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Historically, patients with glioblastoma have been empirically treated with dexamethasone, even without symptoms, with many clinicians prescribing steroids for prolonged periods of time, out of a concern that patients may start to develop edema. Preclinical and clinical data indicate that concurrent dexamethasone therapy may be detrimental to immunotherapeutic approaches for patients with glioblastoma (GBM).

Replacing multiple quality control (QC) tests provides an opportunity to streamline lab work and decrease development and post-approval costs. Given the high costs associated with drug development, both patients and developers stand to benefit from more rapid development and release of biologics.

Cell therapies show promise in Parkinson's disease, but there’s an ongoing debate over which therapy works best. Some believe in using an autologous therapy, while others believe an allogeneic approach, would be more cost-effective. As the discussion moves forward, we must carefully assess all the evidence and make the right decisions based on the best, currently available data.

Researchers in Japan have developed a robotic culture system that enabled them to experimentally evolve the common bacteria Escherichia coli, under pressure from a large number of individual antibiotics. The approach allowed the investigators to identify mechanisms and constraints underlying evolved drug resistance which could feasibly help in the development of therapeutic drug strategies that minimize the likelihood that bacteria will develop resistance.

A modified version of an inflammatory cytokine guides stem cells so that they reach sites of injury. Even better, it ensures that injured tissues receive the balm without the blam of heightened inflammation. Besides improving existing stem cell therapies, “designer” cytokine receptor agonists could be helpful where initial inflammatory signals fade over time, or where the role of inflammation is not clearly understood.

Functional biomarker discovery is leading the growth of personalized medicine, allowing researchers and clinicians to tailor treatment to a patient’s individual immune profile. In this sponsored eBook, IsoPlexis discloses how its superpowered functional proteomics reveals unique insights over methods such as mass spectrometry, genomics, and epigenetics and provides high-throughput omics while simplifying complex workflows.

Researchers from the University of Washington Health Sciences report tarantula toxin may hold answers to better control of chronic pain. Their findings point to new approaches to structurally designing drugs that might treat chronic pain by blocking sensory nerve signals.

A new imaging technique can be used record the storms of messages that crackle within cells. It affixes reporters to small, self-assembling proteins that act like LEGO bricks. These small proteins click together, forming clusters that are randomly scattered across the cell like little islands. Each cluster, which appears under the microscope as a luminescent dot, reports only one type of cellular signal.

With the first COVID-19 vaccines due to reach patients in a matter of weeks—including some that require temperatures up to -80º Celsius (112º Fahrenheit)—companies that manufacture and market freezers have scrambled to keep up with surging customer demand. Three companies told GEN that the demand for vaccine storage freezer extends beyond traditional customers, many of which require support as they navigate the unfamiliar territory of storing vaccines at such low temperatures.

The companies will initially focus on Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and two other undisclosed gene targets, then potentially work to develop three other gene targets that were also not disclosed.

REGEN-COV2 consists of two monoclonal antibodies, casirivimab and imdevimab, both designed to bind non-competitively to the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein.

New research has deepened the understanding of how the gut microbiome influences multiple sclerosis (MS) flare-ups in patients. The work shows that specific gut immune cells—IgA B cells—travel to the brain during flare-ups. There, they seem to play a protective role, helping drive MS symptoms back into remission. This discovery could pave the way for new MS treatments that target the intestinal flora.

University of Virginia Cancer Center researchers identified a gene that is responsible for the spread of triple-negative breast cancer to other parts of the body, and which can render the cancer. The scientists developed a nanoparticle-delivered antibody that demonstrated early indications in mice, which they hope could possibly address both TNBC metastasis, and resistance to treatment and estimate that this strategy of blocking the TRIM37 gene could benefit approximately 80% of TNBC patients.

This GEN sponsored webinar will focus on demonstrating the capabilities of the new generation Thermo Scientific™ Orbitrap™ Exploris™ mass spectrometry platforms and how they can be capitalized to address challenging analytical experiments in the domain of protein quantitation. Moreover, our presenters will discuss the role of mass spectrometry in protein quantification with relation to anti-doping, infectious disease, and potential disease biomarker discovery.

The companies said they will support their EUA application in part with final efficacy data they announced earlier this week showing BNT162b2 to be 95% effective in their nearly 44,000-patient Phase III trial, as well as positive safety data.

In the Phase II trial, AZD1222 induced immune responses in both parts of the immune system in all age groups, as well as at both the low and standard doses—though adults 70 years of age and older showed fewer adverse effects than participants in the two younger adult groups.

Researchers at Centenary Institute, the University of Technology, Sydney, and the University of Queensland in Australia, report they have discovered a link between chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and the gut microbiome. Their findings suggest that the gut microbiome should also be considered when looking for new therapeutic targets to treat lung disease.

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have discovered an antifungal compound in the microbiome of a Florida Keys sea squirt, that efficiently targets potentially deadly, multidrug-resistant strains of the fungal pathogen Candida auris, without toxic side effects in mice. The scientists say the new molecule, named turbinmicin, represents the most tangible output to date, of the group's $30 million NIH grant to identify useful new antimicrobial drugs from bacteria living in overlooked environments.

Harnessing CRISPR-Cas9 technology for cancer therapeutics has been hampered by low editing efficiency in tumors and potential toxicity of existing delivery systems. Scientists at Tel Aviv University describe a safe and efficient lipid nanoparticle (LNP) for the delivery of Cas9 mRNA and sgRNAs that use a novel amino-ionizable lipid.

When COVID-19 started to spread across continents and become a global pandemic, biopharma manufacturers around the world faced two major challenges: (1) enter the race for treatment of the disease by participating in vaccine development and (2) avoid delays in the production of other essential therapeutics. This GEN webinar, sponsored by MilliporeSigma, presents two case studies from Europe and Latin America that demonstrate how the global teams across the M Lab™ Collaboration Center network used innovative remote technologies to overcome these challenges and meet important production timelines.