ImmunXperts was founded ten years ago with the mission of developing practical tools for the functional evaluation of new drugs. Since their founding they have been acquired twice: first in 2020 by Nexelis, and most recently they joined IQVIA Laboratories formerly Q2 Solutions in 2022. In 2023, the team moved into a brand new facility in Gosselies, Belgium, where they continue to focus on developing assays for unwanted immunogenicity, immunotoxicity, and immuno-functionality.
Christoph Schifflers, Scientist and Project Lead at ImmunXperts, walked us through his team’s approach to immune assay development and some of the assays that they have on offer. A core part of ImmunXperts’ approach is the heavy reliance on primary human material, as such the team maintains a well characterized biobank with PBMC from over 1200 donors.
Also central to their approach is flexibility. The team have developed a large range of assay panels focusing on a variety of immune cell subsets. These assays can be used off-shelf or be highly customised to specific drug requirements. In those cases, flexible assays need to be optimised, and so the team offers a staggered approach to new assays with fine-tuning before the addition of compounds.
Schifflers then showcased some of the assays that ImmunXperts offer. First were the team’s Myeloid cell assays, which focus on macrophages, assessing their polarization and functional roles in inflammatory and tumour contexts.
Assays for natural killer (NK) cells were next, which evaluate antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC).
ImmunXperts’ T cell assays can be antigen-specific, allogenic, or non-specific, and can include complex setups with additional suppressive cells.
And finally, the Dendritic-T cell assay tests compounds targeting different steps of T cell priming and reactivity using autologous setups.
Schifflers then rounded out the talk by emphasising that the assays he discussed are by no means an exhaustive list. ImmunXperts offer many other available assays including exhaustion assays, complement-dependent cytotoxicity assays, and MAPPS assays for immunopeptidomics just to name a few.
