The Drug Discovery World Podcast

In the In Conversation With series, a part of the free DDW podcast, DDW speaks with members of the drug discovery industry about their work and how it helps turn science into business.    In this episode, Bruno Quinney talks to Dr Mrinal Kammili, Head of Translational and Clinical Research at Syngene International. They explore advances in translational science, the challenges of the field, and how India is becoming the next clinical research destination. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week, research into bacterial species and diseases broke new ground. Elsewhere, vaccines could offer groundbreaking solutions to cervical and lung cancer.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts.

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week, groundbreaking research showed the Covid-19 mRNA vaccine could boost cancer response. Elsewhere, the theme of UK investment dominated other headlines. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts.

This is the latest episode of the free DDW Narrated Podcast, called "How new scientific approaches are accelerating R&D". The episode covers two articles written for DDW Volume 25, Issue 1, Winter 2023/24.  The first article is called 'Accelerating recombinant protein vaccine discovery'. In the article, Jian He, Chemistry, Manufacturing and Controls (CMC) Head at WuXi Vaccines, explains why vaccination responses need to be rapid, efficacious and cost-effective if they are to outpace new viral threats emerging across the globe. The second article is called 'How 3D biology is informing drug discovery'. In the piece, DDW Editor Reece Armstrong looks at the advantages and opportunities 3D cell cultures, organoids and stem cells are bringing to drug discovery teams. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts.

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week's leading story came from a positive development in biopharma, with top companies reporting market growth in Q3 of 2025. Elsewhere, new research could help combat yellow fever and weight loss, while £500,000 was awarded to a biotech company to develop a DMD therapy.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week's top story came from women's health, as Bayer paved the way for a new approach to treat hot flashes due to menopause. Elsewhere, an anti-obesity medication has health benefits beyond weight loss and Alector discontinued its dementia drug.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week, Galapagos announced plans to shelve its cell therapy business and hundreds of employees are set to lose their jobs. Elsewhere, pharma firms are offering discounts to US patients and a new AI model shed light on how to improve immunotherapy.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week, new research showed drug therapies could prevent hereditary diseases. Elsewhere, there were major developments in cancer research and gene therapy could help combat hearing loss.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

This is the latest episode of the free DDW narrated podcast, titled "Overcoming barriers to patient access", which covers two articles written for DDW Volume 25 – Issue 1, Winter 2023/24. They are called: "Scaling up: The need for human cells to give better access to cell therapies" and "Decentralised identities: Blockchain based informed consent."  In the first article, DDW Editor Reece Armstrong speaks to Kathryn Golden, SVP Technical Operations and Manufacturing at bit.bio. They discuss novel technologies, and methods to manufacture human cells for therapies so more patients can access these treatments. In the second article, industry experts explain how blockchain can fundamentally enhance clinical trials.  

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the previous week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry news. Last week, the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine was awarded to three scientists for their discovery on regulatory T cells. Elsewhere, AI use continues to rise in pharma and biotech, while CAR-T therapy has been used for the first time to treat ulcerative colitis.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates.  This week's news is led by the agreement by Genmab to acquire Merus, an announcement which could have important ramifications in cancer research. Scientists have also made breakthroughs in pancreatic cancer, as well as in the understanding of Covid 'brain fog'. 

In the In Conversation With series, a part of the free DDW podcast, DDW speaks with members of the drug discovery industry about their work and how it helps turn science into business.    In this episode, Megan Thomas is in conversation with Thibaud Portal, Founder and COO of Alys Pharmaceuticals, a biotech launched in 2024 with a landmark $100 million seed round. The conversation explores the vision behind founding Alys, the role of strategic collaborations with leading scientists, and the rationale for building a diversified dermatology pipeline spanning atopic dermatitis, systemic mastocytosis, and rare conditions such as Cold Urticaria.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates. In this week's news, results from a clinical trial offer hope for the first time that Huntington's disease can be slowed. Elsewhere, new synthetic kidneys could be 'revolutionary' tools for kidney disease research, and pharma giant Merck has partnered with technology company Siemens to develop AI projects. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights Podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Bruno Quinney narrates five key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates. In this week's news, AstraZeneca has halted its £200 million research investment in the UK. Elsewhere, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has fast-tracked a gene therapy, CAR-T therapy could be an effective cancer treatment, and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has updated its thresholds for ultra-rare disease drugs. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

In the In Conversation With series, a part of the free DDW podcast, DDW speaks with members of the drug discovery industry about their work and how it helps turn science into business.    In this episode, Megan Thomas is in conversation with Emma Johnson, CEO of Essential Pharma, about the company's move into clinical development, with the acquisition of Renaissance Pharma's immunotherapy asset in development for the treatment of high-risk neuroblastoma in children.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

In the In Conversation With series, a part of the free DDW podcast, DDW speaks with members of the drug discovery industry about their work and how it helps turn science into business.    In this episode, Megan Thomas is in conversation with Joel Stanley, CEO of Ajna Biosciences. We explore the promise and challenges of botanical drugs, focusing on Ajna Biosciences' approach to developing therapeutics derived from plants such as cannabinoids and psychedelics. Joel reflects on his experience co-founding Charlotte's Web during the early medical cannabis movement and how that shaped his perspective on botanical drug development. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Megan Thomas narrates five key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates. The news this week has emphasised the importance of shared knowledge and expertise to the development of new drugs, whether that is through research collaboration agreements or mergers and acquisitions, with a number of new deals across different therapy areas. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

This is the latest episode of the free DDW narrated podcast, titled "Strategies and challenges in therapeutic development and lab practice", which covers three articles written for DDW Volume 24 – Issue 4, Fall 2023. They are called: "The inner workings of antibiotics", "Targeting advances in immunotherapies", and "The considerations for building sustainable labs in pharma". In the first article, Dr Luke Clifton, Instrument Scientist at ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, explains the molecular mechanism behind antibiotics. In the second article, DDW Editor Reece Armstrong speaks to Christian Leisner, Chief Executive Officer of antibody therapeutics' developer CDR-Life about methods to increase access to antigens and improving immunotherapy treatments. In the third article, DDW Editor Reece Armstrong speaks to Will Fogden, UK Development Manager, Kadans Science Partner, about sustainable efforts in pharma and the considerations industry needs to take into account when developing sustainable buildings.

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Megan Thomas narrates five key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates. This week has seen some incredible advances in immunotherapy, including the development of a therapy that combines natural killer and CAR-T cells, and an off-the-shelf cancer vaccine that could revolutionise treatment for patients with one of the most common cancer-driving mutations. You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts. 

The latest episode of the DDW Highlights podcast is now available to listen to below. DDW's Megan Thomas narrates five key stories of the week to keep DDW subscribers up-to-date on the latest industry updates. In the week that the US Department of Health and Human Services cancelled multiple contracts investigating mRNA vaccines, a number of other clinical trials have made the headlines.  You can listen below, or find The Drug Discovery World Podcast on Spotify, Google Play and Apple Podcasts.