Researchers at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging have developed an epigenetic clock that could predict an individual’s intrinsic capacity score, a composite score that is a measure of healthy aging. The clock, which has only limited overlap with other epigenetic clocks, could be “a surrogate for aging that can be used for clinical trials,” senior author David Furman told BioWorld. And even more basically, it could help address a basic conundrum: that aging is the major risk factor for most causes of death, but not itself a disease. Read More

The ionic and metabolic impairment observed in chronic kidney disease (CKD) leads to vascular calcification, which can induce cardiovascular events and mortality. Several factors may impact the progression of vascular calcification, where inorganic pyrophosphate plays a crucial inhibitory role. Read More

4M Therapeutics Inc. has released promising results from completed GLP safety studies for its lead asset, 4MT-2001, supporting its potential to offer a safer treatment option to patients who are underserved by lithium and atypical antipsychotics. Read More

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) maintain immune homeostasis by inhibiting excessive immune responses. Dysregulation of Tregs, characterized by reduced cell numbers or impaired suppressive function, is implicated in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases. Low-dose interleukin-2 (IL-2) therapy expands Tregs and enhances their suppressive capacity while minimizing the activation of T cells and natural killer (NK) cells. Read More

Epilepsy affects more than 70 million worldwide and while several drugs have proven effective for controlling seizures, around 30% of patients do not respond to them and their side effects can be intolerable. Read More

Octant Inc. has received a $4.9 million grant from the Gates Foundation to support a new therapeutics program focused on human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cancers. The initiative will develop affordable, broad-spectrum, small-molecule antiviral drugs designed to disrupt the interaction between hundreds of variants of the HPV E6 protein and the tumor suppressor protein p53. Read More

Capsida Biotherapeutics Inc. has obtained IND clearance from the FDA for CAP-003, an intravenously administered gene therapy, for Parkinson’s disease associated with GBA mutations (PD-GBA). A phase I/II trial will begin dosing in the third quarter of this year. Read More

Maplight Therapeutics Inc. has disclosed G protein-coupled receptor GPR52 modulators reported to be useful for the treatment of neurological and psychiatric disorders. Read More

Scientists at Helmholtz Zentrum für Infektionsforschung GmbH, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen and Université de Lausanne have synthesized energy-coupling factor (ECF) transporter (bacterial) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of enterococcal and streptococcal infections. Read More

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is among the most lethal cancers and needs innovative therapeutic solutions. Patients with PDAC have a 5-year survival rate of about 12%. To address this need, researchers have developed a Drosophila PDAC model harboring the genetic alterations in the KRAS, CDKN2A, TP53 and SMAD4 genes (4-hit model), which accounts for the worst and most aggressive PDAC with lower survival rates. Read More

Morphic Therapeutic Inc. has identified compounds acting as integrin αvβ1 antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer, chronic kidney disease, diabetic nephropathy, pulmonary arterial hypertension, idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, interstitial lung diseases, nonalcoholic or metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (NASH/MASH) and primary biliary cholangitis. Read More

Dice Molecules SV LLC has divulged integrin α4β7 (LPAM-1) antagonists reported to be useful for the treatment of graft-vs.-host disease, type 1 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, colitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis. Read More

Embryonal tumor with multilayered rosettes (ETMR) is a rare but aggressive brain cancer that affects very young children, typically under the age of 3 years. Survival rates for ETMR patients remain low, with a median survival of just over a year and only about 20% of patients living beyond 5 years. Read More

Researchers at Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology and University of Ulsan have described UBA6-specific E2 conjugating enzyme 1 (USE1) inhibitors reported to be useful for the treatment of cancer. Read More