News round-up by DDW’s Megan Thomas for 8-12 November 

DDW’s Megan Thomas has selected five stories which highlight the collaborative work being done across the drug discovery industry. 

1. SAGA Diagnostics and AstraZeneca enter assay development agreement 

SAGA Diagnostics, a cancer liquid biopsy and genomic testing company focused on precision oncology and non-invasive ultrasensitive monitoring of cancer patients, has entered into an assay development agreement with Astra Zeneca to develop SAGAsafe dPCR assays towards undisclosed methylated targets for analyses of tissue samples and liquid biopsies.   

2. BioNet and BIA Separations collaborate to develop mRNA vaccines 

BioNet and BIA Separations, now part of Sartorius, have developed an optimised mRNA manufacturing process.   

3. Nautilus and Abcam partner to accelerate proteome exploration 

Nautilus Biotechnology and Abcam have announced a strategic development and supply partnership to leverage Abcam’s recombinant monoclonal antibody development technologies and expertise to enhance Nautilus’ reagent research and development.   

4. Academic collaboration to develop therapies for genetic diseases and cancers 

BridgeBio has collaborated with two new academic institutions, Columbia University and Mount Sinai (Icahn Mount Sinai), to translate research discoveries into potential therapies for patients with genetic diseases and genetically driven cancers. 

5. Collaboration to develop oral targeted protein degrader therapies 

Dunad Therapeutics has entered a strategic collaboration and license agreement with Novartis to generate orally bioavailable covalent and protein degrading small molecule drugs.