Ontario startup High Q aims to speed up drug discovery for diseases such as Alzheimer’s through quantum sensors

From left, High Q Technologies’ applications manager Austin Gamble‑Jarvi, managing director Don Carkner and director of product marketing Rudra Maharajh conduct system checks on a Fathom pulsed electron paramagnetic resonance installation in the United Kingdom. Photo by Handout/Glen Gregory/High Q Technologies

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An Ontario startup aims to speed up new drug discoveries for diseases such as Alzheimer’s through quantum sensors that map protein building blocks.

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Founded by biomedical researchers and drug developers at the University of Waterloo in 2013, High Q Technologies is developing a quantum sensor called the electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectrometer to map moving protein structures with extreme precision.

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Their EPR device, named Fathom, aims to accelerate drug discovery for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s by years. According to the company, the device could slash the resources typically required in the stages of drug testing.

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“Proteins, like most biological structures, are flexible,” said Don Carkner, managing director at High Q. “When proteins interact with other molecules, they flex, twist and reconfigure as part of their function. In general, drugs work by affecting such motion.”

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He added, “ Traditional … techniques tend to be sensitive to a protein’s most common configuration, and so sometimes struggle to resolve the full range of motion. EPR is able to detect all configurations at once.”

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“Drug discovery is increasingly focused on understanding how proteins behave in motion,” said Carkner. “With Fathom, quantum-enabled EPR spectroscopy provides a way to study these dynamic systems.”

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EPR can also be used as a screening tool to ensure that samples are ideally prepared before being measured by traditional equipment, which could lower development costs while positively impacting the pipeline, according to High Q.

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The company recently partnered with Shirely N.Y.-based Creative Biostructure, a contract research organization, expanding access to High Q’s quantum technology for pharmaceutical research on a global scale.

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“Creative Biostructure has a large existing client base, with over 3,000 customers in 60 countries and regions, including numerous large pharma and high-profile academic institutions,” the company said in a press release about the collaboration.

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Creative Biostructure will provide scientific consultation, experimental design support and workflow guidance for organizations implementing High Q’s Fathom EPR spectroscopy platform, according to the press release.

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The company’s stated mission to advance domestic biotechnology capabilities is backed by the government of Canada, Waterloo venture capital firm Quantum Valley Investments and the University of Waterloo’s Transformative Quantum Technologies accelerator.

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In 2018, $6.5 million was awarded to the company through the federal Strategic Innovation Fund to support the development of quantum-enabled sensor technology.