09.08.22 -- Listen Now: Vaxxinity's Biologic Revolution, Best Practices for Partnering with a CDMO, and more!

Check out the latest episodes from Cell & Gene: The Podcast and Business of Biotech. As a member of the Life Science Connect community, you have access to content beyond our weekly newsletters, including our podcast series. Don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss an episode!

Sernova Corp. is a clinical-stage regenerative therapies company currently focused on insulin-dependent diabetes. CEO and president Philip Toleikis, Ph.D., details the company's ongoing clinical trial to treat Type 1 diabetes (T1D) as well as the very real potential to progress from simply masking symptoms to having a functional cure for T1D. Toleikis also provides his take on the near-term future of regenerative medicine.

Emily Moran, VP of vector manufacturing, and Avi Nandi, VP of process development at the Center for Breakthrough Medicines, share key considerations for biotechs looking to partner with a CDMO. During this episode, biotechs will learn how to reduce risk, lower costs, and how to better manage expectations when it comes to the biotech/CDMO relationship.

While many clinical-stage biopharmas are contracting or holding the line through the current market slump, Portage Biotech leaders Ian Walters, Allan Shaw, and company are making moves. The company recently acquired Tarus Therapeutics and iOx Therapeutics Ltd., extending its pipeline and positioning itself to meet some aggressive investor expectations. Here, Shaw dissects the deals, digging into the M&A strategy at Portage and offering advice from the batter's box to leaders of early-stage biotechs.

Raman Sehgal has made a career out of putting his energy — and he's got a lot of it — into building biotech outsourcing companies and the people who make them run. After years spent supporting several from within, he launched a firm dedicated to helping CROs, CDMOs, CPOs, and other providers to the biotech ecosystem build their businesses.

Vaxxinity CEO Mei Mei Hu joins us to share Vaxxinity's strategy, what "democratization" and "revolution" really mean, why traditional vaccines and biologic therapies are converging to form the "third biologic revolution," and a whole lot more. 

As biotech capital markets continue to restrict access to funding for emerging biopharmas, you might be surprised by how many federal dollars get left on the negotiating table. To that end, James Thomas Coates, Ph.D., and his team at Decisive Point have carved out a niche in the venture capital space.