Colin Walsh, PhD

🔊  Top 10 Biopharma Clusters for 2024! 🔊 Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News(GEN) has just released its latest rankings, and the biopharma landscape continues to evolve. Despite some minor shifts, the top clusters are familiar faces, showcasing the ongoing strength and innovation in these key regions. Check out the full rankings and historical trends to see how these hotspots have evolved since 2016! 

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Marc-Henry PITTY, MD, CEO of Oregon Therapeutics, "To date, our first-in-class #metabolicinhibitor, XCE853, has exhibited robust preclinical efficacy in both in vitro and in vivo models across multiple #cancer types. Lantern’s (NASDAQ: LTRN) #RADR®AI platform will leverage the in vitro and in vivo data to potentially advance XCE853 development in a highly targeted manner and will help inform disease indications and #biomarker signatures that can aid in the design of future #clinicaltrials and in the pursuit of combination therapies with other approved cancer drugs. Our team is looking forward to efficiently selecting among the landscape of ideal development options and efficiently de-risking future clinical development decisions." https://lnkd.in/g8XPQSsa #biotech #france #texas #oncology #artificialIntelligence

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A simple but interesting discussion of Sernova (David) and Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Goliath) in the pursuit of #celltherapy for #T1D. https://lnkd.in/ghMH7n9b #diabetes #advancedtherapies

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Excited to share the latest feature in our "Partnering Spotlight" series, where we share some of the connections we are building to foster scientific innovation in healthcare. In this edition, our very own Neha Kaushal sits down with Daniel Anderson, Professor of Chemical Engineering at MIT, to discuss the potential of innovative #mRNA applications in vaccines and novel treatments for genetic diseases. Check out the video to learn more about our collaboration! https://lnkd.in/eHwpyjeY #vaccines #immunoscience

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Excellent way to spend 1 minute, 30 seconds. DSO shares via an embedded video in the article below how Modality.AI is making an impact with patients. It is wonderful to have NIH SEED as a partner on this journey. Relentless Venture Fund David "DSO" Suendermann-Oeft #Neurotech #AI #BIO2024 #precisionmedicine #clinicaltrials #healthtech #healthcare #digitalhealth

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Gene Therapy: How Should We Approach Benefit And Risk? - https://lnkd.in/eAjgum3h - By Jonathan (John) Finn, Ph.D., chief science officer, Tome Biosciences How should we evaluate the benefit-risk ratio of gene and cell therapy applications in the absence of perfect information, particularly regarding long-term risks?

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Working together to discover new therapies in oncology and neuroscience using phenomics, single-cell data generation, and AI and ML capabilities. ◾ In his presentation at Download Day, John Marioni, SVP and Head of Computational Sciences at Genentech shared Genentech’s “Lab in a Loop” vision to massively scale drug discovery into a “self-driving lab” – from experiment, to training, to prediction. ◾ As he described, Genentech is leveraging the Recursion operating system to find the right molecules that could result in transformative medicines in neuroscience or oncology. ◾ As part of this collaboration, we are developing maps in gastrointestinal cancer and neuroscience. ◾ The next steps include leveraging public data and integrating new and derived data into our models – driving a “virtuous cycle” of experimentation and machine learning. View all the Download Day presentations here: https://lnkd.in/e9bRKvqf Genentech #techbio #downloadday #ai #ml #drugdiscovery #oncology #neuroscience

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#LanternPharma announced a strategic AI-driven collaboration with #OregonTherapeutics to optimize the development of its first-in-class protein disulfide isomerase (PDI) (1) inhibitor drug candidate XCE853 in novel and targeted cancer indications. https://shorturl.at/alnoZ #TechNews #StayInformed #StayAhead #dailydose #followus #staytuned #stayconnected #technews #technology #trending #trendingnow #trendingnews #explore #explorepage #techdogs

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I’m thrilled to announce the launch of Radar Therapeutics, dedicated to making programmable, safe, "smart" #mRNA-based therapies that only get activated in the right cells, at the right time. Working with Katherine Jones, Sarah Chesemore, and others at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, we witnessed how Moderna and BioNTech SE/Pfizer catapulted mRNA therapies onto the world stage with unprecedented speed, saving millions of lives.   At Radar, we want to bring this promise beyond vaccines into the most complex therapeutic compartments by solving one of the biggest problems for these therapies: making sure these mRNAs only reprogram the right cells in the body, avoiding potentially toxic off-target effects. We are committed to making therapies with the highest bar of safety, and widely accessible to patients that need them. I was incredibly lucky to meet my co-founder Eerik Kaseniit (thank you Anna-Julia Storch), while at Stanford University Graduate School of Business. Eerik was obsessed with the problem of precisely targeted, timely and controlled regulation of mRNA translation. Alongside Stanford Prof Xiaojing Gao and MIT Prof Jim Collins, we decided to direct those efforts towards saving lives by starting Radar Therapeutics. We attracted the brilliant minds Svetlana Lucas, David Schaffer, and Eric Klein along the way. We are grateful to NFX, Eli Lilly and Company, Biovision Ventures, and KdT Ventures for taking the lead on this round, alongside BEVC, Pear VC, ARTIS Ventures, Ten VC, Elementum Ventures, Emcure Pharmaceuticals Limited, SALT, Conscience VC, and more. Here’s to a future where we can program therapies to rewrite any disease with utmost safety and accuracy. I’ll be at #BIO2024 for anyone looking to connect! Sharing some information about the company here: Endpoints News - https://lnkd.in/g4MQT245 Firstword Pharma - https://lnkd.in/gq3heWsE Genetic Engineering News - https://lnkd.in/gNPDfHEs Chemical & Engineering News - https://lnkd.in/gUx8ijmY Longevity Technology - https://lnkd.in/gRwdtiKx PBR- https://lnkd.in/gvUG_c5M Businesswire - https://lnkd.in/gcv88QAM Alix Marduel Vasudev Bailey Asset Abdualiyev Shan-Lyn Ma Wesley Barrow Pioneer Fund Jackie Benson Shannon Dahl Jackie Papkoff, Ph.D. Nat Kolber Jon Levin Ilya Strebulaev StartX Ron Boger Howard Rosen

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As promised, here's part 2 of a two-part article series by our executive editor Fran DeGrazio. In this installment of her Frankly Fran column, Fran takes a deep dive into particle testing to illustrate her take on drug product quality. #drugdelivery, #combinationproducts, #qualityassurance, #regulatory, #particleanalysis https://lnkd.in/dvkFUWeH

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The International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) sought to accelerate guideline development for #allogeneic #celltherapy. This discussion with United Therapeutics' Erich Bozenhardt, PE digs into some of the bigger themes in its recent guide. #celltherapymanufacturing #cellandgenetherapy #CGT https://lnkd.in/eqfDXDg3

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Vaidehi Joshi, Director, Discovery Biology at Viscient Bio Inc, graced our 20th BioPharma Drug Discovery event in San Diego, CA with her enlightening presentation on "Three-Dimensional primary cell based liver model predicts clinical outcomes of MASH in vitro" Gain invaluable insights into the future of liver disease research and clinical outcomes prediction!" #BioPharmaNexus #Discovery #invitro #Biology #Procurementdirect #NexusConference #SanDiego #Cell #ClinicalOutcomes #Scientific #USAconference #Disease #NexusConference

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Despite challenges in the IPO market in 2021, the biotechnology sector is resilient and showing signs of recovery. Tempus led the way last week. Congratulations to all stakeholders at Tempus! This period of turbulence urges biotech firms to strategically focus on building strong data foundations, which will not only attract investments but also pave the way for sustainable growth and innovation. Embracing uncertainty as an opportunity for innovation and skill development could redefine leadership in biotech, fostering a culture of resilience and adaptability crucial for sustained success in a rapidly evolving industry landscape. #Biotech #Leadership

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Cormorant Asset Management, LP is very pleased to be supporting Altrubio’s Series B financing. I’m quoted in this WSJ article by Brian Gormley highlighting recent advances by biotech companies like AltruBio Inc. and our former portfolio company Prometheus (acquired last year by Merck for $10.8B), bringing novel targets and approaches to the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases such as ulcerative colitis. Altrubio is in the vanguard of efforts to exploit checkpoint inhibition in T-cells to restore proper balance of the adaptive immune system in inflammatory disorders. Blockade of checkpoint inhibition to stimulate anti-tumor T-cell immunity has revolutionized the treatment of cancer. Altrubio is now taking an inverse approach leveraging the novel immune checkpoint inhibitor PSGL-1 to combat T-cell-driven inflammation in ulcerative colitis and other autoimmune/inflammatory disorders.

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Here's fun thought. We all know Illumina's umm "high" antitrust profile makes it a challenge to acquire anything. But an interesting (interesting to me anyway 🤪) upside of that is the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Act (passed to give the FTC enough time to make an antitrust judgment prior to deal closing). HSR sets a deal value threshold, that is annually adjusted, under which a deal pretty much (not an antitrust lawyer 🤣) doesn't get looked at by the FTC. This year the threshold is $120M - so we know that Fluent BioSciences Inc. sold to Illumina for less than that otherwise there would be all sort of fine print in the press release about 30 days to close yada yada. But here's the thing. Let's assume that Illumina wants to go around and buy a bunch of early stage LS companies of which Fluent is just the first. Negotiation goes like this: Illumina: Hi there! NewCo: OMG you're illumina you have tons and tons of $$$ even after GRAIL and we're the bestest spacial genomics/proteomics/bioinformatics company in the world so you can buy us but we we are worth $1B. Illumina: OMG you're right these are great slides we'd love to pay you $1B but the HSR limit this year is $120M so that's all we can pay so sorry, regulators gonna regulate 🤷‍♂️ NewCo: OK $119M and no earn-outs OK? Illumina: 🥳 Sometimes our greatest weakness is our greatest strength 🧘🏻

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In the past week, two scientist-led companies have been announced, both building promising solutions for solid cancers. Waypoint Bio, founded by Xinchen Wang and David Phizicky after their postdoctoral work, has emerged from stealth mode to advance drug discovery in cancer, securing $14.5 million in financing, led by Hummingbird Ventures with participation from Recode Ventures and pre-seed from Fifty Years. Waypoint Bio is developing a platform for pooled in vivo screening that leverages #spatialbiology to analyze interactions between T cells and solid tumor cancers. This approach aims to quickly generate novel drug candidates with a higher probability of clinical success. Omri Amirav-Drory from NFX is leading a $6.5 million seed investment in TwoStep Therapeutics, co-founded and led by Caitlyn Miller, PhD, shortly after her postdoctoral work at Stanford. TwoStep Therapeutics is developing new therapeutics targeting solid tumors by binding to integrins, potentially creating a pan-cancer therapy. While these companies face a long path to develop their technologies and bring these drugs to market, the funding and support from investors who believe in the scientists leading these companies give them a fighting chance.

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TL;DR, Joe Daccache, Ph.D., Sandra Poole and Amy Johnson are getting together with Matthew Pillar to talk about what arguably might be the hottest trend in #biotech right now — ADCs and how to produce them, complex as they are. Registration link at the bottom of the most action-packed analogy of pharmacokinetics I've ever seen and probably ever will. 😆

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