Company of the week: Carterra
🔬 What They Do
Carterra is a company that speeds up the process of finding the right antibodies to fight diseases. Based in Salt Lake City, they've made a big splash in the healthcare world with their unique technology platform called LSA, short for "Lodestar Array". This tech helps researchers find the most effective antibodies to fight illnesses like Ebola and COVID-19.
📊 Why It Matters
Imagine being able to find the best treatment for a disease in months instead of years. Carterra's technology does just that. Their work is super important because it helps scientists and doctors get to solutions faster when new diseases emerge.
🚀 How It Works
They use a method called "epitope binning" to observe and record the dynamics of different antibodies as they stick to a virus or bacteria. This is like finding the best lock-and-key fit between an antibody and a germ. Their method gives a lot more details than traditional methods and helps researchers make smarter choices in less time.
🤝 Who They Work With
Carterra partners with big drug companies and research places to make even better medicines. They also help other companies like Twist Bioscience, which makes synthetic DNA, to improve their own clinical research and products.
🌎 Real-World Impact
In the fight against Ebola, Carterra's technology helped scientists understand not just which antibodies stick to the virus, but also how they work to stop it. This is a big deal because it means that we can find more ways to fight other viruses like COVID-19 in the future.
🔮 What Makes Them Special
One of the coolest things about Carterra's technology is that it shows antibodies from the same "family" can actually fight diseases in different ways. This is important because it helps researchers find the best mix of antibodies to treat a disease, especially ones that can change quickly like the flu.
🎯 The Takeaway
In simple terms, Carterra is a game-changer in healthcare. Their technology helps us understand how to fight diseases better and faster. With the need for quick solutions in today's world, Carterra's work is more important than ever.
Thanks to the founders/managing team Josh Eckman, Tim Germann, Janel Fillinger, Steve Chipchase, Christopher Silva, Chad Hoffmann and the whole Carterra crew for what you do! 👨🔬 👩⚕️ 👩🔬 👨⚕️
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Website: https://carterra-bio.com/
Intro to technology with Twist Bioscience/Biopharma (a project I contributed to!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6awLuhaNpg
TapBioscience Newsletter: https://www.humblepartners.org/tapbioscience/company-of-the-week-carterra
