FRONTEO Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President and CEO: Masahiro Morimoto, hereinafter FRONTEO) uses the in-house developed AI "KIBIT" to conduct genome-wide association study (GWAS).^{* 1}expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL)^{* 2}We are pleased to announce that we have developed a new analysis method that searches for drug discovery targets by combining genetic information based on the above and medical/pharmaceutical literature information.This method is expected to further improve the accuracy and efficiency of drug discovery target discovery in the AI ​​drug discovery support service "Drug Discovery AI Factory (DDAIF)."

　Many diseases are thought to be caused by functional abnormalities in genes due to genomic sequence mutations, and in order to elucidate disease mechanisms, it is important to identify genes that cause abnormalities and genes whose expression levels change as a result of the abnormality. While analyzes based on GWAS and eQTL provide important clues, the challenge is that it is difficult to elucidate how genomic sequence variations and differences in expression levels are linked to disease onset using only this information. I was there.

　The newly developed analysis method uses KIBIT to analyze genes that are affected by gene expression identified through eQTL analysis.By combining gene expression changes predicted from genomic information with our proprietary AI drug discovery platform Drug Discovery Best Known Methods, which utilizes AI that has comprehensively learned information from medical and pharmaceutical research papers, we are able to more accurately identify disease causes. It is possible to predict gene and disease mechanisms, generate hypotheses, and select and prioritize drug discovery target candidates.

　FRONTEO will continue to expand DDAIF's services and expand its technology to present highly novel target candidates, thereby achieving more accurate drug discovery target searches and meeting the needs of customers including pharmaceutical companies. I will continue to do so.

*1 GWAS: A research method that comprehensively compares the genome information of a large number of people and detects differences in genetic variations and characteristics between people with and without a specific disease, as well as constitutions and relationships with the disease.
*2 eQTL: DNA region that affects gene expression level

■About DDAIF　URL:https://lifescience.fronteo.com/
DDAIF is a service that utilizes FRONTEO's in-house developed AI, which specializes in hypothesis generation for drug research and development, to support the efficiency, acceleration, and success rate of drug discovery.Hypotheses in drug research and development predict mechanisms based on the relationship between target molecules and diseases, and play an extremely important role in various phases from target discovery, which is the most upstream stage of development, to clinical trials and market launch. That's one. At DDAIF, we generate and propose hypotheses based on evidence, including the search and evaluation of highly novel target molecules and biomarkers, elucidation of mechanisms, proposal of indications, and evaluation of seeds, according to customer needs.

■ About FRONTEO　URL:https://www.fronteo.com/
FRONTEO is a data analysis company that provides various AI solutions and services using the in-house developed AI engine "KIBIT". Based on the philosophy of "providing solutions that do not overlook risks and opportunities buried in records and realizing fairness in the information society," extract meaningful and important information from vast amounts of text data and complex networks. Our strengths are natural language processing and network analysis technologies that support advanced judgments by experts.We are developing businesses in the areas of legal tech AI, business intelligence, life science AI, and economic security, and contributing to solving various corporate and social issues. Founded in August 2003, listed on Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers (currently Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth) on June 8, 2007.The company operates in Japan, the United States, South Korea, and Taiwan.Acquisition of first-class medical device manufacturing and sales business license, notification of controlled medical device sales business.Capital 6 thousand yen (as of March 26, 3,042,317).

*FRONTEO, KIBIT, and Drug Discovery AI Factory are registered trademarks of FRONTEO in Japan.