Alice Zhang and Al Sandrock

February 8, 2022 06:28 AM EST

Al Sandrock notches another post-Biogen role — and it's taking him right back onto familiar ground

John Carroll

Editor & Founder

Al Sandrock has landed another post-Biogen gig for this next chapter in his biotech career following the catastrophic collapse of his campaign for Aduhelm.

The R&D expert has lined up a board post for Verge Genomics, an AI-powered startup that has its sights set on a drug program for ALS, followed by new work on Parkinson’s — putting the CNS-focused Sandrock right back into a research arena, where he has fought many, many times before.

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Forge Biologics’ cGMP Compliant and Commercially Viable Bespoke Affinity Chromatography Platform

Victoria Maharaj

M.S.,Technical Sales & Scientific Advisory, Forge Biologics

Forge Biologics has developed a bespoke affinity chromatography platform approach that factors in unique vector combinations to streamline development timelines and assist our clients in efficiently entering the clinic. By leveraging our experience with natural and novel serotypes and transgene conformations, we are able to accelerate affinity chromatography development by nearly 3-fold. Many downstream purification models are serotype-dependent, demanding unique and time-consuming development strategies for each AAV gene therapy product1. With the increasing demand to propel AAV gene therapies to market, platform purification methods that support commercial-scale manufacturing of high-quality vectors with excellent safety and efficacy profiles are essential.

Mathai Mammen, FogPharma's next CEO

March 30, 2023 06:00 AM EDTUpdated 06:16 AM

People

Startups

Mathai Mammen hands in J&J's R&D keys to lead Greg Verdine’s FogPharma

Kyle LaHucik

Associate Editor

In the early 1990s, Mathai Mammen was a teaching assistant in Greg Verdine’s Science B46 course at Harvard. In June, the former R&D head at Johnson & Johnson will succeed Verdine as CEO, president and chair of FogPharma, the same month the seven-year-old biotech kickstarts its first clinical trial.

After leading R&D at one of the largest drugmakers in the world, taking the company through more than half a dozen drug approvals in the past few years, not to mention a Covid-19 vaccine race, Mammen departed J&J last month and will take the helm of a Cambridge, MA biotech attempting to go after what Verdine calls the “true emperor of all oncogenes” — beta-catenin.

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Jeff Bluestone (R), Sonoma Biotherapeutics CEO

March 28, 2023 07:30 AM EDT

Financing

Bioregnum

Jeffrey Bluestone brings his startup haul to $400M+, joining forces with Regeneron on cell therapies

These days, when Jeffrey Bluestone gets together with his contemporaries in science, the conversation often turns to retirement plans.

But a little more than three years ago, Bluestone reached a momentous turning point in his career, exiting a prestigious post at UCSF, where he had spent decades in the scientific pursuit of new therapies. And it had nothing to do with retirement anytime in the near future.

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CSL CEO Paul McKenzie (L) and CMO Bill Mezzanotte

March 29, 2023 03:31 PM EDT

People

Pharma

Q&A: Newly-minted CSL chief executive Paul McKenzie and chief medical officer Bill Mezzanotte

Zachary Brennan

Senior Editor

Paul McKenzie took over as CEO of Australian pharma giant CSL this month, following in the footsteps of long-time CSL vet Paul Perreault.

With an eye on mRNA, and quickly commercializing its new, $3.5 million-per-shot gene therapy for hemophilia B, McKenzie and chief medical officer Bill Mezzanotte answered some questions from Endpoints News this afternoon about where McKenzie is going to take the company and what advances may be coming to market from CSL’s pipeline. Below is a lightly edited transcript.

March 29, 2023 02:57 PM EDT

Pharma

Marketing

Boehringer reports robust sales led by type 2 diabetes and pulmonary drugs, promises more to come highlighting obesity

Beth Snyder Bulik

Senior Editor

Boehringer Ingelheim reported human pharma sales of €18.5 billion on Wednesday, led by type 2 diabetes and heart failure drug Jardiance and pulmonary fibrosis med Ofev. Jardiance sales reached €5.8 billion, growing 39% year over year, while Ofev took in €3.2 billion, notching its own 20.6% annual jump.

However, Boehringer is also looking ahead with its pipeline, estimating “In the next seven years the company expects about 20 regulatory approvals in human pharma.”

Feng Zhang (Susan Walsh/AP Images)

March 29, 2023 11:28 AM EDT

R&D

In search of new way to deliver gene editors, CRISPR pioneer turns to molecular syringes

Lei Lei Wu

News Reporter

Bug bacteria are ruthless.

Some soil bacteria have evolved tiny, but deadly injection systems that attach to insect cells, perforate them and release toxins inside — killing a bug in just a few days’ time. Scientists, on the other hand, want to leverage that system to deliver medicines.

In a paper published Wednesday in Nature, MIT CRISPR researcher Feng Zhang and his lab describe how they engineered these syringes made by bacteria to deliver potential therapies like toxins that kill cancer cells and gene editors. With the help of an AI program, they developed syringes that can load proteins of their choice and selectively target human cells.

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March 29, 2023 11:00 AM EDTUpdated 03:40 PM

People