Cambridge, Mass.– Quiver Bioscience has secured a $2.15 million Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to enhance its artificial intelligence- and machine learning-powered platform for central nervous system (CNS) drug discovery.
The three-year grant, titled “Safe-OPTION: Optical Physiology To Interrogate Oligonucleotide Neurotoxicity,” will help Quiver develop a predictive platform that combines in vitro and in silico tools to assess the safety of antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapeutics—genetic medicines increasingly used to treat neurological conditions.
Quiver’s technology integrates human-derived neuronal models, all-optical electrophysiology readouts, and AI/ML analytics to evaluate the function and toxicity of potential CNS treatments. The new funding will support efforts to expand the platform’s capabilities in identifying and mitigating ASO-induced neurotoxicity, an issue that has historically required extensive and costly preclinical animal testing.
“ASO drugs hold great promise for treating neurological disorders, but ensuring their safety early in development is critical,” said the company in a statement. “Our platform aims to accelerate drug development by more accurately predicting neurotoxicity using human-relevant systems.”
The NIH grant comes amid a broader push from the FDA to reduce reliance on animal testing through adoption of New Approach Methodologies (NAMs), including AI-based models and human cellular systems. Quiver’s platform addresses that call by enabling scalable, human-based screening that may improve predictive accuracy compared to traditional animal models.
Quiver has already applied its platform in-house to develop precision-targeted therapies for CNS disorders. Its lead program targets Nav1.7, a voltage-gated sodium channel implicated in chronic neuropathic pain.
In addition to NIH funding, Quiver has attracted grant support from leading patient advocacy and research groups focused on neurological disorders. These include the Dup15q Alliance, FRAXA Research Foundation, and KCNT1 Epilepsy Foundation (in partnership with CURE Epilepsy). These collaborations support research into Dup15q syndrome, Fragile X syndrome (FXS), and KCNT1-related epilepsy.
The company also recently announced a research partnership with QurAlis focused on Fragile X syndrome, partially funded by the FRAXA Research Foundation.
With its expanded funding and growing network of research collaborations, Quiver aims to speed the development of safer, more effective therapies for both rare and common CNS diseases.
