Drug Hunter

Molecules of the Month – August 2024 | https://lnkd.in/gBWTKV32 August’s Molecules of the Month include Kannalife Sciences, Inc.'s GPR55 antagonist for chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain and Boehringer Ingelheim’s zwitterionic inhibitor of KHK for metabolic disorders. We also feature bomedemstat, Merck's irreversible LSD1 inhibitor, a small peptide inhibitor of the Fas receptor from ONL Therapeutics, and Boehringer Ingelheim's PDE4B inhibitor with the potential to treat IPF. Read the full article to find out what compounds made our August 2024 Molecules of the Month list and check out recent articles for each. Full Article: https://lnkd.in/gBWTKV32

Thank you Bayer!! Had an awesome time visiting the Bayer Wuppertal R&D site thanks to our wonderful hosts, Nicole Biber and Markus Follmann. So much interesting discussion about the future of drug discovery - everything from the value of internal libraries to the Biosecure Act which is raising eyebrows even on this continent. Had the pleasure to meet in person the inventors of several innovative drugs. So many brilliant people here and a company with a bright future even as the industry navigates a challenging period. An excellent final stop on our so far fantastic tour in Europe. Vielen Dank!! Nicole Biber, Markus Follmann, Hartmut Beck, Lisa Candish

Do you need to spruce up your library? Check out our curated table featuring a selection of some of the best books on drug discovery, as well as related topics such as pharmacology, toxicology, pharmaceutics, and biotech. While nothing can replace hands-on industry experience, a few books serve as valuable references and offer insights into the realities of drug discovery. These are useful technical resources and informative introductions to the broader field of drug discovery, beyond any single discipline. What drug discovery books are on your reading list? Full table: https://lnkd.in/dNFFNyNF

🇩🇪 Drug Hunters in Frankfurt! 🇩🇪 Guten Morgen! Happy to finally meet old and new friends in Germany for the first time in Frankfurt! While the drug discovery community is less dense in the area, there is just as much excitement about new science, targets, and modalities as anywhere else. Many thanks to Martin Bossart, María Méndez Pérez, Volker Derdau, Thomas Maier and colleagues for kindly hosting us at Sanofi. I had no idea there was so much rich pharma industry history in the area! Thanks to those who joined us for dinner as well, especially those making the trip from as far as AbbVie Ludwigshafen (Marta Pinto) and Boehringer Ingelheim (Christian Kuttruff, Alexander Haydl). We were lucky the timing worked out to be joined by Elisabetta Chiarparin from across the channel and wonderful colleagues from Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany (Julien Lefranc, Alessia Gambardella, Heide Marika Düvel (née Genau), Ana Varela. Looking forward to our final stops in Ingelheim today and Bayer Wuppertal tomorrow thanks to Nicole Biber and colleagues. While many commented that there is not a "Boston-equivalent" city in Germany, there is something magical about being able to connect between growing scientific hubs in Germany, Switzerland, the UK, France, Spain, Italy, Poland and other areas with short train rides and flights. Can't wait to be back! Auf Wiedersehen!

Molecular Glue Degraders of VAV1 Exploit a Non-Canonical Degron | https://lnkd.in/gZXQi9TW Monte Rosa Therapeutics has disclosed the structures and biological activity of over 500 molecules functioning as CRBN-mediated, molecular glue degraders of VAV1. Historically, a key challenge in the field of targeted protein degradation has been the restriction of CRBN-based molecular glue degraders to proteins with canonical “G-loop” domains. Monte Rosa’s disclosure of degraders for a protein bearing a non-canonical degron suggests that the scope of molecular glue degraders may be dramatically expanded. Does this patent application include their clinical compound MRT-6160, the second to enter clinical trials from their QuEEN™ degrader platform? Check out our patent highlight to see why this space is worth watching! Full patent highlight: https://lnkd.in/gZXQi9TW

August Deals and Funding Round Recap | https://lnkd.in/gfFEBHm3 In case you missed August’s business news, here’s a quick recap of five headlines, including an acquisition, three funding rounds, and a notable company closure. Article link: https://lnkd.in/gfFEBHm3

Drug Hunters in Basel!🇨🇭 Basel has such a lovely, close community of drug discovery professionals - it was definitely harder to sit people together that didn't already know each other this time! I never got to visit Basel while at Genentech so it was nice to finally put some faces to names from Roche here. Half the group had some connection to Novartis and the (smaller) half had some connection to Roche, though half the group now work in biotech companies of all sizes (Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd, Monte Rosa Therapeutics, FoRx Therapeutics, Amphilix AG etc.). Half the group had German as a native tongue, with the other half originally speaking French. Native English-speakers were definitely outnumbered, but surprisingly the overwhelmingly majority of folks in the room were trained at some point in the US! Good conversation about what the future of small molecules will look like, how AI will impact drug discovery, and the future of biotech funding - topics as top of mind in Europe as they are at home in the US. A particularly poignant story was that of an industry leader who is themself a cancer survivor. Thank you to everyone who joined us on a busy back-to-school week for a spontaneous event! Olivier Corminboeuf, Guido Koch, Laetitia Martin, Lorenz Mayr, Stefanie Mesch, Patrick Schnider, Bernhard Fasching, Jean-Baptiste Langlois, Laura McAllister, Henrik Möbitz, Olivier Querolle, Guillaume Lapointe, Sandrine Hell, Johannes Diesel, Andreas Buckl, Léa Bouché, Juergen Hinrichs, Daniel Bauer, Matthew Hesse, and special thanks again to Dennis Koester for organizing a fantastic trip! Can't wait to come back. Off to Frankfurt tomorrow! Guet Nacht!

July Patent Review | https://lnkd.in/g4kvvmZD From SPRK1 inhibitors to tau and TRK degraders, and MRGPRD modulators, our latest patent review highlights a fascinating array of chemical matter currently capturing attention. To simplify your patent literature review, we’ve distilled thousands of documents into a searchable table with over 200 selected patents, all published in July, focused on hot areas in drug discovery. Each entry comes with commentary for easier navigation and comprehension. We’ve also curated separate articles featuring our top patent picks and compiled monthly highlights into an annotated, searchable database, helping you track long-term industry trends. Explore all of this and more at https://lnkd.in/griyR9bb! Check out our July patent table here: https://lnkd.in/g4kvvmZD

Drug Discovery Websites and Databases | https://lnkd.in/gnpqKMRu Looking for the best online resources for drug discovery? Check out our curated table featuring some of the top websites, databases, and tools designed for drug hunters everywhere at every level along with helpful notes from our team. From insightful databases to ADMET prediction tools, these platforms are invaluable for staying on top of the latest trends and breakthroughs in drug discovery. Got a favorite online resource that we missed? Share your suggestions with us in the comments – we’d love to hear from you! Full table: https://lnkd.in/gnpqKMRu

Key Clinical Candidate Updates from August | https://lnkd.in/gBeZrSsD Here’s a rundown of August’s key clinical developments, including FDA approvals, potential upcoming approvals, notable trial readouts, new NDA submissions, and pipeline realignments. Full article: https://lnkd.in/gBeZrSsD