The Microbiome Magnified

Emily BurkeBiologics, Biotech Basics, Drug Development, Drug Targets

DECODING THE GUT-BRAIN AXIS There is no shortage of microbiome-focused startups in biotech right now. The link between the gut microbiome — the entire collection of microbes living in the gut — and diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease are well-established. New research has made it clear, however, that the gut microbiome also impacts neurological health, leading to the phrase “the gut-brain … Read More

Decoding The Gut-Brain Axis

Emily BurkeBiologics, Drug Development, Drug Targets, The WEEKLY

Microbiome & Disease The biotech world is abuzz with talk of the latest microbiome startup launch Axial Biotherapeutics (Boston, MA). What caught our eye here at the WEEKLY is the company’s focus on the gut microbiome — the entire collection of microbes living in the gut — and its interplay with the brain. The connection between the gut microbiome and … Read More

A Health Crisis In The Making

Emily BurkeBusiness of Biotech, Clinical Trials, Drug Development, Drug Targets, Easily Confused, FDA, Mechanism of Action, Small Molecule Drugs, The WEEKLY

The Race Against Nash A silent epidemic creeping upon the Western world pushed the headline grabbing acquisition of a Phase 1 non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) drug last week. Boehringer Ingelheim (Ingelheim, Germany) acquired Pharmaxis (Sydney, Autralia) due to the promise of PXS4728A. Several other companies also have NASH drugs in development, such as Intercept, Genfit, Gilead, Galmed, Conatus, Raptor, and Galectin Therapeutics. With no approved treatment on the market and liver transplant … Read More

It’s A Great Time To Be In Biotech

Emily BurkeBiologics, Biotech Basics, Cancer, Clinical Trials, Drug Approvals, Drug Development, Drug Targets, FDA, Genomics, HIV, Mechanism of Action, Monoclonal Antibodies, The WEEKLY

It’s a great time to be in biotech—new therapeutics are breaking ground faster than we can say “monoclonal antibody” and the technologies behind them are heavy with promise and potential. Our mission is to keep your industry knowledge up to date and the WEEKLY is here to give you a smart primer on the basics. Below we have outlined several … Read More

Driving Down The Epigenetic Highway

Emily BurkeBusiness of Biotech, Cancer, Clinical Trials, Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA), Drug Development, Drug Targets, FDA, Genetics, Genomics, The WEEKLY

Biotechnology is enjoying another banner year on Wall Street. Currently, there are at least 39 companies queued for an IPO. This led us at the WEEKLY to wonder: what is the actual science behind each company’s promise that leads public markets to invest billions of dollars? This week and next, we are popping open the hood and checking out what … Read More

Tailoring Stem Cells To Fashion Replacement Organs

Emily BurkeBiologics, Biotech Basics, Clinical Trials, Cocktail Fodder, FDA, Medical Device, The WEEKLY

If stem cells have their way, replacement organs may find their place as a plentiful standard of treatment. This pairing prompted us to wonder: what is it about stem cells that make them attractive to organ replacement therapies? The therapeutic potential of stem cells lies in their ability to differentiate into any cell type in the adult human body, depending … Read More

Mitochondrial Medicine Going Mainstream?

Emily BurkeThe WEEKLY

MORE THAN “JUST” A POWERHOUSE When we hear the word mitochondria, most of us remember it described in high school biology class as the “powerhouse” of a cell. It is an apt moniker, and not just because mitochondria are the subcellular compartments that convert glucose from our diet into chemical energy that our cells can use to do work. These … Read More