Trends & Analysis

As of late December 2022, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) no longer needs drugs to be tested in animals to receive approval, according to legislation signed by President Joe Biden1 – the Modernization Act 2.0. This news has been shared widely as a landmark moment, especially in the eyes of animal welfare organisations but […]

DDW Multimedia Editor Megan Thomas observes the 2023 drug discovery landscape, speaking to industry experts and looking at the foundations of 2022 on which next year will lean. Virtual clinical trials ‘Virtual’ and ‘technology’ are concepts which are readily exchanged in this industry, but these are more than just buzzwords. The overall virtual clinical trials […]

Dr Julie Warner is Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at global drug development consultancy, Boyds. In this article, she provides her expert insights into the key regulatory developments likely to shape the global drug development industry this year.    Implementation of the EU Clinical Trials Regulation  The way clinical trials (CTs) are conducted in the European […]

In January 2022, DDW’s Megan Thomas spoke to decision-makers from the drug discovery industry about their predictions on what 2022 holds for our sector. As we head into 2023, DDW will be publishing a series of reflections on these predictions. Here, Thomas reflects specifically on Anita Cooper’s prediction relating to the importance of clinical trials.  […]

A new report highlights promising therapeutic developments for HIV, Parkinson’s disease, Crohn’s disease, alopaecia, multiple myeloma and breast cancer on the horizon, with personalised medicines strongly represented.  Analysts Clarivate have identified 15 late-stage experimental treatments that are each forecast to deliver annual sales of more than $1 billion within five years.   These promising advancements include […]

Matthew Clark, CEO of X-Chem, looks at what the future could hold for DNA-encoded library (DEL) technology. In the 13 years since it was first described, DNA-encoded library (DEL) technology has become a firmly established approach to small molecule hit generation in drug discovery. Most major pharma companies operate DEL platforms, and several service providers […]

As 2022 draws to a close, life sciences market analysts attempt to correctly predict what the next 12 months might bring to the drug discovery sector. DDW’s Diana Spencer summarises the key trends likely to impact the market in 2023.  1. There will be greater emphasis on diversity in clinical trials A focus on the representation of […]

Listen to this article on the DDW Podcast: Jeff Willis, MD, PhD is a Senior Medical Director and retina specialist at Genentech. He talks to Lu Rahman about some of the company’s work developing medicine for eye disease and offers insight into the ophthalmology field today. Genentech is committed to advancing science and developing effective and […]

By Lu Rahman  There are some exciting developments happening in synthetic biology and as a result the sector is highly attractive from an investment perspective. Using synthetic DNA to develop drugs and to better understand the toxic effects of them is a key driver for this market. BCC Research reports that the global market for […]

Genomic healthcare data is critical to identify disease risk, ancestry, traits and response to medicines and aids in the development of new targeted therapies – precision medicines. DDW’s Megan Thomas observes developments of accessibility in this sector and the potential impact.  The origins  One might argue that this all started getting exciting with the launch […]

Australia’s drug discovery industry shows promise and innovation, as well as business opportunities. DDW’s Megan Thomas takes a look at some of the reasons why we should be keeping an interested eye on the developments coming out of this country.   The Sector Snapshot 2022: Expansion is continuous   The Sector Snapshot 2022 was commissioned by AusBiotech, […]

DDW Multimedia Editor Megan Thomas takes a broad look at the drug discovery and development landscape in Japan and highlights how it is bolstered by government policies, investment, collaboration, start-up ecosystems and academic research.   Japan continues to be one of the largest pharmaceutical markets in the world, despite what the International Trade Administration described as […]

Following a decade of solid groundwork to modernise regulatory information management in life sciences, leading companies have now shifted their focus to how they might exploit this new digital landscape – to transform process management; improve data exchange with the enterprise at large; revisit organisational structures and roles, and enable greater patient access to information. […]

Allison August, M.D., Vice President, Clinical Development, Infectious Diseases at Moderna examines the data on cytomegalovirus (CMV), why attempts at vaccines for CMV have so far proved elusive and the emerging options to address this unmet need.  Although cytomegalovirus (CMV) is almost ubiquitous in the adult population globally, it is an under-recognised infectious cause of […]

Ben Folwell, Principal Consultant at Citeline, maps out how AI, swarm learning and open access to clinical data could revolutionise drug discovery.  Artificial intelligence (AI) is notorious for its industry hype, touted to revolutionise the way multiple sectors operate over the next five to 10 years. Its application in pharma, most commonly in drug discovery, […]

The Fall 2022 issue of the DDW is out now. DDW Editor Reece Armstrong comments.  There’s no doubting that when the time came for the life sciences industry to step up during the Covid-19 pandemic, it delivered. From diagnostics to the launch of Covid-19 vaccines – within a never-before-seen timeframe – the life sciences industry […]