Orthoflaviruses such as dengue, West Nile and Zika viruses are a threat to public health for which no specific treatments exist. Their protease NS2B-NS3, also called orthoflavivirin, is an attractive drug target because it is essential for virus maturation. Targeting viral proteases has already proven effective for creating drugs against HIV, hepatitis C and SARS-CoV-2 viruses.
Researchers from Wuhan Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Jianghan University and collaborators recently showed that activating the endogenous transcription factors Ngn2 and Isl1 via CRISPRa can directly reprogram astrocytes into functional motor neurons in the mouse spinal cord.
Peptidream Inc. has announced approval of a clinical research protocol for [64Cu]PD-29875, a Claudin 18.2-targeting 64Cu-labeled radiopharmaceutical, in patients with gastric cancer.
Apollo Therapeutics Ltd. has developed APL-4098, a small-molecule general control nonderepressible 2 (GCN2) inhibitor for the potential treatment of AML.
Astrazeneca plc has provided data for their CD22-targeting antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) AZD-4512 under development for the treatment of B-cell malignancies, which still have significant rates of disease resistance and relapse, as well as treatment-related toxicities.
Indupro Inc. has announced a strategic equity investment and research collaboration with Sanofi SA. The agreement with Sanofi includes the right of first negotiation for Indupro’s bispecific PD-1 agonist program.
Absci Corp. has released new preclinical data for ABS-201, an AI-designed antibody targeting the prolactin receptor (PRLR) designed to stimulate hair follicle regeneration and promote durable hair regrowth for the potential management of androgenetic alopecia.
The cardiomyositis that is a rare adverse effect of mRNA-based COVID vaccines is due to immune cell activity as a result of increased levels of the chemokines CXCL10 and interferon-γ (IFN-γ). Blocking CXCL10 and IFN-γ could prevent muscle cell damage in cell culture, and cardiomyositis in animal models. The findings, reported in the Dec. 10, 2025, issue of Science Translational Medicine, suggest a way of mitigating the risk of cardiomyositis.
Epilepsygtx Ltd. has raised a $33 million series A to fund a phase I/IIa trial of EPY-201, a gene therapy for treating drug-resistant focal epilepsy. EPY-201 uses an adeno-associated viral vector to deliver KCNA1, the gene encoding Kv1.1, a potassium ion channel that modulates neuronal excitability.
Shanghai Best-Link Bioscience LLC has described polymer-drug conjugates comprising a polymer covalently linked to a cytotoxic drug through a linker and its nanoparticles reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer.