Drug Development

In this episode of Denatured, you’ll be listening to Jane Hughes, President of R&D and Co-founder of Verdiva Bio, and Jon Rees, CEO and Co-founder of MitoRx Therapeutics. We’ll discuss next-generation obesity solutions tackling GLP-1’s muscle loss and adherence challenges, through innovative muscle preservation, oral administration and combination therapy.
FEATURED STORIES
The FDA’s refusal to review Moderna’s mRNA-based flu vaccine is “part of a disturbing pattern” of moving regulatory goalposts, according to Clay Alspach, executive director of the Alliance for mRNA Medicines. Meanwhile, streamlined communications with regulators in other countries pave the way for rapid uptake of novel modalities.
A rapturous response to data published last year for Pelage’s hair loss candidate overwhelmed the biotech. Now, the company is ready to show the world the science behind the breakthrough.
Pfizer, Eli Lilly, Novartis, Bristol Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca are all ramping up the use of AI, but drug discovery is not the primary success story—yet.
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By mid-2025, the biotech will split into two entities: a new, as-yet-unnamed innovative medicines specialist and a cell therapy company, the latter of which will inherit the Galapagos name.
BioSpace presents 25 noteworthy biopharma startups in ’25; analysts forecast stronger M&A as the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference kicks off next week; GLP-1s continue to expand their reach as Novo, Lilly fight against compounders; and a look ahead to five key FDA decisions in Q1.
FDA
Amid recent backlash stemming from market withdrawals and trial delays, the FDA seeks to further clarify its requirements for confirmatory trials for therapies seeking the shortened path to market.
Months after posting weight loss of 7.5% at 36 days for patients taking MET-097i, Metsera releases mid-stage results of just over 11% average body weight reduction at 12 weeks, with no plateau and a promising safety profile.
ALS
Denali’s failure on Monday continues biopharma’s losing streak against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. PTC Therapeutics and Amylyx have seen similarly disappointing results.
From ADCs and radiopharmaceuticals to cell and gene therapies, eager young startups are betting on advances in biopharma’s most competitive therapeutic spaces—and attracting dollars from Big Pharma.
Eli Lilly and Company has invested more than $20 billion in its manufacturing capabilities since 2020 to help meet high demand for its medicines. Its recently announced Lilly Medicine Foundry—which will support research and development efforts—is just the latest example of the ability to research new ways of producing medicines, while also scaling up manufacturing of medicines for clinical trials.
Effectively treating and preventing this common form of dementia will require a cocktail of drugs and a combination of approaches, as well as a drive toward early detection.
Expanding volumes of data point to mechanisms beyond weight loss and blood sugar control that contribute to cardiovascular benefits in the world’s fastest-growing drug class.
With two earlier trials meeting their primary endpoints, Axsome claimed it has the data to support a filing for FDA approval in the second half of 2025.