

Eyam anticipates that the research facility will be fully operational by the end of the third quarter of 2023.

*About Mitacs:*

Mitacs empowers Canadian innovation through effective partnerships that deliver solutions to the world's most pressing problems. Mitacs assists organizations in reaching their goals, funds cutting-edge innovation, and creates job opportunities for students and postdocs. A not-for-profit organization, Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon. Learn more at mitacs.ca.

*About Eyam:*

Eyam Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics is dedicated to the research, development and commercialization of disruptive vaccine and therapeutic platform technologies that are safe, efficacious and low dose. Eyam is named in honour of the historic plague village in Derbyshire, England. The residents of Eyam heroically quarantined themselves within the village boundaries to prevent the disease from spreading further, braving near certain death. Today, Eyam honours their heroic sacrifice by advancing next generation technologies to prevent and treat disease on a global scale.

*Contact:*

First Name: Pamela
Last Name: Lincez
Email: plincez@eyamhealth.com
Phone: +17782389842

*SOURCE: *Eyam Vaccines and Immunotherapeutics
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