BUSINESS INSIGHTS, PHARMACY MARKET
Businesswire | March 27, 2023
Massive Bio, Inc., a private AI-enabled oncology startup that provides virtual and in-person concierge services for cancer patients, and NeoGenomics, Inc. a leading provider of cancer-focused genetic testing services and global oncology contract research services, today announced a collaboration with the goal of accelerating the development of new cancer therapies and ultimately improving the lives of millions of cancer patients around the world. NeoGenomics will identify patients in real time who may be eligible for clinical trials based on biomarker status. Following initial contact and outreach provided directly from NeoGenomics to the treating physician, Massive Bio will help obtain patient consent and expediate additional screening and potential enrollment. This partnership will help to quickly identify patients eligible for clinical trials and help patients and providers make an informed decision regarding their potential treatment avenue.
By combining their respective strengths in biomarker testing, data analysis, machine learning, and biomarker and genomic profiling, the collaboration between NeoGenomics and Massive Bio have achieved a significant milestone in the oncology industry.
"Our mission at Massive Bio is to provide cancer patients with the best possible care and treatment options,” said Selin Kurnaz, PhD, CEO and co-founder of Massive Bio. “By partnering with NeoGenomics, a leading player in the cancer diagnostics industry that shares Massive Bio’s commitment to advancing cancer research and improving patient outcomes, we can leverage their expertise in oncology diagnostics to accelerate the identification of patients who may be eligible for clinical trials."
“NeoGenomics’ advanced diagnostic tools and U.S. footprint, combined with Massive Bio's AI capabilities and concierge services in oncology, will enable us to match patients to clinical trials faster and more efficiently, resulting in improved outcomes and reduced costs,” said Vishal Sikri, President of the Advanced Diagnostics Division of NeoGenomics. “We are thrilled to partner with Massive Bio to advance precision medicine and improve the delivery of healthcare services to patients, pharmaceutical partners, and healthcare providers."
Dr. Arturo Loaiza-Bonilla, MD, co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of Massive Bio, added, "This collaboration between NeoGenomics and Massive Bio will enable us to provide patients with personalized care and support throughout their cancer journey, and move the needle forward in precision oncology and research."
AboutMassive Bio
Massive Bio empowers cancer patients to find their best treatment options, using artificial intelligence to improve equitable access and precision targeting for clinical trial matching, drug matching, and drug development. Massive Bio combines its best-in-class AI platform with technology-enabled services to remove barriers in clinical trial enrollment, value-based oncology decisions, and data-driven cancer treatment. The company serves more than two dozen pharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations, and hospital networks, and has been awarded an SBIR contract by the National Cancer Institute. Massive Bio was founded in 2015 by clinical, technology, and M&A executives, and has a global presence with nearly 100 people in 12 countries.
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BUSINESS INSIGHTS
Businesswire | May 22, 2023
Closed Loop Medicine Ltd, a leading TechBio company, developing combination prescription drug plus software therapy products that enable personalized dose optimization, and Pharmanovia, a global pharmaceutical company that commercializes novel medicines and revitalizes, extends and expands the lifecycle of established medicines, today announced that they have entered a global co-development partnership.
The partnership will initially focus on the development and launch of a drug + software combination version of a first-line anti-hypertensive in the UK, before phased global roll-out and additional therapies are added.
Hypertension is the leading preventable cause of morbidity and premature death worldwide, impacting over 1 in 4 men and 1 in 5 women, and costing the NHS alone over £2.1 billion/year (1, 2). Managing high-blood pressure through medication and lifestyle modifications significantly reduces associated health risks and improves quality of life; research in the US demonstrating improved standards of care could prevent 91,900 heart attacks, 139,000 strokes and 115,400 cardiovascular deaths within just 5 years (3). However, poor drug tolerability and treatment-related side effects significantly impact adherence, with less than 50% of patients maintaining their treatment regimen after a year, ultimately hindering treatment effectiveness, patient outcomes and overall disease management (4).
As part of this partnership, Closed Loop Medicine’s proprietary Software-as-a-Medical Device (SaMD) dosing optimization technology will be combined with Pharmanovia’s established anti-hypertensive medicines, under a single prescription. Recent preliminary clinical trial results have demonstrated that Closed Loop Medicine’s technology may provide the ability to dose optimize drug therapy, improve blood pressure control, and minimize side effects (5). By developing a new class of combination products for the treatment of hypertension, both companies aim to support patients and healthcare professionals to better manage high blood pressure.
Dr. Hakim Yadi OBE, CEO & Co-Founder of Closed Loop Medicine, commented: “This pioneering partnership is a great example of where the power of software integration can add value to iconic medicines to make them more effective for patients. Through this co-development agreement, we will bring our IP, insight and technical know-how of dose optimized drug plus software integration alongside Pharmanovia’s innovative business model, to enable well-known and trusted brands to be positioned as value-driven precision medicine product solutions globally.”
Dr. James Burt, CEO of Pharmanovia, said: “Combining our experience in lifecycle management with Closed Loop Medicine’s unique approach and technology is an exciting next step in our strategy. It enables us to use innovative technology to enhance established medicines and bring much needed innovation to an area of large-scale unmet need. Together we aim to deliver a first in class combination regulated software and medicine – with the aim of delivering better patient outcomes, while enabling healthcare systems to reduce costly hospital procedures through better adherence and patient engagement.”
AboutPharmanovia
Pharmanovia is a global lifecycle management healthcare company. Our purpose is to make medicines fit for tomorrow, to improve the lives of patients globally. We do this by enhancing established medicines either by rediscovering, repurposing or re-engineering iconic brands to improve patient outcomes and experiences both through in-house development and through strategic partnerships.
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PHARMACY MARKET, PHARMA TECH
prnewswire | April 18, 2023
Science and technology company Merck and XtalPi Inc., a pioneering pharmaceutical technology company powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and automation, have jointly published a study that highlights the benefits of combining computational workflows with wet lab experiments to advance drug development.
Traditional methods like milling and micronization, used to address undesirable crystal morphologies, can be disruptive and costly. In contrast, molecular dynamics simulations offer valuable insights for better crystallization experiment designs.
The collaboration between Merck and XtalPi focused on the impact of different polymer additives on the crystal habit of metformin HCl, a diabetes medication. By combining Merck's experimental capabilities with XtalPi's morphology prediction platform, a comprehensive screening approach for crystal morphology engineering was developed. XtalPi's custom-made force fields successfully predicted the influence of polymer additives on metformin HCl's crystal habits. The addition of HPMC led to a transformation from a needle-like to a prismatic morphology, in agreement with experimental observations. The publication demonstrates the potential of merging computational methods and experimental expertise for drug formulation optimization.
Dr. Peiyu Zhang, XtalPi's Chief Scientific Officer, said, "By integrating XtalPi's molecular dynamics predictions with Merck's experimental validation, we have taken a step towards the rational engineering of desirable crystal habits. We hope to continue improving this 'dry + wet lab' method with leading industry experts like Merck, in the production of novel therapeutics worldwide."
Dr. Jan Gerit Brandenburg, Head of Digital Chemistry at Merck, added, "Our collaboration with XtalPi is transforming pharmaceutical development. By seamlessly incorporating computer simulations with our experimental formulation expertise in a 'digital-first' approach, we are boosting drug development processes and positively impacting patients' lives."
About XtalPi
XtalPi is a quantum physics and AI-powered pharmaceutical technology platform that provides integrated drug discovery solutions for global pharmaceutical companies. XtalPi has pioneered a new model for drug R&D that leverages a tightly interwoven trifecta of AI, autonomous labs, and expert domain knowledge. The company applies this three-pronged approach in its R&D platform to accelerate the drug discovery and development process and address unmet needs for patients worldwide.
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