Drug Discovery

Researchers at the Korea Research Institute of Standards and Science (KRISS) have created a new nanomaterial that can simultaneously detect and treat cancer using multiple approaches. In laboratory tests with mice, the gold-iron particles enabled real-time tumor imaging while delivering targeted treatment through heat, chemical reactions and immune system activation. Published in the Chemical Engineering…

Nektar Therapeutics’ (NKTR) stock has skyrocketed 287% over the past five days to $33.20 after its experimental drug rezpegaldesleukin hit all primary endpoints in a Phase 2b atopic dermatitis trial, prompting H.C. Wainwright to raise its price target to $120 from $6.50, a 1,746% increase. This represents one of the largest single-day gains in the…

Dupixent (dupilumab) has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of adult patients with bullous pemphigoid (BP), a chronic autoimmune skin disorder, Sanofi announced Friday. Dupixent is now approved to treat eight diseases with underlying type 2 inflammation and is the only targeted medicine for the treatment of BP.  FDA approval based on clinical…

Earlier this year, at the JP Morgan Healthcare conference, Regeneron CEO Leonard Schleifer referred to Dupixent (dupilumab), the fully human monoclonal antibody that inhibits the signaling of the interleukin-4 (IL-4) and interleukin-13 (IL-13) pathways, as “a pipeline in a single product.”  The drug, co-developed by Sanofi and Regeneron, is following a similar course to AbbVie’s…

Since the late 1990s, direct-to-consumer pharma ads have become a pop culture fixture. But the practice is facing fresh threats after Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Angus King (I-Maine) introduced sweeping legislation that would ban prescription drug advertising across all platforms: television, radio, print, digital, and social media. The End Prescription Drug Ads Now Act…

The FDA has approved zoliflodacin, a single-dose, spiropyrimidinetrione oral antibiotic for the treatment of uncomplicated gonorrhea in adults and pediatric patients 12 years and older, Innoviva announced on Tuesday. The oral antibiotic inhibits type II topoisomerase, a bacterial enzyme crucial to bacterial function and reproduction.  What laid the groundwork for FDA’s zoliflodacin approval The FDA…

Merck announced yesterday that the FDA has approved ENFLONSIA (clesrovimab-cfor), a preventive monoclonal antibody, for the prevention of RSV lower respiratory tract disease in newborns and infants entering their first RSV season.  ENFLONSIA is the only RSV preventative option that is administered with the same 105 mg dose regardless of the patient’s weight. It is…

Just over three-quarters, 76%, of patients receiving Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent (dupilumab) achieved at least a 75% improvement in overall disease severity (EASI-75), the primary endpoint of the DISCOVER Phase 4 study.   The study, presented at the Revolutionizing Atopic Dermatitis Conference in Nashville, focused on patients with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis with skin of color.  Unmet…

Labcorp says it can now move tumor slides at internet speed instead of parcel speed. The diagnostics giant today rolled out a Leica-scanner–based digital-pathology network across its central labs and paired it with new next-generation-sequencing panels and homologous-recombination-deficiency (HRD) testing, a package the company claims will dramatically accelerate biomarker screening for oncology studies, with the potential to significantly…

In an industry where each lost day can drain roughly $40,000 in direct clinical-trial costs, Lokavant says its newly launched Spectrum v15 can crunch data from 500,000 past studies and deliver enrollment forecasts in five minutes, work that typically takes study teams five weeks. The company claims that the platform boasts 80+% confidence. The company,…

Peptides are currently experiencing a surge of interest in drug discovery and development. With more than 170 peptides currently in active clinical development1 and many more in preclinical studies2, the global market for peptide-based therapeutics is expected to grow to approximately $80 billion by 2032.3 But while the use of peptides within pharmaceuticals has been…

Targeted Protein Degradation (TPD) has  emerged as a promising modality in drug discovery, hijacking the body’s natural disposal systems to eliminate disease-causing proteins. While bivalent degraders like PROTACs have pioneered the field, demonstrating clinical promise, attention is increasingly turning toward a new upstart — Molecular Glue Degraders (MGDs). These smaller, simpler molecules offer advantages but…

One of the biggest frustrations for anyone involved in clinical research or patient care is the continued challenges of advancing pre-clinical research into a clinical trial. Likewise, finding and recruiting ideal clinical trial participants for each trial phase, such as those with rare conditions or whose current health condition matches stringent clinical trial inclusion criteria,…

The once pioneering DNA test company 23andMe is now a penny stock that has filed for bankruptcy. Its CEO Anne Wojcicki is also stepping down. In 2018, the company was worth in the ballpark of $1.75 billion. Its stock has fallen 99.64% since after it went public in 2021, dropping form $203.20 to about $0.70…

Digital pathology software developer Proscia raised $50 million in new funding to accelerate the adoption of its AI-powered pathology platform. The Series C fundraising round was led by Insight Partners, with participation from AI Capital Partners, Triangle Peak Partners and several other healthcare-focused investors. The financing brings Proscia’s total capital raised to $130 million. Proscia…

​Over 300 million people worldwide live with a rare disease, yet roughly 95% of these conditions lack an FDA-approved treatment. Traditional clinical trials face significant challenges in this segment. Barriers include small patient populations with correspondingly limited statistical power. Yet emerging biosimulation and virtual trial methods offer a promising path forward., says Oxana Iliach, vice-chair…

Oxford Nanoimaging (ONI) recently launched the Aplo Scope super-resolution microscope that pushes imaging precision to 20 nm. The Aplo Scope integrates lasers, optics, chemistry, and software in a compact footprint, helping researchers capture and analyze molecular interactions at the nanoscale. With its user-friendly design and portability, ONI aims to simplify super-resolution microscopy and potentially reduce…

In recent years, the clinical research landscape has been marked by a steady rise in protocol complexity with more endpoints and procedures across all trial phases and therapeutic areas. This trend, driven by the increasing sophistication of trial designs, is evident across trial phases and major therapeutic areas. Resulting in more endpoints and procedures on…

Imagine a shape-shifting pathogen invisible to the naked eye, armed with toxin-laced barbs that rupture human cells. This isn’t fiction—it’s Clostridioides difficile, a superbug causing 29,000 U.S. deaths annually through severe diarrhea and colitis. After an initial infection, up to 35% of patients experience recurrence, with subsequent episodes becoming increasingly likely—up to 60% of these…

When a 30-person Austrian startup gets showcased by Jensen Huang, CEO of the trillion-dollar tech giant NVIDIA, schedules tend to fill up fast. That’s precisely the case for Innophore, a biotech company tapping NVIDIA’s computational clout with its Catalophore platform to accelerate AI-driven drug safety screening and binding-site analysis. This year, the company was highlighted…

After several muted years, the 2025 J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference signaled a return to big-ticket deals. J&J’s proposed $14.6 billion acquisition of Intra-Cellular Therapies and GSK’s $1 billion purchase of IDRx catapulted this year’s meeting to the largest M&A showing since at least 2019. But behind those high-profile acquisition announcements, JPM speakers and insiders also…

NVIDIA today announced at JP Morgan partnerships with IQVIA, Illumina, Mayo Clinic and Arc Institute that center on accelerating biomedical AI across genomics, drug development, and clinical diagnostics. The collaborations aim to tap advanced computing across the healthcare sector, with IQVIA deploying AI agents for clinical trials, Illumina integrating genomic analysis tools, Mayo Clinic developing…

Tel Aviv-based QuantHealth is on a roll. In August 2024, it surpasses the 100th mark in simulated clinical trials with an 85% accuracy rate and reported cost savings upwards of $215 million for one major pharmaceutical partner. In March of the same year, Fast Company recognized QuantHealth as one of the most innovative companies in…

Building on existing integrations with cloud leaders AWS and Google Cloud and collaborations with Arcadia and TD2, Atropos Health is now partnering with Merck. This new collaboration will tap Atropos Health’s GENEVA OS (Generative Evidence Acceleration Operating System) and related tools with the aim of speeding the generation of real-world evidence. Under the agreement, Merck’s…

From FHIR-based APIs to “hybrid data models” and blockchain-enabled audit trails, biopharma companies are exploring a range of strategies in their quest to incorporate Real World Data (RWD) into clinical trials. But technology alone won’t resolve the deeper issues at play. From bridging disparate data sources to safeguarding patient privacy under evolving regulations, sponsors face…