Viva Biotech Unveils Platform to Tackle Complex Drug Discovery

SHANGHAI – December 29, 2025 – As the pharmaceutical industry ventures deeper into complex therapeutic modalities beyond traditional small molecules, the underlying support infrastructure for drug discovery is racing to keep pace. In a significant move to address this evolution, contract research organization (CRO) Viva Biotech has announced an integrated, end-to-end pharmacology platform designed to support the development of small molecules, PROTACs, peptides, and antibodies under one roof.

The expanded capabilities, detailed in a recent company webinar, signal a strategic response to the growing demand for specialized, yet unified, preclinical services. With drug pipelines increasingly populated by these diverse and challenging new modalities, biopharmaceutical companies are seeking partners who can navigate their unique scientific hurdles and streamline the path from lab bench to clinical trial.

The Shifting Landscape of Drug Discovery

For decades, the drug discovery paradigm was dominated by small-molecule drugs. While effective, their development has a well-trodden path. Today, the frontier has expanded dramatically. The global market for antibody therapeutics, valued at over $247 billion in 2023, is projected to nearly double by 2028. Simultaneously, emerging classes like PROTACs (PROteolysis TArgeting Chimeras) and therapeutic peptides are experiencing explosive growth, with analysts forecasting market CAGRs exceeding 25% for PROTACs as they open pathways to previously "undruggable" targets.

This diversification brings immense therapeutic promise but also significant preclinical challenges. Each modality possesses a distinct biological and chemical profile that dictates its behavior in the body—a field known as Drug Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (DMPK). Antibodies, for instance, are large proteins whose persistence in the body is governed by complex interactions with cellular receptors. Peptides face challenges with stability and delivery, while PROTACs, being hybrid molecules, present their own unique set of pharmacokinetic puzzles. For drug developers, managing these disparate programs often means juggling multiple specialized vendors, leading to fragmented data, increased timelines, and higher costs.

A Unified Framework for Diverse Modalities

Viva Biotech aims to solve this fragmentation with its "one-stop" pharmacology platform. During the company's "Adventures in DMPK" webinar, Dr. Justin Cui, Vice President of Pharmacology, outlined a strategy that combines modality-specific expertise with a consistent analytical framework.

Dr. Cui emphasized that while molecules differ, the core questions of early discovery remain the same: How is a compound absorbed, distributed, metabolized, and excreted? He explained that for small molecules, PROTACs, and peptides, the platform applies a shared logic for assessing properties like metabolic stability, cell permeability, and potential drug-drug interactions (DDI). The key, he noted, is not just running the assays but applying a rigorous "decision framework" that uses exposure metrics and half-life data to quickly triage and prioritize the most promising candidates from large batches of compounds.

This integrated approach extends from early in vitro assays to in vivo studies in multiple species, with all data analyzed using consistent software like WinNonlin. This allows researchers to compare the pharmacokinetic behavior of a novel peptide directly alongside a small-molecule benchmark, providing a holistic view of a program's potential and enabling more confident, data-driven decisions long before a candidate is nominated for expensive, late-stage development.

A Breakthrough in Antibody Screening

Perhaps the most significant innovation showcased was a proprietary tool for antibody development. The half-life of an antibody therapeutic—how long it remains active in the body—is a critical determinant of its dosing schedule and overall efficacy. This property is largely controlled by the neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn), which acts as a cellular recycling system, rescuing antibodies from degradation.

To predict this behavior in vitro, Viva Biotech developed an engineered cell-based system: the hFcRn/B2M–MDCK Transwell assay. This tool simulates the FcRn-mediated transport of antibodies across a cell layer, providing a direct, functional readout of how a candidate might behave in vivo. Dr. Cui presented data demonstrating a strong correlation (Pearson r > 0.84) between the assay's results and published clinical data on the half-life of existing antibody drugs.

This high predictive power is a crucial advantage. It allows for the rapid, cost-effective screening and ranking of different antibody designs, including engineered variants like YTE and LALA Fc that are designed for extended half-life or altered effector function. By identifying promising candidates and flagging potential liabilities early, the assay helps de-risk antibody programs before they advance to more complex and costly animal studies, a key value proposition in a highly competitive field. While other CROs utilize different methods like surface plasmon resonance or transgenic mouse models, Viva's validated, cell-based system offers a compelling blend of speed, cost-efficiency, and clinical relevance.

Navigating a Competitive CRO Market

Viva Biotech's strategic expansion places it in a dynamic and competitive global CRO market, alongside industry giants like Charles River Laboratories, WuXi AppTec, and Labcorp Drug Development. These established players also offer comprehensive, integrated services across multiple modalities, leveraging their scale and global footprint.

The industry trend is clear: biopharma clients increasingly favor strategic partnerships with full-service CROs that can act as an extension of their own R&D teams. These partnerships promise to accelerate timelines, provide access to specialized technology without massive capital investment, and streamline complex logistical challenges.

In this environment, Viva's strategy appears to be one of targeted innovation within a broad, integrated service model. By developing and validating high-impact technologies like the hFcRn assay, the company aims to differentiate itself not just on breadth of service, but on technical depth and predictive power. This focus is further bolstered by its integration of DMPK and pharmacology with downstream efficacy studies, including a portfolio of immunology and oncology models. This allows clients to connect the dots between a drug's exposure, its effect on its biological target, and its ultimate functional outcome in a disease-relevant context, all within a single collaborative framework.

This deep integration from initial structure-based discovery through to IND-enabling support provides a cohesive narrative for drug development programs, helping biotech and pharmaceutical companies build a more robust data package for regulatory filings and make more informed decisions throughout the entire preclinical journey.