Drug Discovery News and Research

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The drug discovery process begins with recognizing a disease or clinical condition in which there is a lack of adequate medical treatment. Once a potential drug has been identified, pre-clinical research can begin. This process includes several stages; the first of which involves identifying and validating the prospective drug’s target through assay development, high throughput screening, hit identification and finally, lead optimization. Once the pre-clinical process is complete, the newly synthesized drug candidate is selected for future clinical development.

Indole chemistry breakthrough opens doors for more effective drug synthesis

Indole, a molecule made up of a six-membered benzene ring fused to a five-membered ring containing nitrogen, forms the core structure of many biologically active compounds.

25 Aug 2025

Balancing speed and selectivity is key for designing effective targeted covalent inhibitors

One class of drugs that has shown promise in treating diseases ranging from lung cancer to COVID-19 are targeted covalent inhibitors (TCIs).

22 Aug 2025

Midkine found to prevent Alzheimer’s-related protein assemblies

Scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital demonstrated for the first time that the protein midkine plays a preventative role against Alzheimer's disease.

21 Aug 2025

Nanodroplet array revolutionizes search for new drugs

Until now, the early phase of drug discovery for the development of new therapeutics has been both cost- and time-intensive.

21 Aug 2025

Redefining BLI: Near-SPR performance built for real-world biologics

Discover how the next-generation technology delivers near-SPR performance tailored for the complexities of real-world biologics.

From Sartorius 19 Aug 2025

Using AI to enhance the design of nanoparticles for RNA therapies

Using artificial intelligence, MIT researchers have come up with a new way to design nanoparticles that can more efficiently deliver RNA vaccines and other types of RNA therapies.

18 Aug 2025

New drug discovery platform aims to deliver first-in-class therapies

65LAB has awarded US$1.5 million (approx. S$1.9 million) to Professor Enrico Petretto to advance a breakthrough drug discovery platform developed at Duke-NUS Medical School. The project aims to deliver first-in-class antifibrotic therapies for lung and kidney diseases-conditions that currently have no effective treatment.

14 Aug 2025

Leading organizations announce research initiative to uncover why ALS affects high-performing populations

Answer ALS, in collaboration with ALS Therapy Development Institute (ALS TDI) and Augie's Quest, today announced plans to launch Champion Insights, an ambitious research initiative designed to uncover critical genetic and metabolic mechanisms that may explain the significantly higher incidence of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) among endurance athletes, military service members, and potentially other high-performing populations.

13 Aug 2025

Study investigates aging-related mechanisms in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis using AI approaches

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic and progressive lung disease characterized by the excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix components, leading to a gradual decline in lung function and, ultimately, respiratory failure.

13 Aug 2025

AI breakthrough designs peptide drugs to target previously untreatable proteins

A study published in Nature Biotechnology reveals a powerful new use for artificial intelligence: designing small, drug-like molecules that can stick to and break down harmful proteins in the body - even when scientists don't know what those proteins look like.

13 Aug 2025

Nudibranchs (sea slugs) emerge as a promising source of cancer drugs

Researchers reviewed the antitumor potential of bioactive compounds from nudibranchs, marine mollusks that acquire or synthesize potent chemical defenses. These compounds, often sourced from their diet, show promising cancer-fighting activity through mechanisms like DNA damage, oxidative stress, and apoptosis.

12 Aug 2025

Sunil Shah and Dr Catherine Elton join Atelerix's Board to drive global commercial expansion

Atelerix, a biotech company revolutionizing cell preservation and biological transport with its pioneering hydrogel encapsulation technology, today announced the appointments of Sunil Shah as Chair of the Board and Dr Catherine Elton as Non-Executive Director.

12 Aug 2025

AI model can design optimal drug candidates without any prior molecular data

Traditional drug development methods involve identifying a target protein (e.g., a cancer cell receptor) that causes disease, and then searching through countless molecular candidates (potential drugs) that could bind to that protein and block its function.

11 Aug 2025

Revolutionizing therapeutic protein design with synthetic biology

In medicine and biotechnology, the ability to evolve proteins with new or improved functions is crucial, but current methods are often slow and laborious.

8 Aug 2025

Deep learning model predicts adverse drug reactions from chemical structure

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are a significant cause of hospital admissions and treatment discontinuation worldwide. Conventional approaches often fail to detect rare or delayed effects of medicinal products.

7 Aug 2025

Scaling organ‑chip technology for human‑relevant drug discovery

Discover how AVA brings scale and reproducibility to organ‑chip technology, enabling human‑relevant insights that accelerate drug discovery workflows.

From Emulate, Inc. 5 Aug 2025

LptM protein revealed as essential to outer membrane stability in bacteria

Gram-negative bacteria pose a significant threat to global health due to their high resistance to antibiotics compared to that of Gram-positive bacteria.

4 Aug 2025

Promega Plasmid Collection, available through Addgene, equips industry and academic researchers with powerful bioluminescent assays that provide deeper insights into endogenous cellular biology

Addgene, a purpose-driven organization helping scientists conduct experiments with greater ease, speed, and reproducibility, today announced a strategic partnership with Promega to expand Addgene’s vast plasmid repository with the launch of the Promega Plasmid Collection.

From Promega Corporation 31 Jul 2025

Centauri Therapeutics receives an additional $5.1 M from CARB-X to progress ABX-01 lead compound to first in human clinical trials

Centauri Therapeutics Limited ('Centauri'), an immunotherapy company with a unique and proprietary platform technology applicable across a wide range of therapeutic indications, announced today that CARB-X (Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator) has provided an additional $5.1 M in funding for the development of their lead compound.

29 Jul 2025

Australian scientists uncover new way to halt aggressive cancer growth

Australian researchers have discovered a promising new strategy to suppress the growth of aggressive and hard-to-treat cancers by targeting a specialized molecular process known as 'minor splicing'.

28 Jul 2025