Multispecific Antibodies and Antibody Drug Conjugates for Hard-to-Treat Cancers and Autoimmune Diseases with Dr. Paul Moore Zymeworks TRANSCRIPT
Release Date: 05/12/2025
Next Generation Monoclonal Antibodies for Inflammatory Respiratory Diseases with Barry Quart Connect Biopharma TRANSCRIPT
Empowered Patient Podcast
Barry Quart, CEO of Connect Biopharma, is developing the next generation of monoclonal antibodies targeting inflammatory respiratory diseases such as COPD and asthma. Administered subcutaneously, their lead program targets IL-4 and has demonstrated the ability to rapidly improve airway function and reduce the incidence of acute exacerbations in these patients. Current treatments rely on steroids and bronchodilators, which do not address the underlying inflammatory causes, an area that has largely been under-addressed by other biologic developers. Barry explains, "Connect has been dedicated...
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Next Generation Monoclonal Antibodies for Inflammatory Respiratory Diseases with Barry Quart Connect Biopharma
Empowered Patient Podcast
Barry Quart, CEO of Connect Biopharma, is developing the next generation of monoclonal antibodies targeting inflammatory respiratory diseases such as COPD and asthma. Administered subcutaneously, their lead program targets IL-4 and has demonstrated the ability to rapidly improve airway function and reduce the incidence of acute exacerbations in these patients. Current treatments rely on steroids and bronchodilators, which do not address the underlying inflammatory causes, an area that has largely been under-addressed by other biologic developers. Barry explains, "Connect has been dedicated...
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Scalable MSC Platform Enabling Next Wave of Stem Cell Therapies with Dr. Kilian Kelly Cynata Therapeutics TRANSCRIPT
Empowered Patient Podcast
Dr. Kilian Kelly, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Cynata Therapeutics, has taken on the challenge of manufacturing stem cell therapies consistently and at scale in order to drive the advancements necessary for the next generation of regenerative medicine. Cynata is employing a novel approach that utilizes a single source of pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and mesenchymal cell ancestors (MCAs) to generate mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Lead programs are targeting graft-versus-host disease, osteoarthritis, and diabetic wounds, where clinical trials have shown great promise to...
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Scalable MSC Platform Enabling Next Wave of Stem Cell Therapies with Dr. Kilian Kelly Cynata Therapeutics
Empowered Patient Podcast
Dr. Kilian Kelly, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Cynata Therapeutics, has taken on the challenge of manufacturing stem cell therapies consistently and at scale in order to drive the advancements necessary for the next generation of regenerative medicine. Cynata is employing a novel approach that utilizes a single source of pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and mesenchymal cell ancestors (MCAs) to generate mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Lead programs are targeting graft-versus-host disease, osteoarthritis, and diabetic wounds, where clinical trials have shown great promise to...
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Digital Tools for Caregivers and Patients to Navigate Challenges of Aging with Shauna Sweeney tendercare TRANSCRIPT
Empowered Patient Podcast
Shauna Sweeney, Founder of tendercare, aims to assist caregivers with digital tools and expert support to simplify the process of caring for an aging family member. Recognizing the essential role of caregivers in the quality of life of the patient, tendercare provides a user-friendly interface that incorporates data from wearables and remote sensors to identify early warning signs of risks, help coordinate care, and encourage proactive preparation. The Magic Magnet feature allows caregivers and emergency responders to quickly update and share critical health information. Shauna...
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Digital Tools for Caregivers and Patients to Navigate Challenges of Aging with Shauna Sweeney tendercare
Empowered Patient Podcast
Shauna Sweeney, Founder of tendercare, aims to assist caregivers with digital tools and expert support to simplify the process of caring for an aging family member. Recognizing the essential role of caregivers in the quality of life of the patient, tendercare provides a user-friendly interface that incorporates data from wearables and remote sensors to identify early warning signs of risks, help coordinate care, and encourage proactive preparation. The Magic Magnet feature allows caregivers and emergency responders to quickly update and share critical health information. Shauna...
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How Behavioral Economics is Transforming Healthcare Engagement with Karen Sussman Horgan VAL Health TRANSCRIPT
Empowered Patient Podcast
Karen Sussman Horgan is the Co-Founder and CEO of VAL Health, a behavioral economics consulting firm that helps healthcare organizations drive engagement and nudge patients to improve their health and lifestyle choices. Behavioral economics is the science of understanding how patients make irrational choices based on biases, fear, and faulty analysis of outcomes and risk. Nudges can be carrots or sticks, but in healthcare, the focus is on making the right path easier to follow, reducing friction, and introducing positive reinforcements rather than penalties. Karen explains, "We work across...
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How Behavioral Economics is Transforming Healthcare Engagement with Karen Sussman Horgan VAL Health
Empowered Patient Podcast
Karen Sussman Horgan is the Co-Founder and CEO of VAL Health, a behavioral economics consulting firm that helps healthcare organizations drive engagement and nudge patients to improve their health and lifestyle choices. Behavioral economics is the science of understanding how patients make irrational choices based on biases, fear, and faulty analysis of outcomes and risk. Nudges can be carrots or sticks, but in healthcare, the focus is on making the right path easier to follow, reducing friction, and introducing positive reinforcements rather than penalties. Karen explains, "We work across...
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Transforming Provider Engagement by Using Comprehensive Data with Christine Lee AnalyticsIQ TRANSCRIPT
Empowered Patient Podcast
Christine Lee, Head of Health Strategy and Partnerships at AnalyticsIQ, focuses on helping healthcare brands and pharmaceutical companies better understand and engage with healthcare providers by taking into account data beyond their professional lives. This data-driven Provider as a Person approach analyzes the healthcare professional's personal characteristics, outside interests, decision-making style, and preferred method of communication. The goal is to foster more meaningful relationships with providers, address provider burnout, and improve patient outcomes. Christine explains,...
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Transforming Provider Engagement by Using Comprehensive Data with Christine Lee AnalyticsIQ
Empowered Patient Podcast
Christine Lee, Head of Health Strategy and Partnerships at AnalyticsIQ, focuses on helping healthcare brands and pharmaceutical companies better understand and engage with healthcare providers by taking into account data beyond their professional lives. This data-driven Provider as a Person approach analyzes the healthcare professional's personal characteristics, outside interests, decision-making style, and preferred method of communication. The goal is to foster more meaningful relationships with providers, address provider burnout, and improve patient outcomes. Christine explains,...
info_outlineDr. Paul Moore, Chief Scientific Officer at Zymeworks, focuses on developing targeted therapies, particularly multispecific antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates for hard-to-treat cancers such as gynecological, thoracic, and digestive tract cancers. This approach can target multiple areas on tumor cells and immune cells, potentially overcoming tumor heterogeneity and allowing for immune system modulation. The platform allows for a plug-and-play approach, enabling the development of therapies for oncology and autoimmune diseases.
Paul explains, "So, multispecific antibodies are antibodies. Antibodies traditionally have a single target that they bind, so they're monoclonal and hit a specific target. A lot of excitement is generated for bispecific antibodies, which are engineered to bind two targets. Then with multispecifics, you are trying to broaden even further the number of targets or binding sites you've incorporated into your drug so that you can simultaneously interact with more than one target. The reason that can be important is that allows and facilitates new biology that is not possible for just a monoclonal antibody or a single antibody-targeting drug conjugate."
"Multispecifics open up the opportunity to take two targets that are on different cells, different cell populations. So, you can have a target on a tumor cell you're trying to target. Then you can have a target on an immune cell like a T cell, which you can co-engage. You can bridge a T cell to a binding domain that's on a multispecific with your second specificity, which can bind to the cell. And what that allows you to do is bring the T cell into the environment of the tumor cell, and through that engagement, the T cell can kill the tumor cell. So that is the foundation of a lot of excitement in bispecifics."
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