Resalis Therapeutics is pursuing a groundbreaking approach to obesity treatment.

Unlike current therapies that primarily focus on appetite suppression, Resalis’ lead program, RES-010, is a non-coding RNA drug candidate that targets underlying biological pathways to promote sustainable weight loss. 

By enhancing energy expenditure through white-to-brown adipose tissue conversion while preserving muscle mass, RES-010 is positioned as an ideal standalone therapy or a synergistic option for long-term weight management.

The company recently initiated a phase 1 study in December 2024 for RES-010 in healthy and obese subjects, and they also secured an equity investment from Sanofi in October 2024.

To talk about ways to tackle obesity, and Resalis’ approach, our guest on the podcast this week is Alessandro Toniolo, CEO of Resalis Therapeutics.

00:57-05:06: About Resalis Therapeutics
05:06-08:59: Issues of obesity
08:59-13:20: Companies working on obesity treatments
13:20-15:34: Does suppressing appetite affect nutrition?
15:34-17:49: Introduction of new obesity treatments
17:49-21:33: Approaches other than appetite suppression
21:33-22:38: RES-010 mode of action
22:38-24:04: Administration methods
24:04-25:11: Clinical trials
25:11-26:38: Resalis’ pipeline
26:38-28:08: Next steps for Resalis
28:08-28:36: Effect of obesity on other parts of the body
28:36-29:06: Final comments
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CatalYm is preparing to initiate its broad phase 2b clinical development program for visugromab to tackle multiple solid tumor indications. 

Visugromab is a monoclonal antibody that neutralizes the tumor-derived growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15), a locally acting immunosuppressant fostering immunotherapy resistance. 

Neutralizing GDF-15 with visugromab reverses key cancer resistance mechanisms to reinstate an efficient anti-tumor response by reenabling immune cell activation, proliferation and Interferon-γ signature induction. 

Visugromab has demonstrated a good safety profile and potent and durable anti-tumor efficacy in combination with anti-PD-1 treatment in advanced cancer patients, as highlighted in its recent Nature publication and interim clinical data. 

This week we have a conversation with Eugen Leo, chief medical officer at CatalYm.

01:30-03:38: About CatalYm
03:38-06:59: Solid tumors and also why they are hard to treat
06:59-09:04: Current treatments for solid tumors
09:04-10:47: What is immunotherapy resistance?
10:47-12:23: What is visugromab?
12:23-13:32: CatalYm’s clinical development program
13:32-15:12: What represents success for patients using visugromab?
15:12-17:50: Other treatment options being developed
17:50-19:50: CatalYm’s pipeline and the future

This week’s podcast was sponsored by TCR Solutions.

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In the fall of 2024, Haya Therapeutics, based in Switzerland and San Diego, landed a $1bn deal with Eli Lilly to apply its long non-coding RNA (ncRNA) technology to obesity.

The company’s lead candidate, HTX-001, is making progress towards the clinic in cardiomyopathy. CEO Samir is one of the first researchers to publish on lncRNA – which is also known as the Dark Genome

This week, our podcast guest is Samir Ounzain, CEO and co-founder of Haya Therapeutics. Ounzain was one of the first researchers to publish on lncRNA, also known as the ‘dark genome.’

00:55-03:47: About Haya Therapeutics
03:47-06:37: What is the dark genome?
06:37-09:29: What is the connection between lncRNA and disease?
09:30-13:22: How can disease be addressed via the dark genome?
13:22-16:45: Which diseases are you tackling?
16:45-18:02: What is the EchoHAYA platform?
18:02-21:07: How does your lead candidate, HTX-001, work?
21:07-22:00: Is the objective stopping fibrosis or reversing it?
22:00-23:41: Other companies in the field
23:41-24:52: Working with Eli Lilly
24:52-27:15: A new frontier in medicine?
27:15-28:43: Cost effectiveness
28:43-30:07: Clinical trials
30:07-31:48: Applications to other diseases

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Solid tumors present a big challenge for current treatments. However, a new approach might provide the answers - Tumor Activated Therapy. 

By targeting specific proteins common in all solid tumor micro-environments, Seekyo scientists think this can induce self-destruction of the tumor itself. Seekyo’s lead therapy, SKY01, can only be activated within the tumor, making it a highly-targeted solution.

This differentiated approach overcomes the limits of existing treatments, such as small molecule or antibody-drug conjugates. It could also be more cost effective than many advanced, far cell and gene therapy alternatives. 

Seekyo is looking for clinical entry to target four of the more challenging solid cancers - pancreas, TNBC, colorectal and lung, in an umbrella PhI/IIa. This will demonstrate safety and initial efficacy readings whilst at the same time defining the lead indication to progress to later-stage development. 

This week, our guest is Seekyo Therapeutics’ CEO, Oury Chetboun. 

00:38-01:57: About Seekyo Therapeutics
01:57-03:17: The challenges of treating solid tumors
03:17-06:08: What is Tumor Activated Therapy?
06:08-07:46: What is SKY01?
07:46-08:10: What happens to the cancer cells?
08:10-09:52: Does the tumor vanish? 
09:52-10:16: How is it delivered?
10:16-11:30: Are other companies working on tumor-activated therapies?
11:30-13:09: What treatment options are being worked on for solid tumors?
13:09-13:47: Long-lasting treatment
13:47-15:33: Clinical trials
15:33-16:22: Timelines
16:22-18:08: Does the treatment have other potential applications?
18:08-19:59: Cost effectiveness
19:59-21:59: Is the goal to cure people? 
21:59-22:46: Treatment frequency
22:46-24:00: The impact of tumor size
24:00-25:23: Seekyo Therapeutics’ pipeline 
25:23-27:27: Fund-raising
27:27-30:33: Reaction to the therapy

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This week, we take a look at some of the highlights from the 43rd Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, which took place in San Francisco recently.

While there weren’t necessarily many financial blockbusters, there were plenty of announcements and discussions on everything from artificial intelligence to the rising influence of Chinese companies and research, to the potential ramifications of the incoming Trump administration in the U.S.

To help us navigate some of the highlights of the event, we spoke with Orca Bio’s co-founder and CEO, Ivan Dimov, and also Parabilis Medicines’ chief business officer, Greg Miller.

02:01-03:53: About Orca Bio 
03:53-05:43: JPM highlights
05:43-07:26: Stand-out deals and announcements
07:26-09:01: Were any sectors more prominent than others?
09:01-12:38: About Parabilis Medicines
12:38-13:58: JPM highlights
13:58-16:33: Stand-out deals and announcements  
16:33-17:53: Were any sectors more prominent than others?
17:53-19:17: Was there an optimistic mood?

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Jessica Owens and Iana Dimkova are co-founders of Initiate Ventures—a female-led venture capital firm and studio that launched recently with a $45 million debut fund.

Initiate Ventures is shaking up the traditional venture capital model by blending investments in healthcare, life sciences, and technology with a company creation platform. The company is tackling some of the most pressing challenges in healthcare, and their innovative approach offers fresh insights into what it takes to scale transformative startups.

Owens was the co-founder of GRAIL (acquired by Illumina for $8bn) and was a partner at Kleiner Perkins, where she helped shape some of the most successful health tech startups. Dimkova is a former healthcare technology investor at GE Ventures, who also scaled a company that raised more than $700m and built one of the largest radiation therapy networks in the US.

Their approach is reflected in their dual model: funding existing companies while also co-creating ventures alongside founders in their startup studio. They helped launch groundbreaking companies like Macro Trials, a precision clinical research platform, and Persana, a leader in oncology diagnostics.

This week on the podcast, we have a conversation with one of the co-founders of the company, Jessica Owens.

00:40-05:19: About Initiate Ventures
05:19-08:33: What sets Initiate Ventures apart from other venture funds?
08:33-10:59: Revitalizing healthcare
10:59-13:46: Determining realistic company visions
13:46-15:15: Initiate Ventures and Initiate Studios
15:15-19:50: Working with companies
19:50-21:36: Working with new companies
21:36-23:00: Evaluating potential success
23:00-24:40: How hands on is Initiate Ventures?
24:40-28:24: Is there a change in what attracts capital?
28:24-30:02: Infectious disease – a neglected area
30:02-33:08: How important are ESG considerations?
33:08-35:42: Trends for 2025
35:42-36:42: Goals for 2025

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Brixton Biosciences, a clinical-stage life sciences company spun out from Massachusetts General Brigham, has been awarded $2m from the NIH HEAL Initiative to support the development of non-opioid, injectable pain relief solutions.

As part of the NIH's efforts to tackle the U.S. opioid crisis, the funding will advance research into safer, drug-free alternatives to opioid pain management. Brixton’s Neural Ice is an injectable, drug-free pain management technology designed to provide long-lasting relief from chronic and post-operative pain.

On the podcast this week, we have a conversation with Sameer Sabir, CEO and co-founder of Brixton Biosciences, to dive deeper into pain treatment, the opioid crisis, and Brixton’s mission.

01:05-02:47: About Brixton Biosciences
02:47-03:39: Brixton’s pipeline 
03:39-07:46: The opioid crisis
07:46-08:41: The extent of the crisis
08:41-12:00: Current alternatives to opioids
12:00-12:40: Managing pain
12:40-17:19: How was Neural ice developed?
17:19-18:33: Duration of treatment
18:33-21:01: Suitability for different levels of pain
21:01-21:31: Speed of effect
21:31-22:37: Side effects
22:37-24:18: Opioids vs. non-opioids
24:18-25:33: Are there different responses to Neural Ice?
25:33-26:29: Standardized doses
26:29-27:42: Pricing 
27:42-28:49: Other work on alternatives to opioids
28:49-30:45: Challenges to developing new pain treatments
30:45-31:57: Other priorities at Brixton
31:57-32:16: Timeline for Neural Ice 

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While our podcast takes a brief break, Labiotech invites you to enjoy some of our favorite episodes. We will return with a brand-new episode on January 3rd, 2025! Have an awesome holiday season!

On this podcast, we speak to Artiva Biotherapeutics’ CEO, Fred Aslan, M.D.

The company has demonstrated the potential for efficacy and safety with natural killer (NK) cells in two cancer clinical trials. In August 2023, the company announced FDA clearance for an IND for lupus – marking a first for an allogeneic, off-the-shelf NK or CAR-T cell therapy in autoimmune disease.

AlloNK (also known as AB-101) is a non-genetically modified, cord blood-derived, allogeneic, cryopreserved, ADCC-enhancing NK cell therapy candidate for use in combination with monoclonal antibodies or innate-cell engagers in the out-patient setting. 

Artiva is investigating AlloNK in a phase 1/2 multicenter clinical trial to assess the safety and clinical activity of AlloNK alone and in combination with the anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody, rituximab, in patients with relapsed or refractory B-cell-non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL). Artiva is also investigating the safety and clinical activity of AlloNK in combination with rituximab in patients with lupus nephritis. 

In addition, Artiva is collaborating with Affimed in a phase 2, open-label, multi-center, multi-cohort study, testing a combination therapy, comprised of AlloNK and the innate cell engager AFM13, for the treatment of patients with relapsed/refractory CD30-positive lymphomas. Artiva selects cord blood units with the high affinity variant of the CD16 receptor and a KIR-B haplotype for enhanced product activity. 

Using the company’s cell therapy manufacturing platform, Artiva can generate thousands of doses of pure, cryopreserved, infusion-ready NK cells from a single umbilical cord blood unit while retaining the high and consistent expression of CD16 and other activating NK receptors, without the need for engineering. AlloNK is being administered in the outpatient setting over multiple doses and multiple cycles.

Artiva’s pipeline also includes AB-201, an anti-HER2 CAR-NK cell therapy candidate for the treatment of HER2-overexpressing tumors, such as breast, gastric, and bladder cancers, and for which an IND has been allowed by FDA, and a pipeline of CAR-NK candidates targeting both solid and hematopoietic cancers. Artiva has also entered into therapeutic NK cell collaborations with Merck Sharp & Dohme.

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Our guest on the podcast this week is John Cassidy, director of life sciences and healthtech investments at SoftBank Vision Fund.

Softbank Vision Fund is the world’s largest technology-focused investment fund, with $166bn assets under management, and a portfolio of more than 250 companies.

In the discussion, we cover investment trends within life sciences, the European health and biotech scene, as well as the precise applications of new and emerging AI technologies. We also look ahead to what the biotech and life sciences fields may hold in 2025.

00:55-02:03: About the SoftBank Vision Fund
02:03-02:47: Developing timelines
02:47-04:27: Managing a large portfolio
04:27-11:18: Portfolio company profiles
11:18-13:36: Investment criteria
13:36-17:06: Trends in funding
17:06-19:09: Effects of the US election
19:09-21:45: How can companies reduce risk and raise funds?
21:45-25:25: What sectors are attracting interest currently?
25:25-27:49: Focusing on patients not profits
27:49-29:53: The impact of AI 
29:53-31:45: Focus on applications
31:45-35:24: Trends in European biotech funding
35:24-38:19: Trends for 2025

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There is a constant risk of severe, potentially life-threatening allergic reactions for individuals with peanut allergies, which leads to significant physical, social, and emotional burdens.

IgGenix, a clinical-stage immunology biotechnology company, recently announced the first patient dosed in its phase 1 trial evaluating IGNX001, a novel monoclonal antibody-based therapeutic, for peanut allergy. 

Designed to neutralize the most clinically important peanut allergens and epitopes, IGNX001 combats peanut allergies by blocking the allergic cascade and reducing risk of anaphylaxis.

Should IGNX001 prove successful, it will provide a promising solution for peanut allergies and pave the way for IgGenix's technology to be applied to other types of food allergies and allergic diseases.

Our guest on the podcast this week is Jessica Grossman, chief executive officer of IgGenix.

01:14-02:51: About IgGenix
02:51-06:30: About peanut allergy
06:30-07:31: Are allergies on the rise?
07:31-08:46: Are allergy responses similar?
08:46-10:13: The problems with treating allergies
10:13-13:53: Current treatments for peanut allergy
13:53-15:45: The challenges of developing drugs to treat allergies
15:45-16:54: Overcoming the placebo effect
16:54-18:18: Are other companies working on allergy treatments?
18:18-21:32: IgGenix’s SEQ SIFTER platform
21:32-24:20: About IgGenix’s IGNX001
24:20-24:42: Repeat doses
24:42-26:19: Could peanut allergy sufferers eat peanuts?
26:19-27:46: Can the technology be adapted to treat other allergies?
27:46-28:56: Are there variations in the treatment of different allergies?
28:56-29:35: Treatments for other diseases
29:35-30:23: The future for people with allergies

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