At Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, a meeting and an open lecture by the CEO of the innovative Japanese biotechnological company COGNANO, Inc., Professor Akihiro Imura on the topic “Can AI See What Biology Has Never Seen?” took place.
The event brought together a wide audience of students, post-graduate students, teachers, and scientists from different faculties, in particular: Faculties of Biology, Chemistry, Applied Mathematics and Informatics, Electronics and Computer Technologies. Representatives of Lviv City Council, local enterprises and institutions were also present at the event.
Vice-Rector for Research, Teaching and International Cooperation Khrystyna Miliyanchuk gave her salutatory address to those present at the event. She greeted the guests and told the participants the story of the beginning the cooperation between the University and COGNANO, Inc. According to her, the partnership was made possible thanks to the assistance of Lviv City Council and the cooperation through Japan Desk. After several online meetings and discussions, the parties cemented the intentions by signing the official Memorandum of Understanding in June 2026. The document implies joint research, knowledge exchange through webinars, seminars, and study groups, as well as creating opportunities for young people to study biology and realise their research.
Andriy Pavliv, Head of Lviv Investment and Project Office, was also asked to present a salutatory address as the dialogue with the Japanese partners began a while ago thanks to the initiative and support of Lviv City Council.
After that, a lecture was delivered by the Faculty of Medicine of Kyoto University graduate, researcher, member of leading international scientific societies (namely Japanese Society of Molecular Biology, Japanese Society of Physiology, and American Society of Bone and Mineral Research), CEO of COGNANO, Inc. Akihiro Imura. During his presentation, the Professor explained how a combination of AI and biology is truly revolutionising drug development.
Traditional approaches in biology allow us to study a protein molecule mostly in an isolated or a fixed state with the help of various technologies, notably the electron cryomicroscopy. However, diseases develop dynamically in the human body, and, because of that, changes in structure and functional state of separate protein molecules can occur. Modern artificial intelligence has learned to model the general structure of normal proteins, but that is not enough for drug creation. Scientists need to specifically see the changes connected with pathological processes (for example, aggressive forms of cancer).
COGNANO, Inc. offered a unique approach – using anti-bodies (especially VHH anti-bodies (nano-bodies) received from llamas and alpacas and are composed of one heavy chain) as small “natural biosensors” that recognise the smallest changes in the protein structure of living organisms. By gathering information on millions of such anti-bodies, the company transforms biological knowledge into a big-data library. Then, a specially trained AI analyses these libraries, detects hidden protein regions linked to diseases, and helps to create a universal model for developing anti-bodies and to develop products for personalised medicine incredibly fast.
Professor Akihiro Imura paid particular attention to the fundamental connection between mathematics and structural biology, noting the scientific contribution of the famous Ukrainian mathematician Georgy Voronoy. His geometrical diagrams, used for analysing spacial interactions between atoms or amino acid residues in protein structure, are a key instrument in bioinformatics for computer simulations of inter-molecule contact.
At the end of the lecture, international scientific challenge SEPIQ was presented to the audience. Its goal is to join efforts of computer scientists and biologists for predicting interactions between anti-bodies and target molecules using artificial intelligence.
After the presentation, an active Q&A session took place. Students and teachers could discuss the interactions between researchers and artificial intelligence in the future, criteria for certifying the models generated using AI, and practical challenges of modern drug development.
The Japanese partners from COGNANO, Inc. talked with the scientists and active students of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and other educational institutions, exchanged contact information, and voiced sincere interest in engaging specialists and young people of Lviv into international research projects and SEPIQ initiative.
Based on the materials of Centre for International Cooperation.
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