Benevolentai Ltd. has signed a strategic collaboration with Merck KGaA to identify novel drug candidates, initially for three targets in oncology, neurology and immunology.

Rohitukine is a chromone alkaloid with antiproliferative, anti-inflammatory, and immunomodulatory activities. Although several rohitukine derivatives are being investigated as potent anticancer leads, the potential antitumor activity of the naturally occurring rohitukine-N-oxide has yet to be evaluated.

Phaxiam Therapeutics SA has initiated a new preclinical development program targeting Klebsiella pneumoniae, which is responsible for severe infections and notable for its high resistance to antibiotics.

Influenza viruses possess the ability to quickly generate antigenic variation, making vaccines and anti-influenza drugs in use sometimes ineffective.

Long bones, vertebrae and skull bones have distinct types of stem cells, and new insights into those stem cells could lead to new ways to treat both rare developmental disorders of skull formation and the all-too-common phenomenon of bone metastases. Scientifically, the work, which was published in two papers by Matthew Greenblatt and colleagues in Nature, adds to the increasing understanding of bone’s complexities. “Bone may serve as an endocrine organ that is secreting factors throughout the body,” Greenblatt said.

Proteome analysis with artificial intelligence has made it possible to create a catalog of all possible missense mutations in the human genome to predict diseases. The new Alphamissense tool from the technology company Google Deepmind, available online, will allow scientists to refine diagnoses and design more tailored treatment strategies for patients suffering from pathologies associated with these variants.

Lantern Pharma Inc. has received FDA clearance of its IND application for LP-284, being developed for the treatment of relapsed or refractory non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), including mantle cell lymphoma, double hit lymphoma and other high-grade B-cell lymphomas. Enrollment in a first-in-human phase I trial is expected to begin during the fourth quarter of this year.