Nuclera and Cytiva collaborate to accelerate characterization of proteins for drug development
Collaboration allows researchers to progress rapidly from DNA to purified and characterized protein, to facilitate insights into drug-target interactions
2 Jun 2025Nuclera and Cytiva collaborate to accelerate protein production and characterization for drug discovery
Nuclera and Cytiva have entered into a collaboration to accelerate where and how proteins for drug research and development are produced, purified and characterized. By combining Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery System™ with Cytiva’s Biacore™ surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology, the companies have reduced the time required to generate and characterize proteins for drug discovery from several months to five days, supporting faster, more efficient biopharmaceutical development worldwide.
Accelerating access to protein drug targets
Proteins represent approximately 95% of drug targets designed to combat disease across therapeutic areas such as oncology, immunology and cardiovascular disease. Rapid access to these proteins, and detailed insight into how they interact with potential drug candidates, is critical for advancing drug discovery and development pipelines.
Traditionally, obtaining and characterizing proteins can take months, involving multiple steps in expression, purification and functional analysis. Through their collaboration, Nuclera and Cytiva have demonstrated that integrating eProtein Discovery System with Biacore SPR technology can compress this workflow into five days, enabling researchers to move more quickly from target selection to data-driven decision-making.
Demonstration at Discovery on Target and PEGS Europe
The collaboration was highlighted at the Discovery on Target and PEGS Europe industry conferences, where Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery System was used to produce clinically relevant proteins, including Bruton’s Tyrosine Kinase (BTK) and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). These proteins were subsequently subjected to functional characterization using Cytiva’s Biacore SPR system.
This combined workflow showcased how rapid, benchtop protein production with eProtein Discovery System can feed directly into high-sensitivity interaction analysis on Biacore instruments, supporting applications such as binding kinetics, affinity measurements and mechanism-of-action studies.
Expert perspectives on the collaboration
Dr. Yvonne Tan, Associate Director of Product Management at Nuclera, commented, “Collaborating with life science leader Cytiva supports Nuclera in our mission of improving human health. Through this collaboration, we have demonstrated eProtein Discovery’s ability to produce clinically significant proteins that can be used in characterization experiments. Combining eProtein Discovery’s capability to streamline protein production workflows with Cytiva’s Biacore protein characterization systems open a whole new avenue for accelerating drug development.”
Anna Moberg, Senior Manager and Project Manager at Cytiva, added, “The ability of Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery to accelerate protein production and purification complements Cytiva’s Biacore SPR technology by streamlining the upstream protein production process. We look forward to continuing our collaboration to further enhance the production of characterizable proteins for drug development.”
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Frequently asked questions
How does the Nuclera and Cytiva collaboration accelerate protein production for drug discovery?
By integrating Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery System with Cytiva’s Biacore surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technology, the collaboration compresses protein production and characterization workflows from several months to five days. This streamlined process enables faster access to protein drug targets and quicker data-driven decision-making in biopharmaceutical research and development.
What role do Biacore SPR instruments play in characterizing proteins like BTK and VEGF?
Cytiva’s Biacore SPR instruments provide high-sensitivity interaction analysis for proteins produced on Nuclera’s eProtein Discovery System, including Bruton’s Tyrosine Kinase (BTK) and Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF). The Biacore platform supports binding kinetics, affinity measurements and mechanism-of-action studies, delivering detailed insight into how these clinically relevant proteins interact with potential drug candidates.
Why is rapid access to protein drug targets important in oncology, immunology and cardiovascular disease?
Proteins account for about 95% of drug targets across therapeutic areas such as oncology, immunology and cardiovascular disease. Rapid access to these protein targets, along with detailed interaction data from technologies like eProtein Discovery and Biacore SPR, is critical for advancing drug discovery pipelines and making faster, more informed decisions in biopharmaceutical development.