M-43 is a recombinant analogue of fibroblast growth factor-1 (FGF-1) that has been previously shown to bind the insulin receptor (InsR), activate insulin-like cellular signaling and reduce insulin resistance. Researchers from Celon Pharma SP have recently presented results on the efficacy of the candidate as assessed in Zucker diabetic fatty (ZDF) rats.

Due to the continual emergence of SARS-CoV-2 mutants, there is an unmet clinical need for broad-spectrum treatments for COVID-19. A potential target for novel treatments is the S2 subunit of the SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein, which has been highly conserved across the different variants of the virus.

Researchers from Ornovi Inc. have assessed preclinical efficacy of OR-101 in the treatment of alopecia areata.

At the AACR-NCI-EORTC meeting in Boston, Aurigene Oncology Ltd. reported their research on paralogue selective degraders of SMARCA2 (AU-SM2-1) and SMARCA4 (AU-SM4-1).

Cancer treatments for targeting tumor amplifications lag behind those targeting point mutations – and part of the reason may be that amplifications often reside on extrachromosomal DNA (ecDNA). Since ecDNA was first described back in 1965 as minute chromatin bodies in brain cancer cells, the use of large-scale DNA sequencing techniques has revealed the presence of ecDNA across a wide range of cancer types. “The circular structure of ecDNA is associated with increased proto-oncogenic capacity in comparison to linear amplifications. Another key feature is that ecDNA does not contain centromeres,” Roel Verhaak, from Yale School of Medicine, told the audience in a session at the 2023 AACR-NCI-EORTC Conference on Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics in Boston.

Drug discovery in Japan has been steadily declining, and it has reached a crisis point where swift action is needed or pharma companies will leave Japan or stop listing products here, said speakers at the BioJapan 2023 meeting held Oct. 10 to 13 in Yokohama, Japan.

Precision cancer biotech Abion Inc. announced a positive interim phase II readout for ABN-401, its novel c-mesenchymal-epithelial transition (c-MET)-targeting tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), lighting a runway to its next trial as a combination regimen.

In a study published in Nature on Oct. 11, coinciding with the beginning of IDWeek 2023 in Boston, researchers from Harvard Medical School described EVEscape, a method for anticipating the movements of SARS‑CoV‑2 by predicting potential mutations likely to escape current vaccines and treatments.