VHH Discovery, Built Around your Programme
A science-led partner combining VHH expertise, reliable discovery technology and close two-way scientific collaboration, to progress your programme from target to high-quality leads.
Why Partner with Isogenica?
Every discovery campaign starts with what you need your VHHs to do.
We tailor our discovery approach to your target, application and development goals, considering downstream requirements from the outset. Our VHH discovery expertise allows us to design selection and screening strategies around the properties that matter to you, helping identify the right VHHs to take forward.
Speed
Our efficient discovery workflows and rapid two-way decision-making keep programmes moving, without compromising on scientific rigour.
Quality
Discovery strategies are designed around the properties that matter downstream, with quality being a top priority from the selection stage right through to lead characterisation.
Responsiveness
Partners have direct access to our scientific team who have expertise across multiple fields. We have the flexibility and expertise to adapt as your programme progresses and how the science evolves in a data-driven manner, with regular communication from the outset.
Trust
Clear deliverables, transparent pricing and open scientific collaboration ensures partners have a clear understanding of their project at every stage.
Built for emerging biotech
We understand the priorities of early-stage and funded biotech teams. Programmes can be adapted to suit your end goals, scientific priorities and available resources, with clear milestones designed to generate meaningful data for your next programme decision.
Your leads. Your IP.
The final chosen panel of VHH hits from your discovery campaign is your exclusive property with flexible contracting terms to work with your company requirements.
Years of antibody discovery experience
Programmes delivered
Clinical-stage assets originating from our technology
%
Of surveyed clients rated their likelihood to recommend Isogenica 8–10/10
How We Work
From first contact to project initiation, timelines typically range from a few days to a few weeks, depending on your project needs.
1. Introductory call
Discuss scientific feasibility, programme requirements and fit with an experienced scientist.
2. Technical review
Under NDA, we explore your target, goals and downstream application in more detail.
3. Workplan & contract
A tailored, modular workplan with clear deliverables and transparent pricing is developed in parallel.
4. Project initiation
Once agreements are in place, we confirm antigen availability, finalise scheduling, and begin your VHH discovery. Regular bi-weekly meetings ensure progress, communication, and scientific alignment from day one.
What we do?
Every campaign starts with VHH discovery. Our discovery expertise and technology identify diverse, high-quality VHHs against your target. If required, there is also the opportunity for further characterisation, functional assessment and engineering according to your project requirements.
OUR CORE EXPERTISE
VHH Antibody Discovery Services
- Ultra-diverse synthetic VHH libraries
- Pre-humanised libraries to support downstream development
- Antigen biotinylation and quality control
- Phage display technologies
- Multiple selection strategies tailored to your programme needs using recombinant protein, cells or even nanodiscs for complex targets
- High-throughput screening and NGS analysis
Taking your VHH further
Extend your discovery campaign with VHH characterisation, custom assays and engineering tailored to your programme’s needs.
VHH characterisation
- High-throughput VHH expression
- Binding assessment using recombinant protein ELISA and cell-based screening
- Biophysical profiling (aSEC and thermal stability)
- Specificity and cross-reactivity
- Kinetic analysis and epitope binning
Custom-assay development
- Functional assays tailored to your target biology
- Antagonism and agonism assessment
- Internalisation and cell-killing assays
VHH Antibody Engineering
- Humanisation of camelid-derived VHHs
- Bi-specific and multi-specific format generation
- Tags and payload-handle integration
See how Isogenica combined iterative engineering and characterisation to increase the human-likeness of an alpaca-derived VHH while retaining key molecular properties.
Extended through our discovery network
When your programme requires additional capabilities beyond our standard workflow, we coordinate with a trusted network of partners who specialise in complex antigen production and target presentation, as well as HTP functional screening. The result is a programme that operates as one coordinated workflow, with Isogenica managing the collaboration so you don’t have to manage multiple CRO relationships.
PARTNER CASE STUDY · ISOGENICA × AXXAM
Silent in one assay, potent in another: VHHs against CDK2/CycE1
CDK2/CycE1 is a cancer target linked to therapy resistance, and no inhibitor is reported to block formation of the complex specifically. Isogenica selected 192 unique VHHs against CDK2, and Axxam’s automated platform purified them for functional assays. Four inhibited kinase activity with two-digit nM potency, and three of those also blocked complex formation. One binder that looked inactive in the kinase assay blocked the complex instead, a result binding data alone would have missed. Following this proof-of concept study, significantly larger VHH panels can be explored directly following selections, enabling function-first discovery for rare functional binders such as agonists.
The Isogenica team brought deep, on-point VHH expertise to our project and were a pleasure to collaborate with — a partner we would not hesitate to recommend.
Alice Desbuleux, Ph.D., Senior Scientist at Matrisome Bio
Who we’ve worked with
From emerging biotechs to established pharma leaders, our partners rely on our speed, scale, and science
Learn more about our VHH antibody discovery services today.
Share your target profile and we can discuss how synthetic VHH antibody discovery could support your next decision point.