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
Pills, Proteins & Peptides
Promising Peptide Therapies The front runners in the game of drug delivery include small molecule and large molecule drugs, but there is another class that lands right in between: peptides. Several companies, including Rhythm Pharmaceuticals (Boston, MA), Kalos Therapeutics (San Diego, CA), Aileron Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA), and Bicycle Therapeutics (Cambridge, MA) have emerged as prominent players in the peptide arena. Let’s … Read More
Decoding The Gut-Brain Axis
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
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
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
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
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?
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