BioTech Nation ... with Dr. Moira Gunn

On this episode of Biotech Nation...the story of how the United States' pharmaceutical industry came to be, and the people behind it all. Barry Werth joins Moira to discuss his new book, “The Age of Cures: How American Scientists Saved Your Life", about a handful of individuals who revolutionized research and helped build the drug development ecosystem we have today.

On this episode of BioTech Nation...Dr. James Mackay joins to talk about the progress Crystalys Therapeutics is making in the treatment of gout - a disease that affects more than 13 million people in the United States alone. Dr. Mackay debunks some common misconceptions surrounding the disease, and explains what Crystalys is doing to change the way doctors treat gout going forward.

You've probably heard of Peptides...but what exactly are they? And how do we know which ones are effective, and safe? Dr. Karsten Eastman, Co-Founder and CEO of Sethera Therapeutics, joins to answer all our questions about Peptides, and to tell us about Sethera's latest efforts to enhance peptides to make new medicines. Their plan: to develop a drug using enhanced peptides for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer... and they've already received funding.

This week on BioTech Nation, Sameer Sabir, CEO of Brixton Biosciences, shares how their breakthrough injectable cold therapy, Neural Ice, could offer lasting relief for osteoarthritis pain. With a drug-free, nerve-targeting approach currently in clinical trials, this innovation may change how we treat joint pain without pills or repeated steroid injections.

Imagine a world where the toughest wounds heal twice as fast, and patients get their lives back sooner than anyone thought possible. Dr. Ned Swanson, the President and Chief Medical Officer of Polarity Bio, tells us about their approach to healing serious, hard-to-treat skin wounds. In early trials, it's twice as effective as the current treatment for diabetic foot ulcers.

Can you imagine parents expecting a baby, going in for an ultrasound, and finding out that their baby is missing the heart's left ventricle? This week on BioTech Nation, we hear Dr. Joshua Hare, Co-Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of Longeveron, talk about how they are testing the use of stem cells to treat babies born with a serious congenital heart defect.

This week on BioTech Nation, we explore a new approach to cancer treatment that could help patients manage pain without compromising their care. Dr. Lorin Johnson, CSO of Glycyx Therapeutics explains how a new once-daily pill could help patients manage pain without blocking their treatment.

This week on BioTech Nation, Dr. Jeff Stein, President & CEO of Cidara Therapeutics, brings up promising news about a new approach to flu shots.

On this episode of BioTech Nation, Dr. Will Decker and Jay Hartenbach join Moira to talk about Diakonos Oncology's unique approach to cancer immunotherapy, and how a discovery made over two decades ago started it all. Now, with a new drug entering Phase II human trials for Glioblastoma treatment, that discovery could mean a pathway to treating aggressive cancers...

This week on BioTech Nation, Dr. Steve Harr, CEO of Sana Biotechnology, talks about their progress in Type I diabetics, in particular. The New England Journal of Medicine publishes early success with Sana Biotechnology's engineered insulin-producing cells without the need for immunosuppressant drugs.

On this episode of BioTech Nation...The Biotech landscape is ever-evolving - but where are we headed?? Dr. Jeremy Levin, Physician, Bioentrepreneur, and Former Chair of BIO, joins Moira to talk about the future of Biotech from the front lines of the industry - from understanding the global Bioeconomy, to preparing for the next pandemic, and how government policy is impacting innovation. His book is, "Biotech in the Balance: Saving a Strategic Industry in an Age of Distrust".

This week on BioTech Nation, a call to a man who survived hundreds of venomous snake bites helps inspire the development of an antivenom vaccine. Biotech Entrepreneur, Dr. Jake Glanville, Founder, Chair and CEO of Centivax, gives us the insider’s view of this Biotech Breakthrough – from the first telephone call through each significant step, all leading to the first breakthrough generalized antivenom vaccine in 125 years.

On this week's BioTech Nation, Tech Nation Health Chief Correspondent Dr. Daniel Kraft tells us about the trend of "hospital-at-home". As we see the expansion of remote healthcare technologies, could the future of hospital-like care be as on-demand as a food delivery app?

On this episode of BioTech Nation: how Syndax Pharmaceuticals got two new drugs approved in the last two years, for the treatment of acute myeloid leukemia and graft vs. host disease in both adults and children. CEO Michael Metzger talks to Moira about Syndax's approach to getting the drugs across the finish line, and how they've now set their sights on additional indications and cancer therapies.

On this episode of BioTech Nation, Dan Schmitt of Actuate Therapeutics talks about a new kind of drug showing positive early results in hard-to-treat cancer - including adult pancreatic cancer, and two pediatric cancers. So, what’s next? Global collaborations, international trials, and efforts into different types of cancer…and they’re showing no sign of slowing down.

This week on BioTech Nation, Dr. Jonas Hannestad and Dr. Joanne Taylor of Gain Therapeutics join Moira to discuss a different approach to treating Parkinson's. While treatments are typically focused on relieving symptoms, Gain Therapeutics aims to stop progression of the disease itself.

With the recent passing of Dr. J. Craig Venter, biotech scientist and entrepreneur, we look back at Moira and David Ewing Duncan's 2007 interview with Dr. Venter. The occasion for the interview was the publication of his autobiography: "A Life Decoded: My Genome, My Life." Dr. Craig Venter was known for catalyzing the race to decode the human genome, and at the time of the interview had just decoded his own complete DNA and published it on the Internet.

This week on BioTech Nation, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Genentech, the first biotech company to go public. Moira speaks with CEO Ashley Magargee about the company's journey over the last 50 years, the evolution of biotech, and where they're headed next.

This week on BioTech Nation, Andrew Farnum and Sarah LeBaron von Baeyer discuss Variant Bio’s unique approach to collecting genetic data - working specifically with indigenous tribes and more isolated populations around the globe. Could compiling this diverse genetic data reveal something about how to develop better drugs and diagnostics? And how might those sharing their data be ethically compensated for it?

Dr. Marc Salzberg, CEO & Chief Medical Officer of Airway Therapeutics, talks about what they are doing to help preterm babies. It may all boil down to delivering these babies a single protein as soon as they are born.