“This is a tough business. It’s never a straight line from start to success.” Those words, from Exelixis Inc. CEO Michael Morrissey, during a presentation at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference (JPM), could easily sum up any aspect of the biopharma industry. But with more biopharma firms than ever having reached commercial status, along with the introduction of new therapeutic modalities into the health care market, many are finding the toughest part comes after regulatory approval, whether it’s navigating a competitive landscape, getting payers and physicians on board, or satisfying regulators’ stringent postmarketing requirements. As industry players and observers head home after a busy week in San Francisco, BioWorld offers a brief glimpse at a few firms taking on those post-approval challenges in 2024.
Current risk genes for some diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) may have emerged in the past as protection against infection by different pathogens. A group of researchers led by scientists from the University of Copenhagen has analyzed the ancient DNA of European populations and has revealed how MS, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and diabetes arose as populations migrated. This evolution would explain the modern genetic diversity and the incidences of these pathologies observed today in the old continent.
Researchers from Florey Neuroscience Institutes, Monash University and Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute have identified fluorine-radiolabeled compounds acting as tyrosine-protein kinase Mer (MERTK) inhibitors and also as positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agents reported to be useful for the diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS).
After flying high in 2022, digital therapeutics (DTx) companies crashed to Earth in 2023 and scrambled to identify a path to profitability, or at least continued viability.
In multiple sclerosis (MS), a demyelinating disorder, autoimmunity is generally considered the primary underlying pathophysiological cause. Therefore, developing treatments for MS has traditionally focused on modulating the immune system. However, an alternative hypothesis explains MS as a primarily or initially neurodegenerative disorder, in which neuronal death releases myelin, triggering a secondary autoimmune reaction.
Sudo Biosciences Inc. has closed a $116 million series B financing, with the funding raised to be used to advance two investigational TYK2 candidates into the clinic in 2024.
Cypralis Ltd. has divulged macrocyclic compounds acting as peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase A (PPIA; cyclophilin A; CYPA) and/or cyclophilin D inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of multiple sclerosis and epilepsy.
Researchers at Tufts University and University of Houston System have identified receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 2 (RIPK2; RIP-2) and/or nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-containing protein 2 (NOD2) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of multiple sclerosis.
Nuclear receptor subfamily 1 group D member (NR1D1), also known as Rev-erbA-α, is highly expressed in the liver, adipose tissue, brain and skeletal muscle.
Some autoimmune diseases are different in women and men. A group of researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has found a strong female bias in the response of a neurotransmitter receptor that is involved in many neurological processes.
