Historically, the pharma sector has exhibited a degree of caution in adopting emerging technologies such as cloud computing and AI, given the sector’s stringent regulatory requirements, data security concerns, and the complexities involved in integrating new systems into legacy processes. The situation is beginning to shift considerably with the COVID-19 pandemic, in particular, acting as…

In July, the life sciences services company Eversana revealed it was partnering with AWS to tap generative AI (gen AI) for pharma and other life science customers. It aimed to “pharmatize” gen AI, as the company put it then. Now, the company has revealed the first technology from that partnership – a regulatory review automation…

Boston is arguably the top biotech hub in the U.S., but the salaries in San Francisco and New York City tend to be higher. According to recent data, the San Francisco area offers the top average salaries for biotech jobs, followed closely by New York City. But the cost of living in all three cities…

The fact that women’s health has long been underprioritized is common knowledge. Organon, with roots going back to 1923 and having sharpened its focus on women’s health post its 2021 spinoff from Merck & Co., aims to address significant gaps in treatment and care. “Our commitment to women’s health is not just a part of…

During the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2020, the storied Silicon Valley institution SRI International secured a $4.3 million DARPA contract to develop a tool for generating therapeutic small molecules to combat biological threats. Not just known for innovations like the computer mouse and Siri, SRI International is also responsible for Synfini, a multimodal chemistry model…

Abstract The vast majority of vaccines are prophylactic in nature. As a result, the demonstration of their efficacy paradoxically requires the infectious disease to occur among non-diseased study participants randomized between investigational vaccine and appropriate control groups. The statistics of vaccine efficacy (VE) calculation are nearly entirely and solely based on the number of observed…

The tale of digital pharma and biotech in 2023 is one of two realities. In one corner, you have AI and digital-focused startups and sometimes executives at Big Pharma companies with grand AI ambitions proclaiming the power of the technology. But on the other side of the pharma-AI coin is a more cautious crowd. Here,…

With promising interim phase 2 data in hand, Cybin believes psychedelic therapy will become a reality in the “not too distant future,” according to CEO Doug Drysdale. As recently as the 1990s, it would be difficult to imagine that a psychedelic drug would potentially be a clinical option for a mood disorder like depression. But…

Next generation therapies and vaccine research have recently dominated headlines and scientific discovery. This research and its ability to treat previously untreatable conditions has rightfully excited the scientific and medical communities worldwide. But the complexities involved require a nuanced approach to ensure the treatment is safe and effective. Integrating cell culture into cellular immunity testing…

In 2023, demand for GLP-1 receptor agonists such as Lilly’s tirzepatitde and Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide surged just as demand for COVID-19 therapies waned. As a result, Novo Nordisk had 33% growth at constant exchange rates over the first nine months of the year. Similarly, Lilly experienced a 37% jump in revenue in the third quarter,…

2023 biopharma M&A trends M&A activity has rebounded to a degree in 2022 and 2023, but deal-making is still below some of the top years in recent decades, including 2011, 2014, and 2015. While M&A remains a fact of life in biopharma, buyers are selective about disease focus areas. Oncology, immunology and obesity/cardiometabolic therapies are…

In drug discovery and development, data sources are as diverse as they are plentiful. There are comprehensive databases brimming with molecular targets, cellular processes, genomic sequences, proteomic profiles, and metabolite patterns that shed light on disease pathways. Data possibilities in the patient care realm are similarly vast, spanning electronic medical records, imaging datasets, and even…

The biopharma industry faced mounting headwinds in 2023, with several major players announcing significant restructuring efforts. Faced with expiring patents, inflation and rising interest rates, and heightened FTC scrutiny, companies looked to trim expenses and refocus their businesses. The ebbing tied of the pandemic posed a challenge for a number of drug developers as well.…

2023 is shaping up to be a blockbuster year for Eli Lilly. With the company’s stock soaring by almost 54% since the beginning of the year, analysts are largely upbeat about Lilly’s expanded focus on obesity and diabetes treatments. While the company has developed insulin for a century, the company is now broadening its horizons…

Alzheimer’s disease research appears to be hitting its stride, thanks to recent therapeutic advances in drug development and the emergence of biomarkers to detect the condition. “All the pieces of the puzzle of precision medicine, which is already quite common in oncology, are now in place,” said Hartmuth Kolb, vice president, neuroscience biomarkers and R&D…

Over the last decade, drugs that bind to allosteric sites have emerged as an attractive approach in small molecule drug design, offering new possibilities for targeting various diseases, including conditions historically known as “undruggable”. Unlike traditional small molecules that bind to a target protein’s endogenous orthosteric or active site, allosteric small molecules selectively bind and…

Global pharma and medical device giant Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has ditched its iconic cursive logo that dates back to the late 19th century, and rebranded its Janssen pharma division as Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine. The move underscores the company’s push to prioritize higher-margin prescription drugs. This strategic move comes amidst a backdrop of…

As Pfizer and Moderna receive the FDA nod for COVID-19 boosters, their 2023 global sales projections appear to be just a fraction of the previous year’s. In 2022, Pfizer and its partner BioNTech jointly sold $56 billion worth of their Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccine, marking the best-selling drug of the year. Moderna’s Spikevax COVID-19 vaccine wasn’t…

When Keri Yale, the company’s head of patient affairs and engagement at Boehringer Ingelheim (BI), joined more than 25 years ago, she recognized a need to put patients at the center of the pharmaceutical industry. Since then, she has spearheaded a transformation towards greater patient centricity at the company that started with HIV/AIDS community engagement…

As obesity rates continue to soar across the globe, analysts anticipate that the market for anti-obesity drugs will skyrocket in the coming years. Goldman Sachs projects the market to be worth $44 billion by 2030. That’s an almost 16-fold expansion from its valuation of approximately $2.82 billion in 2022. Barclays is even more upbeat on…

Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) represent a significant paradigm shift in cancer treatment, marrying the precise target recognition of monoclonal antibodies with the potent cell-killing capabilities of cytotoxic agents. In contrast to traditional small-molecule therapies, ADCs are multifaceted structures with three distinct components — i.e., antibody, cytotoxic payload and a linker — each playing a crucial role…

According to the American Cancer Society, one in two men and one in three women will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. Patients seek treatment to shrink their tumors and ideally achieve remission; however, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. At its core, cancer is a genetic disease: Different types of cancer that affect…

Amid a backdrop of recent RSV vaccine approvals, GSK and Pfizer find themselves locked in a legal spat over alleged patent infringements. Both Big Pharma giants now possess the FDA’s blessing for their respective respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines. Pfizer’s recent win came with the second approval for its Abrysvo vaccine, which the company now…

On a recent visit to Nvidia’s headquarters in Santa Clara, I had the chance to speak with Kimberly Powell, the company’s vice president and general manager of healthcare. After asking about the pharma industry’s surging interest in AI, Powell remarked, “Every pharma knows who Nvidia is now.” Curious, I asked her, “How long has that…

A joint venture between HMNC Brain Health and Develco Pharma in Switzerland, Ketabon GmbH recently released top-line results from its phase 2 KET01-02 study of KET01, a slow-release formulation of oral ketamine, for treatment-resistant depression (TRD). KET01 was associated with improvements in depression severity as early as day 1, but the results were not statistically…