News Briefing: 10/10-10/15
10/10 – Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2024 has been awarded to David Baker “for computational protein design” and Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper “for protein structure prediction”.1 David Baker developed algorithm called Rosetta for de novo protein structure design that results in the creation of completely new proteins.2 Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper developed the transformer-based AI model, AlphaFold2,3 that scored the highest accuracy in predicting the protein structure, performing almost as well as X-ray crystallography, in the 2020 Critical Assessment of Protein Structure Prediction (CASP). The software has benefited millions of researchers worldwide in obtaining a protein structure in minutes without the need to go through painstaking crystallography experiments. After the 2020 CASP competition, David Baker modified Rosetta with transformer-based AI models to develop a three-track network to achieve prediction accuracy approaching those of AlphaFold2.
Reference:
1. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/chemistry/2024/popular-information/
2. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0076-6879(04)83004-0
3. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-021-03819-2
4. DOI: 10.1126/science.abj8754
10/11 – Lilly Appoints Dr. Thomas Fuchs as Chief AI Officer
Eli Lilly has made headlines about this new C-suite title by appointing Dr. Thomas Fuchs as their newest Chief AI Officer for directing AI initiatives across Lilly from its use in drug discovery to clinical trials and manufacturing.1 There has been increasingly heavy use of AI in assisting drug discovery and optimization, understanding disease mechanism (with AlphaFold2, ESMFold, and MoLeR),2 designing and recruiting clinical trials (SEETrials and CliniDigest for design and Trial Pathfinder for recruitment),3 optimizing scale-up processes and dynamic control of manufacturing processes,4 and automating data processing and documentation for faster regulatory process.5 Many pharmaceutical companies have appointed executive positions for AI and analytics like Pfizer, Merck KGaA and GSK.6 The McKinsey Global Institute has estimated that the technology has the potential to unlock $60 billion to $110 billion a year for the pharma and medical-product industries.2
Reference:
3. https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00753-x
4. https://www.fda.gov/media/165743/download?attachment
5. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1359644623002167
6. https://www.biopharmadive.com/news/lilly-chief-ai-office-thomas-fuchs-mount-sinai/729326/
10/14 – Lundbeck to Buy Longboard for Its Rare Brain Disorder Medicine
The acquisition allows the brain disease-specialized company Lundbeck to have access to a potential blockbuster drug for a series of rare brain disorders known as developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs).1 The Longboard drug, bexicaserin (small molecule drug), a 5-HT2C receptor agonist showed promising in early-stage trial, halving the number of seizures across a broad range of DEE patients.2 It has entered a Phase 3 study evaluating its efficacy in treating one of the more prominent DEEs, Dravet Syndrome.3
Reference:
10/14 – GSK Drug Succeeds in Phase 3 Trials for Treating Chronic Rinosinusitis
GSK’s new potential blockbuster drug, depemokimab, has met primary end-points in two Phase 3 trials for treating chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (CRSwNP).1 The drug succeeded a late-stage study in reducing the annualized rate of asthma attacks. Depemokimab is a monoclonal antibody antagonist for IL-5, that is produced at high levels in type 2 inflammation exhibited in CRSwNP and asthma.2 GSK is estimating its peak sale to be 3 billion pounds.3
Reference:
10/15 – Pfizer invests in Molecular Glue; Hemophilia Drug Approved
Pfizer is investing $1.5 billion in Triana Biomedicines for its molecular glue degraders for multiple unspecified targets in cancer and other diseases.1 Under the agreement, Triana will use its molecular glue discovery platform to identify drug candidates, and Pfizer will have the option to license and advance these candidates into preclinical and clinical development. The FDA has approved Pfizer's Hympavzi, a new medicine for hemophilia A and B, for patients aged 12 and older without inhibitors that prevent clotting drugs from working.2 Unlike traditional treatments that replace missing clotting factors, Hympavzi works by inhibiting tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI), which increases enzymes that help blood clot, reducing bleeding risks. This weekly, under-the-skin injection offers flexibility and was more effective than on-demand clotting factor replacement. Despite its benefits, it is associated with some adverse effects like injection site reactions, headache, itching, circulating blood clots, hypersensitivity and embryofetal toxicity.
Reference:
2. https://www.fda.gov/news-events/press-announcements/fda-approves-new-treatment-hemophilia-or-b
