Roundtable Discussion; The Future of Mineral Sands. Watch the video here.
The major increase in share price will come from them announcing they have a large partner to fully fund phase 2 in my opinion. This is something they have already stated will happen. We still have the additional patient enrolment results and to see if they have found a maximum tolerated dose.
Again in my opinion, all the approvals we have received to date and to come from the FDA just validates the investment case for a large partner to jump on board. It’s interesting to think about how they will partner up ie licensing deals with milestones or an equity deal with the large pharma company taking a stake in the company or they could buy us outright.
We have a shareholder letter due going on last year’s letter at some point next week so it should be a good update and see what is planned for this year. They stated also they are applying for a large grant in February which is only a few weeks away so I’m interested to see what that entails.
Also we could hear at any point that they have started a phase 1 for paediatric patients which again they’ve already said they’ve been discussing with partners this and if so it would be fully funded.
So lots of other exciting things that could drastically improve our share price other than the voucher which they may not even need
GLA!!!
Goldman Sachs is planning to make a splash in the life sciences sector, taking in $650 million for its first fund aimed at the drug development space.
The size of the West Street Life Sciences I fund, which overshot its original target, makes it one of the largest first-time private life sciences growth funds, Goldman Sachs Asset Management claimed in a Jan. 3 release. The $650 million in equity commitments was drawn from a “global, diverse group of institutional, strategic and high net worth investors."
Around $90 million of the fund has already been parceled out to five companies in the group’s portfolio, including bladder cancer-focused Moma Therapeutics, molecular glue developer Nested Therapeutics and neurological disease biotech Rapport Therapeutics.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management has identified several themes of fundamental innovation as well as structural shifts that we believe will drive significant growth in the coming decades,” the firm said in the release. “These themes include precision medicine, genetic medicine, cell therapy, immunotherapy, synthetic biology, and artificial intelligence.”
Amit Sinha, head of the Life Sciences Investing Group, said the sector is entering a “golden era of innovation.”
“We believe the current environment provides an attractive opportunity for investing in the next generation of leading life sciences companies,” Sinha added. “Through our global platform, we seek to be a capital provider of choice and help our companies realize their full potential.”
Goldman Sachs' $650 million haul will offer some reassurance against a backdrop of declining fundraises for biopharma. An analysis by PitchBook in early December suggested that by the end of 2022, biopharmas were projected to have raised about $24 billion across about 840 transactions—the lowest tally in four years.
https://www.fiercebiotech.com/biotech/attractive-opportunity-investing-goldman-sachs-closes-650m-fund-aimed-biotechs
Could
NIMBLE app expected to be a game-changer for people with brain metastases
The Brain Metastasis Program and the NIMBLE app show promise as game-changers for physicians who need treatment options for their brain metastasis patients.
With NIMBLE, doctors can provide faster access to the experts and resources needed to treat brain metastases. Creating the app was central to launching the Brain Metastases Program and addressing the individual complexity of care for these patients. The NIMBLE app functions as a virtual tumor board that is always available for real-time, doctor-to-doctor discussions. With NIMBLE, the Froedtert & MCW team can offer data-driven treatment recommendations delivered within hours as opposed to days with references to data and publications that support those recommendations. NIMBLE is expected to make treatment options more accessible and to accelerate the treatment path for patients who need it."
While the team hasn't formally published research on the Brain Metastases Program or NIMBLE app, it submitted a paper late in 2019 to an MCW quality symposium. A preliminary study showed that with the expedited, data-driven approach offered by NIMBLE, the typical seven to eight day hospital stay for brain metastasis patients was reduced to about three days. Usually, such patients require involvement from many specialists, and it takes time for all of them to see patients in the hospital. NIMBLE guidance can help resolve this pause — and lower costs.
The app is the only one of its kind in the U.S. and will be available later in 2020 at no cost to physicians through app stores for iOS and Android platforms. NIMBLE offers unique benefits for brain metastasis patients and their doctors:
Decreases the wait: Patients and their doctors don't have to wait for the weekly in-person tumor board for a consultation
Offers immediate recommendations — in hours, not days
Expands resources for cancer providers caring for a brain metastasis patient
Provides a more streamlined path to treatment
Gives a second opinion without having to travel
Reduces hospital stay: For brain metastasis patients who have been admitted to the hospital, length of stay can be reduced by as much as seven days — no waiting for experts to gather to recommend treatment.
IQ-AI subsidiary Imaging Biometrics (IB) was awarded a US patent for its artificial intelligence (AI) software technology that eliminates the need for gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) in medical imaging exams. The fully automated AI technology, called IB Zero G, accepts non-contrast medical images as inputs and produces a synthetic image series that mimics contrast-enhanced images of comparable diagnostic quality. Currently in the investigational stage, IB Zero G is compatible with all MRI system platforms.
Injected intravenously, GBCAs improve diagnostic interpretation of MR imaging by highlighting abnormal areas of internal tissues and structures. Gadolinium, a heavy metal, has special paramagnetic properties which make it useful as a contrast agent. However, gadolinium can stay in a body for years, introducing potential safety and liability concerns for patients and healthcare institutions. While there are no known long-term adverse side effects from retained gadolinium in most patients, certain patients are at higher risk of adverse side effects after receiving GBCAs. IB Zero G offers an extremely attractive alternative for these patients and healthcare providers.
By eliminating the need to acquire a contrast-enhanced series, IB Zero G means less time in the scanner for patients. And for healthcare systems, IB Zero G provides increased scanner availability and a reduction in gadolinium expense.
“This patent underscores the major impact AI applications can have in healthcare,” said Michael Schmainda, CEO of IB. “IB Zero G has the potential to significantly disrupt routine clinical workflows on a global basis and help millions of patients receive higher quality and safer MR exams,” Schmainda added.
Great work by Mona Al-Gizawiy, PhD from the #SchmaindaLab!
Potent in vivo efficacy of oral gallium maltolate in treatment-resistant glioblastoma https://frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2023.1278157
#IBSoftware non-invasively demonstrated the anti-tumor effects of oral GaM.
@AlMusella
@theABTA
@NBTStweets
https://twitter.com/IQAI_IB/status/1740459982674444563
Another case study published using IB Software!:
https://thejns.org/doi/10.3171/CASE23446
"We report these findings to the broader neurosurgical community as the first standardized rCBV values in a pathologically confirmed case of NCC in the United States.
https://twitter.com/IQAI_IB/status/1738242072723796450
Fast Track Designation
The Fast Track Designation process helps to facilitate the development and expedite the review of new drugs that treat a serious medical condition and fill an unmet medical need. By speeding up these processes, new drugs can get to patients in need faster than they normally would through standard tracks.
Fast Track Designation is intended to address unmet medical needs and a wide range of serious conditions. A drug may be granted Fast Track Designation if it is believed to have an impact on patient survival, day-to-day functioning, or if it is believed that the condition will progress in severity if left untreated. Examples of serious conditions that treatment drugs may receive Fast Track Designation for include: AIDS, Alzheimer’s, heart failure, cancer, epilepsy, depression, and diabetes.
If a therapy already exists, Fast Track Designation may still be granted if it is believed a therapy will serve an unmet medical need by potentially being better than available therapies.
Drugs that receive Fast Track Designation from the FDA are eligible for some or all of the following benefits:
More frequent meetings with the FDA
More frequent written communication with the FDA
Eligibility for Accelerated Approval and Priority Review if criteria are met
Rolling review
Drug companies can request Fast Track Designation, and the request can occur any time during the drug development process. Upon receipt, the FDA will review the Fast Track Designation request and make a decision within 60 days. If granted, it is encouraged for drug companies to have frequent communication with the FDA to ensure questions and issues are resolved quickly so the drug can be approved soon and get to patients who would benefit from it.
They’ve already stated that funding will come mostly from a large pharmaceutical company
“The multi-site Phase 2 trial will require new funding which we anticipate will come substantially from a partnership arrangement with a large pharmaceutical company and grants, including those from charitable foundations and other institutions.”
Hopefully we will hear soon about the other phase 1 they are planning for children which they’ve already said
“significant philanthropic funding. Consortiums of non-profits exist that help fund clinical trials for children, either partially or in their entirety. We have already made connections and introduced our progress to one organization. In turn, they identified several hospitals with whom they have established relationships.”
New year is going to be exciting!! In my opinion the next couple of rns will be announcing a partnership for phase 2 with a large pharmaceutical company!
The London Stock Exchange suffered a second trading outage today as it was hit by an “incident” on its trading information system.
Only the FTSE 100, FTSE 250 and IOB securities are available for trading following the latest outage.
A similar incident affected about 2,000 stocks, including the likes of Asos and Deliveroo, for about half an hour this morning.
The operational notice on its website warned: “We are undertaking immediate analysis and will provide further updates through our live service portal.”
No reason has been given for the downtime.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/12/05/ftse-100-markets-news-live-thames-water-us-jobs/
Https://youtu.be/ZwVC1PUvtXk
Interesting explanation
Another example of the wider uses of gallium maltolate . This time a journal article treating burn wound infections.
https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/aac.01330-08