Empowered Patient Podcast

Ross Bundy, President and CEO of CRISPR QC, shines a light on the current state of CRISPR gene editing technology and how the field has advanced rapidly since the discovery of CRISPR's potential to edit the human genome. The focus of CRISPR technology has primarily been on curing rare and genetic diseases, but there is also potential for targeting cancer tumors' resistance to chemotherapy and the development of customized therapies for various indications. The services offered by CRISPR QC include a unique sensor platform and data analytics capability to monitor and control the gene editing process. The company aims to create a database of information to improve the understanding and control of CRISPR chemistry. The CRISPR Chip is a new semiconductor technology that integrates carbon electronics to analyze complex biological processes.

Ross explains, "What we find is that it can be very difficult to get that chemistry to target exactly in the right place. We don't know yet how much the right amount is. Is it too much, too much? Is too little, too little? How do we get all these correctly into the cell? How do we deliver them to the right place? Sometimes CRISPR edits in the wrong place, it can edit multiple places across the genome, the target, and a few other places we don't want to edit, and the cell goes and repairs it, and now we've changed the DNA somewhere else. So we definitely don't want that. If we're going to edit DNA, we want to edit just the part we want, and we don't want to change anything else. So, the challenge today is that we don't know exactly how this chemistry works. It is still a very new field."

"We're saying, can we open up that black box and say, here's all the gears and all the levers, all the buttons, and the pharma companies can now then precisely control this chemistry and deliver the result that they want. So that's what we're able to start doing for the field. This is the maturation of a new science coming out, proving it's capable, and now moving to an industrial process. We're helping transition that industrial process."

#CRISPRQC #CRISPR #CRISPRCas9 #GeneEditing #CellularGeneTherapy

CRISPRQC.com

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Ross Bundy, President and CEO of CRISPR QC, shines a light on the current state of CRISPR gene editing technology and how the field has advanced rapidly since the discovery of CRISPR's potential to edit the human genome. The focus of CRISPR technology has primarily been on curing rare and genetic diseases, but there is also potential for targeting cancer tumors' resistance to chemotherapy and the development of customized therapies for various indications. The services offered by CRISPR QC include a unique sensor platform and data analytics capability to monitor and control the gene editing process. The company aims to create a database of information to improve the understanding and control of CRISPR chemistry. The CRISPR Chip is a new semiconductor technology that integrates carbon electronics to analyze complex biological processes.

Ross explains, "What we find is that it can be very difficult to get that chemistry to target exactly in the right place. We don't know yet how much the right amount is. Is it too much, too much? Is too little, too little? How do we get all these correctly into the cell? How do we deliver them to the right place? Sometimes CRISPR edits in the wrong place, it can edit multiple places across the genome, the target, and a few other places we don't want to edit, and the cell goes and repairs it, and now we've changed the DNA somewhere else. So we definitely don't want that. If we're going to edit DNA, we want to edit just the part we want, and we don't want to change anything else. So, the challenge today is that we don't know exactly how this chemistry works. It is still a very new field."

"We're saying, can we open up that black box and say, here's all the gears and all the levers, all the buttons, and the pharma companies can now then precisely control this chemistry and deliver the result that they want. So that's what we're able to start doing for the field. This is the maturation of a new science coming out, proving it's capable, and now moving to an industrial process. We're helping transition that industrial process."

#CRISPRQC #CRISPR #CRISPRCas9 #GeneEditing #CellularGeneTherapy

CRISPRQC.com

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Nicolas Poirier, CEO of OSE Immunotherapeutics, uses immunology and molecular engineering to develop innovative immunotherapies for oncology, inflammation, autoimmune diseases, and organ transplant. The same immune cells, lymphocytes and macrophages, are involved in both immuno-oncology and immuno-inflammation, and OSE aims to re-educate these cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells or restore immune tolerance in autoimmune diseases. He also discusses the potential of cancer vaccines in re-educating the immune system to target cancer cells, and the importance of combination therapies in improving treatment outcomes.

Nicolas explains, "There are two big families in the immune system. We have the adaptive immunity generated by lymphocytes. We have several types of lymphocytes: T-lymphocytes, B-lymphocytes, and so on. This is a very specific immune response that humans and other species have developed to recognize, very specifically some antigens from viruses, for tumors, and so on. We can control these cells."

"On the other side, there is innate immunity composed of macrophages, NK cells, or others, and this is a non-specific immune response that recognizes either danger signals or pathogen signals. These are mostly the elements that are implicated in many chronic inflammatory diseases. Still, there are also some elements that we can manipulate or re-educate in oncology to help the immune system globally work better. Because these lymphocytes and these macrophages, this adaptive immunity or innate immunity, work together, and all together, we can re-educate and orchestrate this immune response in a good direction."

"There's a big promise and big hope now in the field of therapeutic cancer vaccines. It's important to understand that it's therapeutic. It means we're not yet able to prevent cancer development, this might be in the future, but we use cancer vaccines to re-educate the immune system of patients that have developed a tumor. It's a therapeutic drug, and we're developing one of the most advanced therapeutic cancer vaccines in the world with the upcoming new registration phase three in lung cancer patients in second line."

#OSEImmunotherapeutics #Cancer #LungCancer #CancerVaccine #ImmuneSystem #Macrophages #Inflammation #InflammatoryDisease

ose-immuno.com

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Nicolas Poirier, CEO of OSE Immunotherapeutics, uses immunology and molecular engineering to develop innovative immunotherapies for oncology, inflammation, autoimmune diseases, and organ transplant. The same immune cells, lymphocytes and macrophages, are involved in both immuno-oncology and immuno-inflammation, and OSE aims to re-educate these cells to recognize and eliminate cancer cells or restore immune tolerance in autoimmune diseases. He also discusses the potential of cancer vaccines in re-educating the immune system to target cancer cells, and the importance of combination therapies in improving treatment outcomes.

Nicolas explains, "There are two big families in the immune system. We have the adaptive immunity generated by lymphocytes. We have several types of lymphocytes: T-lymphocytes, B-lymphocytes, and so on. This is a very specific immune response that humans and other species have developed to recognize, very specifically some antigens from viruses, for tumors, and so on. We can control these cells."

"On the other side, there is innate immunity composed of macrophages, NK cells, or others, and this is a non-specific immune response that recognizes either danger signals or pathogen signals. These are mostly the elements that are implicated in many chronic inflammatory diseases. Still, there are also some elements that we can manipulate or re-educate in oncology to help the immune system globally work better. Because these lymphocytes and these macrophages, this adaptive immunity or innate immunity, work together, and all together, we can re-educate and orchestrate this immune response in a good direction."

"There's a big promise and big hope now in the field of therapeutic cancer vaccines. It's important to understand that it's therapeutic. It means we're not yet able to prevent cancer development, this might be in the future, but we use cancer vaccines to re-educate the immune system of patients that have developed a tumor. It's a therapeutic drug, and we're developing one of the most advanced therapeutic cancer vaccines in the world with the upcoming new registration phase three in lung cancer patients in second line."

#OSEImmunotherapeutics #Cancer #LungCancer #CancerVaccine #ImmuneSystem #Macrophages #Inflammation #InflammatoryDisease

ose-immuno.com

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Ben Casavant, Co-Founder and CEO of Tasso, focuses on making diagnostics more accessible to patients that allow collection of blood samples at home. Their customers include pharmaceutical companies conducting research and healthcare providers. Using Tasso's technology in decentralized clinical trials allows for easier recruitment, increased patient participation, and more data collection. The simplicity and ease of use of Tasso's blood collection device have resulted in positive patient responses and improved retention rates in clinical trials. They offer liquid and dried blood collection options to accommodate different lab processes and sample types.

Ben explains, "When we think about the customer bases we're serving, we're working with many different pharmaceutical companies conducting critical and life-changing research. We just announced a partnership with the Parkinson's Foundation so they can help find ways to gather information and data about patients living with Parkinson's disease. But they need that access and data from patients. By working with Tasso, we enable them to have that reach and accessibility."

"When we're working with various pharmaceutical companies. They're seeing this real need to get subjects into their trials, to ease recruitment, to help make sure they're hitting their recruitment targets. To help make sure that as a patient goes through a clinical trial, they're able to meet all the data points that are needed so that they can have a completed data set for their own submission. And broadly, in that industry, we're seeing this huge shift. It's really exciting that pharma companies, sponsors, and CROs are looking for more tools to provide patients with better access and lower the barrier, lowering the bar for people to participate in these trials."

#Tassoinc #DecentalizedClinicalTrials #DCT #ClinicalTrials #HealthTechnology #HealthTech

tassoinc.com

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Ben Casavant, Co-Founder and CEO of Tasso, focuses on making diagnostics more accessible to patients that allow collection of blood samples at home. Their customers include pharmaceutical companies conducting research and healthcare providers. Using Tasso's technology in decentralized clinical trials allows for easier recruitment, increased patient participation, and more data collection. The simplicity and ease of use of Tasso's blood collection device have resulted in positive patient responses and improved retention rates in clinical trials. They offer liquid and dried blood collection options to accommodate different lab processes and sample types.

Ben explains, "When we think about the customer bases we're serving, we're working with many different pharmaceutical companies conducting critical and life-changing research. We just announced a partnership with the Parkinson's Foundation so they can help find ways to gather information and data about patients living with Parkinson's disease. But they need that access and data from patients. By working with Tasso, we enable them to have that reach and accessibility."

"When we're working with various pharmaceutical companies. They're seeing this real need to get subjects into their trials, to ease recruitment, to help make sure they're hitting their recruitment targets. To help make sure that as a patient goes through a clinical trial, they're able to meet all the data points that are needed so that they can have a completed data set for their own submission. And broadly, in that industry, we're seeing this huge shift. It's really exciting that pharma companies, sponsors, and CROs are looking for more tools to provide patients with better access and lower the barrier, lowering the bar for people to participate in these trials."

#Tassoinc #DecentalizedClinicalTrials #DCT #ClinicalTrials #HealthTechnology #HealthTech

tassoinc.com

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Chris Darland, President and CEO of Peerbridge Health, discusses technology breakthroughs that enable early, low-cost detection of heart issues with a cardiac monitor that uses AI to analyze heart rhythms over time to detect patterns that may indicate heart failure. The device is based on ECG technology that drives the Holter monitor and delivers a full 12-lead ECG with a volumetric 3D view of the heart. The goal is to reach more patients who may not proactively seek medical attention and provide early intervention and treatment.

Chris explains, " I think the problem with the current state is largely that it's too late. And I say that to mean that 80% of all heart failure cases today are getting caught after an emergency room visit. So, it's not necessarily that we don't have the tools to find heart failure and the cardiologists and expertise to identify it, but we're not getting it in time. So if you are one of those patients who, let's say, are caught earlier or maybe unfortunately when you come through the ER, a lot of the tools are existing in the hospital. So you'll get an ultrasound, an echo, to get a view of your heart. We'll do an ECG in the hospital and potentially a cardiac MRI. There's a suite of tools available in the acute care setting that can get to this conclusion relatively quickly if you have all the tools right in front of you."

"The nice part about it is it's relatively accepted from a workflow perspective, a tool that's used quite commonly and has become exceedingly convenient over the last five to 10 years. There is a lot of innovation in a handful of companies to make it easy to wear, light, waterproof, etc. And when we think through the innovation we're working through right now, it's essentially using that tool and the output of this ambulatory cardiac monitor that we have in Peerbridge. Then doing some interesting AI advanced diagnostics on top of it to pick up patterns that were maybe lost historically or potentially missed based on signal fidelity of devices that were in the market. Then using those patterns to try to get a head start on heart failure diagnosis as well as a handful of other things we can show they do."

#PeerbridgeHealth #Cardiology #Cardiologists #ECG #HeartHealth #HeartFailure #EarlyDetection #RemotePatientMonitoring

PeerbridgeHealth.com

Listen to the podcast here

Chris Darland, President and CEO of Peerbridge Health, discusses technology breakthroughs that enable early, low-cost detection of heart issues with a cardiac monitor that uses AI to analyze heart rhythms over time to detect patterns that may indicate heart failure. The device is based on ECG technology that drives the Holter monitor and delivers a full 12-lead ECG with a volumetric 3D view of the heart. The goal is to reach more patients who may not proactively seek medical attention and provide early intervention and treatment.

Chris explains, " I think the problem with the current state is largely that it's too late. And I say that to mean that 80% of all heart failure cases today are getting caught after an emergency room visit. So, it's not necessarily that we don't have the tools to find heart failure and the cardiologists and expertise to identify it, but we're not getting it in time. So if you are one of those patients who, let's say, are caught earlier or maybe unfortunately when you come through the ER, a lot of the tools are existing in the hospital. So you'll get an ultrasound, an echo, to get a view of your heart. We'll do an ECG in the hospital and potentially a cardiac MRI. There's a suite of tools available in the acute care setting that can get to this conclusion relatively quickly if you have all the tools right in front of you."

"The nice part about it is it's relatively accepted from a workflow perspective, a tool that's used quite commonly and has become exceedingly convenient over the last five to 10 years. There is a lot of innovation in a handful of companies to make it easy to wear, light, waterproof, etc. And when we think through the innovation we're working through right now, it's essentially using that tool and the output of this ambulatory cardiac monitor that we have in Peerbridge. Then doing some interesting AI advanced diagnostics on top of it to pick up patterns that were maybe lost historically or potentially missed based on signal fidelity of devices that were in the market. Then using those patterns to try to get a head start on heart failure diagnosis as well as a handful of other things we can show they do."

#PeerbridgeHealth #Cardiology #Cardiologists #ECG #HeartHealth #HeartFailure #EarlyDetection #RemotePatientMonitoring

PeerbridgeHealth.com

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Dr. David Stein, CEO and Director of Babson Diagnostics, a healthcare technology company that focuses on putting the patient at the center of the blood testing experience, recognizing the importance of blood testing in informing clinical decisions and monitoring health. They aim to redefine blood testing by eliminating the anxiety and inconvenience associated with traditional blood testing methods by offering a more accessible and convenient approach. Blood samples are collected with an innovative device from the patient's fingertip at retail pharmacy locations, and patients use a digital app and QR code system to order and track tests, and receive test results.

David explains, "Babson Diagnostics is a science-first healthcare technology company that has reimagined the end-to-end blood testing experience. In that experience, the patient and customer are the strong focus. We've all experienced times when we've had a blood test ordered for us, and we've felt anxious. We've tried, as much as we can, to eliminate that, both by the location where we provide the service, which is the retail pharmacy, and also through our approach, where we easily take samples from your finger, wrap it in a digital layer to make it all understandable. In the end, provide a preferred experience that is much more convenient and accessible than what you experience today."

"Probably the more important thing is how can we make it so that you don't have to get venipuncture, so that you don't have to get a needle in your arm, because for a significant part of our population, having a sharp object inserted in your body, is not something most of us like. So, in reality, between vasovagal issues and difficult veins, people are looking for a true alternative."

"People are also looking for accessibility and convenience. What we have innovated is in both aspects. One is to allow you to do broad, clinical-grade testing with a sample that's easily collected from your fingertip while also being able to get that collection done in locations near your home, such as your local supermarket or your local pharmacy. We've tried to innovate in two aspects, which is what everybody wants -- accessibility and convenience. We see that in every part of our economy and have changed the way that blood is collected so that you don't have the anxiety of a needle going in your arm."

#BabsonDiagnostics #BloodTesting #Pharmacies #BetterWay #MedicalDevice #MedTech

BabsonDX.com

Listen to the podcast here

Dr. David Stein, CEO and Director of Babson Diagnostics, a healthcare technology company that focuses on putting the patient at the center of the blood testing experience, recognizing the importance of blood testing in informing clinical decisions and monitoring health. They aim to redefine blood testing by eliminating the anxiety and inconvenience associated with traditional blood testing methods by offering a more accessible and convenient approach. Blood samples are collected with an innovative device from the patient's fingertip at retail pharmacy locations, and patients use a digital app and QR code system to order and track tests and receive test results.

David explains, "Babson Diagnostics is a science-first healthcare technology company that has reimagined the end-to-end blood testing experience. In that experience, the patient and customer are the strong focus. We've all experienced times when we've had a blood test ordered for us, and we've felt anxious. We've tried, as much as we can, to eliminate that, both by the location where we provide the service, which is the retail pharmacy, and also through our approach, where we easily take samples from your finger, wrap it in a digital layer to make it all understandable. In the end, provide a preferred experience that is much more convenient and accessible than what you experience today."

"Probably the more important thing is how can we make it so that you don't have to get venipuncture, so that you don't have to get a needle in your arm, because for a significant part of our population, having a sharp object inserted in your body, is not something most of us like. So, in reality, between vasovagal issues and difficult veins, people are looking for a true alternative."

"People are also looking for accessibility and convenience. What we have innovated is in both aspects. One is to allow you to do broad, clinical-grade testing with a sample that's easily collected from your fingertip while also being able to get that collection done in locations near your home, such as your local supermarket or your local pharmacy. We've tried to innovate in two aspects, which is what everybody wants -- accessibility and convenience. We see that in every part of our economy and have changed the way that blood is collected so that you don't have the anxiety of a needle going in your arm."

#BabsonDiagnostics #BloodTesting #Pharmacies #BetterWay #MedicalDevice #MedTech

BabsonDX.com

Download the transcript here