Guten tag from Berlin! As an analytically minded-person, it’s fascinating to connect with colleagues from around the world to discuss cutting-edge techniques and strategies for ensuring the quality, efficacy, and safety of mRNA-based therapeutics. That fascination led me to the mRNA Analytical Development Summit, held in Germany's capital city.
When it comes to large events, the best place to be is front and center. And at the 26th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) in Los Angeles, that’s where we were, right inside the door in the middle of the exhibition hall. Not only were we able to greet nearly everyone who came to the exhibits, for the first time we joined other Danaher companies in one centralized location, allowing us to jointly highlight the Danaher mission, helping people realize life’s potential, to clients, partners and the industry in general.
In the past, the TIDES USA conference event has been focused on oligonucleotide and peptide therapeutics, providing information on development trends and technologies for those industry segments. That is changing now, with an additional focus on mRNA therapeutics coming into the mix.
Partnerships and transformation are a large part of our evolving biotech landscape. Not surprisingly, they were two common themes at this year’s Meeting on the Med in Barcelona. As an example, attendees discussed how the lack of harmonization across EU member states has led to fragmented access to advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs), which varies from country to country. Chris Fox, president of Novartis Gene Therapies, used her company’s product, ZOLGENSMA®, as an example. It’s approved for use in 48 countries but is only accessible in 35.
Rapid evolution. In short, that’s what we’re seeing in the method development and assay life cycle field. The concepts have been around for quite some time, but now with updated and new guidance for analytical life cycle and analytical method development, we’re seeing a more dynamic period emerging in the space. This includes increased expectations for analytical method development and increased accountability for reporting development data.
I must admit, I’m a sucker for just about any list article. Show me a title such as, “8 Reasons Why…” or “10 Movies That…”, and there’s a pretty good chance I’ll click. I often find myself scrolling through the strangest lists, reviewing things that I really don’t care about – kitchen gadgets, closet organizing products, stocking stuffers. I’m hopeless. I’m compelled to click.
Genomic medicine field has progressed in leaps and bounds these last few years, and at the 3rd Annual CRISPR 2.0 conference, it was wonderful to again connect in person with colleagues to discuss those advances. It was a great opportunity to listen and learn from a prestigious lineup of gene editing experts from across the industry.
Every year, October marks the change in the season, the dropping of temperatures, and the height of conference season for biotech. This year’s ESGCT meeting in Edinburgh, Scotland, was the event’s first in-person occurrence since 2019, and it was exciting to be back – Edinburgh didn’t disappoint! There was rich dialogue amongst industry experts, healthy attendance with over 2,000 delegates, exceptional networking events, and the city of Edinburgh was a joy with several unseasonably sunny days.
