AI-Powered Drug Discovery Meets Field-Ready Diagnostics in SLAS Technology Vol. 37

The latest volume demonstrates how artificial intelligence, automation, and portable technologies are reshaping drug discovery, diagnostics and therapeutic development.

Oak Brook, IL (March 26, 2026) – Volume 37 of SLAS Technology includes one technical brief, four original research articles, two literature highlights, and four entries from the Special Issue on Revolutionizing Transcriptomics from Single-Cell Insights to RNA-Based Interventions.

Technical Brief

• Empowering Chemists in Drug Design: Delivering AI Solutions Through an ELN Framework at the Enterprise Level
  The authors propose a novel framework that embeds AI drug discovery workflows within the familiar Electronic Lab Notebook (ELN) interface, making advanced AI tools accessible to bench chemists without requiring specialized computational expertise.

Original Research

• Mechanism Study on Promoting Podocyte Injury by Regulating ATPA1 and PARK2 Mediated Mitochondrial Dysfunction: Immunofluorescence Image Analysis
  This study explores the mechanism for ‘HSP90AB1-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction leading to podocyte injury via its regulation of ATP5A1 and PARK2 interactions, as validated in clinical samples and mouse cell line models. These findings identify new potential therapeutic targets for podocyte injury and advance understanding of its underlying pathological mechanisms.

• Asynchronous Batch Bayesian Optimization with Pipelining Evaluations in Experimental Equipment-Limited Situations
  PipeBO is a newly developed pipelining Bayesian optimization method that reduces processing time by overlapping experimental processes, achieving up to a 56% reduction compared to sequential methods.

• Exploring Antibiotic Degradation Mechanisms: Molecular Docking Analysis of Beta-Lactamase Enzymes from Pseudomonas Songnenensis
  Researchers isolated β-lactamase-producing Pseudomonas songnenensis from poultry farm soil and demonstrated its ability to degrade β-lactam antibiotics including penicillin, ampicillin and amoxicillin through enzymatic hydrolysis. This discovery offers a novel bioremediation strategy for mitigating antibiotic pollution in sustainable livestock farming and food production systems.

• Rapid Colorimetric Detection of Citrus Tristeza Virus Combining Portable Sample Preparation and Reverse Transcription-Loop Mediated Isothermal Amplification
  Researchers developed a portable platform combining OmniLyse micro-homogenization with lyophilized RT-LAMP assays that can detect Citrus tristeza virus from citrus leaves in under 35 minutes without laboratory equipment or cold-chain storage. This cold-chain-free, field-deployable technology enables rapid onsite plant pathogen detection and could be extended to other agricultural pathogens.

Literature Highlight

• Life Sciences Discovery and Technology Highlights
  The authors highlight several recent advances in laboratory automation, microfluidics and AI-enhanced biosensing, that are transforming biological research through high-throughput genome editing platforms, automated nucleic acid extraction protocols and intelligent strain engineering systems.

• Life Sciences and Anxiety – Between Enlightenment and Uncertainty
  This entry in the Life Sciences and Society series by SLAS Technology Associate Editor Kerstin Thurow, PhD, explores the paradoxical relationship between scientific advancement and cultural anxiety in the life sciences. Thurow examines how greater biological knowledge can simultaneously empower and burden individuals while raising ethical questions about genetic modification and human enhancement.

Special Issue

• Revolutionizing Transcriptomics from Single-Cell Insights to RNA-Based Interventions
  This Special Issue on systems genetics examines gene and molecular interaction networks, utilizing high-throughput sequencing and multi-omics technologies to understand how genetic networks influence phenotypes. It emphasizes the significance of personalized medicine, therapeutic target discovery and biomarker identification through integrated genomic and epigenomic approaches.

All active SLAS Discovery and SLAS Technology call for papers are available at: https://www.slas.org/publications/call-for-papers/

This volume of SLAS Technology is available at https://www.slas-technology.org/issue/S2472-6303(25)X0008-X

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SLAS Technology reveals how scientists adapt technological advancements for life sciences exploration and experimentation in biomedical research and development. The journal emphasizes scientific and technical advances that enable and improve:

• Life sciences research and development
• Drug delivery
• Diagnostics
• Biomedical and molecular imaging
• Personalized and precision medicine

SLAS (Society for Laboratory Automation and Screening) is an international professional society of academic, industry and government life sciences researchers and the developers and providers of laboratory automation technology. The SLAS mission is to bring together researchers in academia, industry and government to advance life sciences discovery and technology via education, knowledge exchange and global community building.

SLAS Technology: Translating Life Sciences Innovation, 2024 Impact Factor 3.7. Editor-in-Chief Edward Kai-Hua Chow, PhD, KYAN Technologies, Los Angeles, CA (USA).

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