Recently, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) announced a multi-year data licensing agreement with Ochre Bio.

Through this collaboration, GSK will gain access to Ochre Bio's computational biology, cell, and human organ platforms to generate proprietary human liver datasets, as well as non-exclusive access to its extensive historical liver database.

The total value of the transaction is$37.5 millionThe goal is to ultimately develop treatments for liver diseases. The two companies did not specify which indications they plan to target, but GSK stated that this collaboration will complement its focus on disease areas in hepatology.

GSK has made significant progress in the field of liver diseases., including clinical assets in primary biliary cholangitis, metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis, cholestatic pruritus, and hepatitis B.

For example, Bepirovirsen (GSK836), an investigational new drug for chronic hepatitis B treatment developed by the company, has been granted "Fast Track" designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and is currently in Phase 3 clinical trials.

Also in Phase 3 clinical trials is linerixibat for cholestatic pruritus in primary biliary cholangitis, a condition that causes severe itching that cannot be relieved by scratching.

"In addition to our programs from MASH to hepatitis B, we are also committed to addressing unmet needs in liver disease by generating unique data in human-derived systems. Ochre Bio's platform will provide GSK with foundational datasets to create AI models that will enable us to better understand liver function and disease for the development of new drugs," said Kim Branson, Senior Vice President and Global Head of AI and Machine Learning at GSK.

Who is Ochre Bio?

Ochre Bio, established in 2019 and headquartered in Oxford, UK, specializes in developing RNA therapeutics for liver diseases and was incubated by Y Combinator.

The company was founded by Jack O'Meara and Quin Wills, incubated from Y Combinator. Quin Wills holds a Ph.D. in Statistical Genomics from the University of Oxford, UK, while Jack O'Meara was previously an angel investor.

Ochre Bio Focuses on Developing RNA Therapeutics to Enhance the Liver’s Self-Repair and Regeneration Abilities, Aiming to Treat Advanced Liver Diseases Such as Cirrhosis Caused by Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Steatohepatitis (MASH/NASH).

To date, Ochre Bio has undergone two rounds of financing, with the latest being a $30 million Series A funding round.

What sets this startup apart is its innovative application of genomics and deep phenotyping.

Ochre Bio stated that its platform combines machine learning with large-scale human data, including advanced imaging and deep genomic phenotyping, as well as proprietary RNA chemistry and the use of proprietary human organs.

Ochre Bio, a lab based in Oxford, extracts different types of human cells from donated livers and then combines them to build components of the liver from scratch. These "bottom-up" models allow them to flexibly study the processes of metabolism, cell death, inflammation, fibrosis, and tumorigenesis that occur throughout the development of liver diseases.

Ochre Bio Generates Largest Human Liver Deep Phenotyping Dataset, as well as clinical data. Deep phenotyping involves studying how genetic perturbations affect the liver by juxtaposing tissue, blood, and clinical phenotypes with functional genomics data to generate maps or knowledge graphs of gene-phenotype relationships.

By deeply studying these multimodal data, scientists can gain valuable insights into disease progression and treatment responses, guiding them in identifying potential targets for new drugs.

In simple terms, the giant values Ochre Bio inDatabase in the field of liver diseases + organ transformation model + AI analysisAnd the capability of RNA drug development.

In April this year,Boehringer Ingelheim also announced a collaboration with Ochre Bio to develop therapies for advanced metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) cirrhosis and other chronic liver diseases (CLD), with a total potential value of up to 1 billion USD.

Boehringer Ingelheim has paid Ochre Bio up to $35 million in upfront and near-term research-based milestone payments. Boehringer Ingelheim has also agreed to pay Ochre Bio additional payments related to the achievement of clinical, regulatory, and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties.

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