DeepLife is proud to be a part of the PANC-CKI consortium, a bold alliance confronting pancreatic cancer with groundbreaking science. Launched in October 2024 and led by CasInvent Pharma, this Eurostars-funded project secured €4 million to develop a novel Casein Kinase 1 (CK1) inhibitor designed to target aggressive pancreatic tumors. 

Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest cancers worldwide with a five-year survival rate below 13% for all stages, dropping to less than 5% for many patients due to late diagnosis and rapid development of resistance to chemotherapy and targeted therapies. The challenge of developing effective treatments is compounded by the poor translation of preclinical models to clinical success, highlighting the urgent need for new treatment approaches. 

The PANC-CKI consortium pioneers a completely novel drug development approach that fuses the latest advances in biotech in a powerful synergy: 

• AI-driven digital twins of pancreatic tumors modeled by DeepLife, simulating cellular responses to CK1 inhibition 
• Rapid drug combination screening in patient-derived organoids at the University of Bern, delivering highly relevant biological insights
• Safety and toxicity testing on organs-on-chip platforms developed by AlveoliX, ensuring translatable preclinical evaluation

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DeepLife’s role centres on harnessing AI and network medicine to accelerate therapy discovery. Over the past year, we have assembled comprehensive omics datasets to build precise cellular atlases and digital twins of cells implicated in pancreatic cancer. This data provides a foundation for understanding tumor heterogeneity and identifying promising drug combinations with CK1 inhibitors at unprecedented speed and accuracy.

“Pancreatic cancer remains one of the deadliest and most complex cancers,” said Kevin Carvalho, Head of Partnerships at DeepLife. “With PANC-CKI, we’re combining cutting-edge biology, AI-powered simulation, and patient-derived models to transform therapeutic design. Our cellular atlases and digital twins are critical to predicting tumor behaviour and response to new treatments like CK1 inhibition.”

“Patient-derived organoids offer a transformative platform for PDAC research, enabling biologically faithful modeling of tumor heterogeneity and drug response. Their integration into screening pipelines not only enhances predictive accuracy but also accelerates the path toward personalized therapeutic strategies.” Prof. Dr. Marianna Kruithof-de Julio, University of Bern."

“We are very excited to participate in this project, helping us to optimize the potential of our first-in-class CK1 inhibitor in pancreatic cancer. This project also outlines a new road map in terms of drug discovery and development with this unique combination of state-of the art technologies like organoids, AI/ML and organs on chips. Altogether, it will result in new personalized treatment options for our patients.” Alexander Scheer, CEO of Casinvent

"AlveoliX scientists have a unique opportunity to shape the future of cancer therapy through PANC-CKI. By developing AI-powered digital twins from our organoids and organ-on-chip platforms, we’re pioneering how life-saving cancer drugs will be designed,” said Nina Hobi, CEO of AlveoliX

The consortium aims to build a comprehensive preclinical data package supporting upcoming first-in-human studies, advancing toward transformative therapies for patients with urgent unmet needs. Having ranked #1 in France, Switzerland and the Czech republic during the Eurostars evaluation, PANC-CKI stands out as a scientifically excellent and timely initiative. 

We extend our thanks to all partners - CasInvent Pharma, University of Bern, AlveoliX, and the many experts driving this effort forward. For collaboration inquiries or to learn more, please contact us.

Stay tuned as we push the boundaries of pancreatic cancer research and accelerate new hope for patients worldwide. 

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About CasInvent Pharma

CasInvent Pharma is a drug discovery spin-off company established in 2020 by Masaryk University and biotech incubator i&i Prague. The mission of the company is to develop new therapeutic options for the treatment of resistant tumors. The CasInvent platform is based on the use of proprietary, best-in-class highly selective inhibitors of enzymes belonging to the casein kinase 1 (CK1) family that are responsible for the regulation of different cellular mechanisms leading to resistance to targeted therapies. For more information, visit www.casinvent.com or contact scheer@casinvent.com.

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About University of Bern

The Urology Research Laboratory at the Department for BioMedical Research of UBERN conducts advanced research in patient-derived organoids and possesses a collection from various cancer types such as prostate, bladder, and renal cell carcinoma to understand cancer biology. UBERN has demonstrated the translational potential of patient-derived organoids and is currently engaged in clinical studies. For more information, visit www.unibe.ch or contact marianna.kruithofdejulio@unibe.ch.

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About AlveoliX

AlveoliX, a leader in organs-on-chip technology, is expanding its impact with the patented AXBarrier-on-Chip System, a platform enabling advanced safety and efficacy models for pre-clinical testing. Its current AXBiomodel portfolio includes validated lung and intestine models, with kidney and bladder models in development. AlveoliX’s participation in the interdisciplinary grant will enable the company to enter the fast-growing oncology market, supporting cancer drug development with more precise, predictive pre-clinical models. For more information, visit www.alveolix.com or contact nina.hobi@alveolix.com.