August 10, 2022

ONO and Knowledge Palette Enter into an Agreement to Expand
Research Collaboration on Building a Data-driven New Drug Discovery Platform
Aiming at Development of a Data-driven New Drug Discovery Platform
based on a Large-scale Transcriptome Analysis Technology
Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Osaka, Japan; President and CEO, Gyo Sagara; “ONO”) and
Knowledge Palette, Inc. (Kanagawa, Japan; Representative Director and CEO, Hiroki Danno;
Representative Director and CTO, Masakazu Fukuda; “Knowledge Palette”) announced that thecompanies have entered into an agreement to expand the research collaboration aiming to build adata-driven new drug discovery platform using Knowledge Palette’s large-scale transcriptome
analysis technology.
Based on the collaborative research contract executed in November 2021, ONO and Knowledge
Palette have conducted a feasibility study for a data-driven development of novel drug discovery
hypotheses by using larger-scale data and informatics than ever.
In this expanded contract of research collaboration, the entire picture of gene expression patterns inhuman cells treated with various compounds and in those given perturbations such as gene function
inhibition will be compiled into a database using Knowledge Palette's large-scale transcriptome
analysis technology. Using the database leveraging with informatics approach, comprehensive
cellular data will be analyzed to reveal numerous molecular mechanisms for hypothetical novel drug
discovery targets, which leads to develop a platform of data driven drug discovery. In the future, it isexpected that the acquisition of comprehensive cellular data on a higher precision and larger scale
will lead to the development of new drug discovery hypotheses for a wide range of disease areas.
“ONO highly appreciates Knowledge Palette’s R&D platform based on its single-cell transcriptome
analysis technology (Quartz-Seq2). With this expanded contract of research collaboration with
Knowledge Palette, we look forward to further expanding development pipeline for innovative drugs,”
said Toichi Takino, Senior Executive Officer and Executive Director, Discovery & Research of ONO.
“Knowledge Palette is engaged in the new phenotypic drugs discovery by utilizing whole-genome
gene expression profile and informatics. By adding the large-scale and comprehensive cellular
phenotype data obtained through this collaborative research to the database of our platform, wewill be able to explore and create many new drug discovery hypotheses and search for candidatesof new drugs and seeds of cell therapies with higher development success rates,” said Hiroki Danno,
Representative Director & CEO of Knowledge Palette.

About Knowledge Palette
Knowledge Palette is a Japanese biotechnology company conducting phenotypic drug discovery,
biomarker identification, and improvement of regenerative medicine manufacturing based on its
single-cell transcriptome analysis technology (Quartz-Seq2), which was ranked No.1 for bothaccuracy scores and overall scores in an international benchmark project in 2020. Knowledge
Palette is collaborating with pharmaceutical companies and research institutes on the accelerationof drug discovery as well as optimization of cell culturing for regenerative medicine.

Contact:
Ono Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
Corporate Communications
public_relations@ono.co.jp
Knowledge Palette, Inc.
TEL：044-223-6215／E-mail：info@knowledge-palette.com
URL：https://www.knowledge-palette.com/en/