Resources and News

Extensible Surrogate Potential Optimized
 

This approach is not only sufficiently expressive to reproduce legacy atom types, but that it can learn and extend existing molecular mechanics force fields, construct entirely new force fields applicable to both biopolymers and small molecules from quantum chemical calculations, and even learn to accurately predict free energies from experimental observables.

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The next leap in pet health: longevity drugs 

Dog owners know the pain of a pet's short life. Scientists are developing drugs to extend dogs' lives, potentially reducing this sorrow. Loyal, a biotech startup in San Francisco, is leading the effort with three drugs under FDA review. This article examines these drugs and their approval timelines.



 

IFactors Contributing to Unsuccessful Clinical Trials

As the process advances from pre-clinical stages to phase 3, investments in resources, time, and finances escalate. Hence, the expense of a failed phase 3 trial extends beyond its singular cost, encompassing all preceding trials and the value of time invested in exploring alternate potential solutions.

SRF Transcriptionally Regulates During CNS Myelination

Together with a recent discovery that SRF promotes oligodendrocyte rejuvenation, the findings uncover a pathway promoting myelin formation that may represent a therapeutic target for restoring myelin in the aged or diseased CNS. Myelin is essential for the development and function of the central nervous system (CNS), and its loss or dysfunction is central to aging and neurodegenerative diseases.
 

Venture Funding, Deal Making Slowed in 2023

Venture capital firms are increasingly investing in later-stage drug companies, which accounted for about 40% of deals in 2023. Rather than invest heavily in preclinical work, VCs now appear to be waiting for drug developers to enter or have a road map to clinical trials




 

Will 2024 mean spring for the biotech sector?
 

After a chilly 2022, so far 2023 is emerging as a slow thaw for the sector, as higher risk and less-proven companies get swept away and investors are beginning to emerge again for those biotechs that have solid fundamentals, a strong management team and good science. 

Computational Approaches in Preclinical Studies

Because undesirable pharmacokinetics and toxicity are significant reasons for the failure of drug development in the costly late stage, it has been widely recognized that drug ADMET properties should be considered as early as possible to reduce failure rates in the clinical phase of drug discovery. 



 

AI Boom Is Boosting Technological Dominance

Brookings research shows AI dominance in tech hubs like San Francisco, New York, Boston, and Texas, led by industry giants. While fueling innovation, this concentration poses concerns for tech growth and regional economies.





 

What happens to biotech now that venture capital is out of reach?

After all, the COVID-19 pandemic had shined a positive spotlight on the biopharmaceutical industry, and initial public offerings (IPOs) were booming.

But the last two years have seen venture capital and overall funding within the industry dry up due to the economic downturn, which has heavily impacted many biotech companies. 

Predictive Solubility Prediction & Interpretation

The water solubility of molecules, crucial in chemical and medical research, has led to the exploration of machine learning methods for predicting molecular properties. Despite advancements in predictive accuracy, existing methods lacked interpretability. To address this, we propose a novel multi-order graph attention network (MoGAT) that enhances both prediction accuracy and result interpretation.

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FDA Drops Mandatary Animal Trial Legislation

A new U.S. law has eliminated the requirement that drugs in development must undergo testing in animals before being given to participants in human trials.

Animal rights advocates have long pushed for such a move, and some in the pharmaceutical industry have argued that animal testing can be ineffective and expensive.

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Exploring the intersection of biotech and VC
 

Biotech is one of the most unique, interesting, and high-risk corners in venture capital. Across the VC landscape, there are very few sectors in which companies are striving to save lives, and even fewer that can provide the same level of outsized returns.