Wyss InstituteDrug Development – Wyss Institute

CRISPR’s Impact, Today

Mariel Schoen — Mon, 21 Oct 2024 12:00:08 +0000

By Seth Kroll (BOSTON) — In the not-so-distant past, CRISPR, the revolutionary gene-editing technology, was discovered as a defense system protecting bacteria against viruses. Today, with the persistence and ingenuity of many scientists, it is no longer just the subject of fascinating academic research papers and speculative discussions on its future usefulness for medicine.

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DNA Nanoswitch Calipers for Single-Molecule Proteomics

Jessica Leff — Tue, 15 Oct 2024 16:48:31 +0000

Proteins are well known as essential orchestrators of life, but what is less well-understood is their post-translational modifications (PTMs). These modifications can include the attachment of chemical groups, carbohydrates, or lipids to the proteins, which affect their folding, stability, and functions. Certain protein PTMs have been linked to diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative disease…

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“Suspended animation” drug could aid organ transplantation and survival from traumatic injury

Jessica Leff — Tue, 24 Sep 2024 14:50:33 +0000

(CAMBRIDGE, UK) – Researchers have shown that a non-addictive pain relief drug could be used to preserve cells and organs quickly and safely for transplantation, removing the need for static cold storage. The research, published today in eLife, was described by the editors as an important study providing solid evidence that the existing drug, SNC80, can rapidly and reversibly slow biochemical…

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Ropirio: Novel Treatments Targeting the Lymphatic System

Mariel Schoen — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 13:56:37 +0000

The human lymphatic system is vast and critical to our health, including the proper functioning of our immune system. Over the last decade, research into the lymph system has revealed its dysfunction in a wide variety of diseases, but development of drugs to directly target the lymph system has lagged, in part because there are few reliable preclinical models of lymph vessels on which to test drug…

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Ropirio launches from Wyss Institute to develop first-in-class lymphatic medicines

Mariel Schoen — Wed, 11 Sep 2024 13:55:12 +0000

By Lindsay Brownell (BOSTON) — The Wyss Institute at Harvard University announced today that Ropirio Therapeutics, Inc. (Ropirio) has secured a worldwide, exclusive license from Harvard’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) and Boston University (BU)’s Technology Development office for novel molecules that activate the lymphatic system – a first in the pharma industry. “There has been a…

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Alzheimer’s drug may someday help save lives by inducing a state of “suspended animation”

Jessica Leff — Thu, 22 Aug 2024 15:25:07 +0000

By Lindsay Brownell (BOSTON) — Researchers at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University report that they were able to successfully put tadpoles of Xenopus laevis frogs into a hibernation-like torpor state using donepezil (DNP), a drug approved by the FDA to treat Alzheimer’s. The team had previously used another drug, SNC80, to achieve similar results in…

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A better way to make RNA drugs

Jessica Leff — Fri, 12 Jul 2024 09:00:40 +0000

By Lindsay Brownell (BOSTON) — While the COVID-19 vaccines introduced many people to RNA-based medicines, oligonucleotides have already been on the market for years to treat diseases like Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and amyloidosis. RNA therapies offer many advantages over traditional small molecule drugs, including their ability to address almost any genetic component within cells and to guide…

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AminoX: Making Better Protein Drugs, Quicker and Cheaper

Jessica Leff — Wed, 10 Jul 2024 13:56:00 +0000

A synthetic biology and advanced chemistry platform that efficiently incorporates non-standard amino acids by hacking the ubiquitous protein synthesis process. Credit: Wyss Institute at Harvard University…

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Justin Scott on Engineering Proteins for Real-World Impact

Jessica Leff — Wed, 26 Jun 2024 15:05:06 +0000

The Humans of the Wyss (HOW) series features members of the Wyss community discussing their work, the influences that shape them as professionals, and their collaborations at the Wyss Institute and beyond. Years ago, Justin Scott was working in finance when a conversation with a friend who cared deeply about their science-related job prompted him to make a change. Chasing that same job…

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The Wyss Institute’s 2024-2025 Validation Projects

Jessica Leff — Wed, 29 May 2024 14:55:23 +0000

Every year the Wyss Institute names a class of Validation Projects whose teams receive dedicated funding, business development support, and other resources to advance their promising technologies towards commercialization. They also collaborate with key opinion leaders, investors, and potential customers to de-risk their innovations and speed their progress to the market. This year…

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