2017 and Cell Biology - Drug Discovery Digest

Time for change: non-human primates in drug research

Drug Target Review

JULY 7, 2025

Experimental Biology and Medicine. Meet the author Mariana Argenziano, PhD – Associate Director Manufacturing Technologies Mariana holds a PhD in molecular biology from the University of SanMartin (Buenos Aires) and has worked at several universities in the US for more than eight years, specialising in stem cell biology.

Drug Research

Drug Research Research Animal Testing Drugs

2025 Merkin Prize in Biomedical Technology awarded to pioneers of CAR T-cell therapy

Broad Institute

MAY 21, 2025

A similar CAR from another company, Kite Pharmaceuticals (now a Gilead company), was approved by the FDA in 2017 as the second commercial CAR T-cell therapy. After their clinical results, their technology was licensed to Juno Therapeutics (later acquired by Bristol Myers Squibb.)

Therapies

Therapies FDA Approval Engineering Immune Response

Vamorolone

New Drug Approvals

JULY 25, 2025

76)Boger, D.L.Thedifferenceasingleatomcanmake:synthesisand design at the chemistry−biology interface. 2017, 82, 11961−11980. (77) 2017, 82,11961−11980. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017. World Health Organization (2017). Alliance 2019, 2, No. e201800186. (76)Boger,

FDA

FDA FDA Approval Treatment Clinical Trials

New molecular insights on medical cannabis

Drug Target Review

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

He formerly worked at EMBL as a postdoctoral fellow from 2017 to 2020 where he discovered the inhibition of ATX with THC. Autotaxin has lysophospholipase D activity leading to tumor cell growth and motility by lysophosphatidic acid production. The Journal of Cell Biology. 2017 Mar 9;60(5):2006–17. 2018 Jun 13;5.

Clinical Trials

Clinical Trials Trials Small Molecule Disease

CAR-NK cells: promising for cancer therapy

Drug Target Review

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

By themselves, the NK cells showed limited efficacy, but anti-tumour efficacy was observed with co-treatment regimens (eg, monoclonal antibodies, haematopoietic stem cell transplants, whole body irradiation) and multiple dosing (tolerated well by patients).

Therapies

Therapies Clinical Trials Cell Biology Trials

Cancer immunotherapy: GDF-15’s role in Anti-PD-1 resistance

Drug Target Review

AUGUST 24, 2023

in North America) in late 2017. Coordinated integrin activation by actin-dependent force during T-cell migration. Shear forces induce ICAM-1 nanoclustering on endothelial cells that impact on T-cell migration. Current Opinion in Cell Biology. References Nordenfelt P, Elliott HL, Springer TA.

Treatment

Treatment Therapies Clinical Development Cell Biology

Precision Medicine in the Genomic Era

DrugBank

JUNE 27, 2023

50 , 1700391 (2017). Genetics 205 , 1003–1035 (2017). 16 , 70–70 (2017). 44 , 195–211 (2017). Network expansion of genetic associations defines a pleiotropy map of human cell biology. References 1. König, König, I. Von Mutius, E. & & Kopp, M. Bayer, R. &

Disease

Disease Treatment Drugs Clinical Trials

Advanced 3D cell-based technologies

Drug Target Review

SEPTEMBER 19, 2023

In 2017, a successful in silico drug simulations were developed that represent human ventricular action potential models for routine ion channel screening, to predict pre-clinical risk of drug induced cardiac adverse effects. From 3D cell culture to organs-on-chips. Trends in Cell Biology. 2010;328(5986):1662-8.

Animal Testing

Animal Testing Clinical Trials Pharmaceutical Companies FDA

A research team searches for every gene that helps tumors evade immunotherapy

Broad Institute

OCTOBER 11, 2023

By Allessandra DiCorato October 11, 2023 In 2011, Robert Manguso was working in a cell biology lab when his mother was diagnosed with Merkel cell carcinoma, a rare and aggressive skin cancer. The team found that deleting the gene Ptpn2 made tumors sensitive to PD-1 therapy, and they published their findings in Nature in 2017.

Research

Research Immune Response Clinical Trials Therapies

Cell and gene therapy development moves into cardiac indications

Drug Target Review

OCTOBER 2, 2024

Continued growth in the field relies on multidisciplinary efforts combining biology, engineering, and clinical medicine. Ongoing innovation in stem cell biology, gene editing, delivery technologies, and advanced biomaterials is likely to address many of the current obstacles. 2017 May 31;58(3):435-440. Epub 2017 May 23.

Therapies

Therapies Disease RNA Engineering

Discovering an Antimalarial Drug in Mao’s China

Codon

APRIL 9, 2024

When Louis Miller, now Chief of Malaria Cell Biology at the NIH, attended a malaria conference in Shanghai in 2008, he asked: Who discovered artemisinin? Rediscovery As long as it took for artemisinin to become widely adopted, though, recognition of Tu’s name and contribution to its widespread use took over a decade longer.

Drugs

Drugs Science Research Doctors

2021 Hansen Family Award goes to Professor Kai Johnsson

The Pharma Data

MARCH 16, 2022

The research scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research received the award in recognition of his ground-breaking work in establishing various approaches to protein labeling in living cells that have enabled far-reaching advances in chemical and cell biology. Protein labeling (e.g.

Cell Biology

Cell Biology Molecular Biology Science Laboratories

Fighting Parasitic Infections: Promise in Cyclic Peptides

NIH Director's Blog: Drug Discovery

APRIL 11, 2017

2017 Apr 3;8:14932. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2014 Jan 9;8(1):e2628. [2] 2] Macrocycle peptides delineate locked-open inhibition mechanism for microorganism phosphoglycerate mutases. Yu H, Dranchak P, Li Z, MacArthur R, Munson MS, Mehzabeen N, Baird NJ, Battalie KP, Ross D, Lovell S, Carlow CK, Suga H, Inglese J. Nat Commun.

Small Molecule

Small Molecule Science Drug Development Disease

The Codon Guide to Synthetic Biology

Codon

AUGUST 10, 2023

Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (2009). Link The second decade of synthetic biology: 2010–2020 , by Meng F. & Link Synthetic biology in mammalian cells: next generation research tools and therapeutics , by Lienert F. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (2014). PLoS Biology (2017).

DNA

DNA Cell Biology Molecular Biology Engineering

The Codon Guide to Synthetic Biology

Codon

AUGUST 10, 2023

Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (2009). Link The second decade of synthetic biology: 2010–2020 , by Meng F. & Link Synthetic biology in mammalian cells: next generation research tools and therapeutics , by Lienert F. Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (2014). PLoS Biology (2017).

DNA

DNA Cell Biology Engineering Molecular Biology

Obstacles and innovations of macrocyclic drug development

Drug Target Review

JANUARY 16, 2025

She has a PhD in Microbiology and Cell Biology from the University of Illinois, followed by work in biochemistry as a post-doctoral fellow at UCSF. Biochemical Journal , 474(7):11091125, 2017. Nature Chemical Biology , 10(9):696698, 2014. Ajay N Jain Ajay is VP of Research for the Optibrium s BioPharmics Division.

Drug Development

Drug Development Small Molecule Drugs FDA Approval

Drug Discovery Digest

Time for change: non-human primates in drug research

2025 Merkin Prize in Biomedical Technology awarded to pioneers of CAR T-cell therapy

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Vamorolone

New molecular insights on medical cannabis

CAR-NK cells: promising for cancer therapy

Cancer immunotherapy: GDF-15’s role in Anti-PD-1 resistance

Precision Medicine in the Genomic Era

Advanced 3D cell-based technologies

A research team searches for every gene that helps tumors evade immunotherapy

Cell and gene therapy development moves into cardiac indications

Discovering an Antimalarial Drug in Mao’s China

2021 Hansen Family Award goes to Professor Kai Johnsson

Fighting Parasitic Infections: Promise in Cyclic Peptides

The Codon Guide to Synthetic Biology

The Codon Guide to Synthetic Biology

Obstacles and innovations of macrocyclic drug development

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