DRUG DISCOVERY
Study of millions of cells unveils new understanding of genetic risk
Scientists have created the most detailed cell map to date showing how genetic variation influences inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), revealing the specific cells and genes that drive the disease.
Published in Nature, the research carried out at the Wellcome...
Potential new route for antimalarial drug design
A significant advance has been made in the fight against malaria with a promising new potential target for drug discovery.
The findings – made by researchers from the Universities of Bath and Leeds – provide a powerful new framework...
UK biotech launches world-first lab-grown human muscle platform to transform drug testing
A Loughborough University spin-out has developed advanced human muscle models designed to more accurately replicate how medicines behave in the human body. The aim is to accelerate drug development and reduce reliance on animal testing.
Myomaker Bio is set to...
First best-practice framework for ethical social media use in drug development
The Pistoia Alliance calls for funding and expertise for the next phase of its social media project, marking its first direct engagement with oncology, rare disease and cardiology patients.
The Alliance, a global, not-for-profit alliance advancing collaboration in life sciences...
Scientists develop cheaper, more sustainable way to manufacture HIV drug
With financial support from the Gates Foundation, researchers at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB) have used engineering biology – an emerging technology that uses nature’s own processes to manufacture everyday chemicals and materials – to dramatically simplify how...
New DNA-binding proteins from extreme environments could improve disease diagnosis
Scientists have uncovered new DNA-binding proteins from some of the most extreme environments on Earth and shown that they can improve rapid medical tests for infectious diseases.
The international research team, led by Durham University and working with partners in...
Stanford researchers make strides toward universal vaccine
An intranasal vaccine that protects mice against a wide range of respiratory viruses, bacteria, and allergens could mark a major step toward a universal vaccine for humans, writes Nina Bai, Stanford Medicine.
In the realm of medical advancements, a universal vaccine that...
AI chemistry platform could ‘reshore drug discovery and materials manufacturing’
A new form of chemistry is ‘reinventing’ the process of discovering and manufacturing small molecules.
Excelsior Sciences is developing the novel approach that ‘machines can do and AI can use’ to enable closed-loop drug discovery.
Small molecules, the class of chemical...
Plastic bottles transformed into Parkinson’s drug using bacteria
A drug to treat Parkinson’s disease can be made from waste plastic bottles, a new study reveals.
The pioneering approach harnesses the power of bacteria to transform post-consumer plastic into L-DOPA, a frontline medication for the neurological disorder.
It is the...
Speeding up early topical trial design
Indero have successfully completed a study introducing a novel, gene-expression–based approach for rapidly evaluating topical new chemical entities in early-phase clinical research. This shows that meaningful efficacy signals can be detected within just 24–72 hours using microdosing, offering a...
Potential new therapeutic target for asthma discovered
A new way to treat asthma symptoms and even repair previously irreversible lung damage could be on the horizon, following discovery of a potential new therapeutic target by scientists at the University of Aberdeen.
the inflammation of lung tissue using...
Scientists design peptide ‘switch’ that keeps Parkinson’s protein in its healthy form
Researchers at the University of Bath, in collaboration with the Universities of Oxford and Bristol, have developed a molecule that prevents the clumping and build-up of a protein linked to Parkinson’s disease and related dementias.
The team has successfully demonstrated...
Customised cells fight brain cancer
Scientists at UNIGE and HUG have created artificial immune cells capable of recognising and destroying glioblastoma cells.
With a five-year survival rate of less than 5%, glioblastoma is one of the most aggressive types of brain cancer.
Until now, all available...
Scripta Therapeutics aims to flip the script on disease-modifying drugs
Techbio startup Scripta Therapeutics has emerged from stealth by announcing a $12 million seed round to upend conventional approaches to drug discovery.
Scripta combines AI, imaging, and patient-derived models to create and modulate disease maps based on transcriptional networks, building...
New drug target identified in fight against resistant infections
The discovery of a new mechanism of resistance to common antibiotics could pave the way for improved treatments for harmful bacterial infections, a study suggests.
Targeting this defence mechanism could aid efforts to combat antimicrobial resistance (AMR), one of the...
3D-printed tumour models speed up cancer drug testing
Vidmantas Šakalys, CEO of Vital3D, offers insights on the potential applications of the technology and key limitations that still need to be resolved.
Rising global cancer cases and diagnostic backlogs are increasing demand for more accurate and efficient research tools....
Breakthrough glioblastoma treatments move closer
A collaborative project aims to accelerate a new approach to treat the most aggressive forms of brain cancer.
Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) and King’s College London (KCL) have been awarded £400k funding from The Brain Tumour Charity to develop a...
New NICE thresholds ‘good news’ for ultra-rare disease drugs
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body that determines the clinical effectiveness and economic value of new medicines, has increased the cost-effectiveness thresholds it applies for drugs that qualify for their Highly Specialised Technology (HST)...
£7.5m global prize pushes for ALS drug treatment breakthrough
The Longitude Prize on ALS, a new £7.5 million global challenge prize, aims to encourage and reward cutting edge AI-based approaches to transform drug discovery for the treatment of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), the most common form of MND...
A new architecture at the heart of molecules
A team from UNIGE and the University of Pisa has designed surprisingly stable molecular assemblies, paving the way for new drug constructs and geometrically controlled materials.
Can you imagine a life-saving molecule whose “twin” is a deadly poison? As surprising...
New discovery in diabetes and obesity treatment
Scientists have unlocked new details on important ‘receptor’ proteins –promising targets for the creation of novel drugs for metabolic conditions ranging from diabetes to obesity and inflammatory disorders.
The discovery – published in Nature and led by the University of...
British scientists unveil world-leading technology to speed up drug discovery
A new 3D bio-printer that produces human-like tissue holds the potential to revolutionise the discovery of new drugs for cancer, heart disease and arthritis.
Scientists from Newcastle University, with funding from Versus Arthritis, have developed a unique approach to bioprinting...
E. Coli Treatment: Is Aurodox the Breakthrough We Need?
A potential new treatment is in line for the Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), the notorious bug associated with severe food poisoning.
The findings – led by the University of Glasgow and published in Antimicrobials and Resistance – demonstrate, for...
New findings on the power of enzymes could reshape biochemistry
Stanford researchers have illuminated how enzymes are able speed up life-sustaining biochemical reactions so dramatically. Their discoveries could impact fields ranging from basic science to drug discovery.
Using a series of more than 1,000...
using marine microbes to make industrial processes more sustainable
In February 2023, James Finnigan and his team at Prozomix set out to sample Great Britain’s major estuaries. They were looking for microbes with interesting properties that could potentially be used in industrial processes across the world.
If you sequence...
Light can activate treatments in the right place
Scientists from UNIGE have developed a tool to control the activity and location of a molecule using light, which could help target better drug treatment.
Action in the right place at the right time is the key to effective medical...
Medicinal chemistry of ETD001, a novel inhaled ENaC blocker for the treatment of cystic fibrosis
A paper in the European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry discloses the optimisation process leading to the selection for development of ETD001, an inhaled ENaC blocker with a best-in-class profile. The Phase 2 clinical study in people with cystic fibrosis...
Antibacterial material restores efficacy of antibiotics against resistant bacteria
Resistant bacteria can regain susceptibility to antibiotics when the treatment is combined with a material equipped with antibacterial peptides.
The study, performed in a laboratory environment, shows that antibiotics can achieve a 64-fold increase in bactericidal effect when used together...
How life-saving molecules are created
The discovery, which has long eluded scientists, could help unlock next-generation therapeutics.
McGill University researchers have discovered how certain microbes create potent drugs like antibiotics and anti-cancer therapies.
Their surprising findings could change the way scientists approach drug discovery and pave...
protein cage design for advanced drug delivery systems unveiled
An international collaboration between researchers at Durham University (UK) and the Malopolska Centre of Biotechnology, Jagiellonian University (Poland) has resulted in the generation of a novel artificial protein cage that holds great promise as an advanced drug delivery system.
The...
