#108 - Horticulture hijinks and hypoallergenic hounds
The coffee break biotech roundup, by SomX.
Hello, my fellow horticulturists
This week is a mixed flower bed: pioneering womb surgery gives babies born with abdominal defects a chance to blossom, AstraZeneca sprawls across the oncology space with a Bristol Myers Squibb merger, scientists have pup-agated canines that won’t have you reaching for antihistamines, a breakthrough MND treatment takes root in human trials, and some deadly plants turn out to have a healing streak.
Keep digging for cures!
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Discover 🔍
👶 Woman has pioneering womb surgery to fix ‘miracle’ baby with intestines outside its body (BBC News): A British baby became the third in the world to undergo pioneering surgery in the womb to treat complex gastroschisis, a life-threatening abdominal wall defect in which the bowel develops outside the body. Doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital used keyhole foetal surgery at 26 weeks’ gestation to push baby Theo’s organs back into his abdomen; Theo was delivered successfully in February.
Our take: By correcting complex gastroschisis before birth, the procedure could dramatically shorten or eliminate neonatal intensive care stays that, in the most complex cases, can run to six months, requiring multiple surgeries and prolonged IV feeding. Michael Belfort, the surgeon who led the trial, thinks the innovative technique opens up the womb as a surgical space more broadly, noting that both cardiac and lung operations could potentially be performed in utero.
🤑 AstraZeneca falls to third-largest UK company amid US merger talks (The Guardian): AstraZeneca’s shares fell sharply this week after reports that it is in talks to merge with Bristol Myers Squibb, in a deal that could value the combined companies at nearly $400B. The takeover would create the world’s fourth-largest drugmaker by market capitalisation and result in a major expansion of AstraZeneca’s stateside presence, but the move is set to draw regulatory scrutiny given the overlap between the two firms’ oncology portfolios.
Our take: For three years, AstraZeneca has built its pipeline cheaply, licensing drugs from Chinese biotechs for small sums upfront and paying the rest only if they work. Bristol Myers Squibb is the opposite kind of bet: a $133B company with a shrinking growth outlook and a run of patent expiries ahead of it. AstraZeneca is forecast to post double-digit earnings growth through 2030 on its own, and analysts are struggling to see the rationale for this mega-merger proposal.
🐕 Fur real: Biotech startup eliminates major dog allergen in beagle pups using CRISPR (GEN): A New York start-up has used CRISPR to breed two beagle puppies that no longer produce Can f 1, a small lipocalin protein linked to sneezing, itchy eyes, rashes and asthma. The two new pups, Alfie and Bailey, are now nearly two years old, healthy, and behaviourally normal. This development opens the door to dogs that don’t trigger allergies, shifting treatment from managing people’s immune response to removing the allergen at source.
Our take: They may be man’s best friend, but one in seven people worldwide are allergic to our canine pals. Knocking out Can f 1 should take the edge off most reactions, though it is the dominant allergen rather than the only one, so these dogs are not fully hypoallergenic. The researchers now hope to scale their work safely into secondary allergens and other breeds, with a focus on creating allergy-safe companion and service animals.
💊 MND drug entering human trials could help 97% of sufferers (The Times): A new drug for motor neurone disease is set to enter human trials. Developed from UCL research, TRCN-1023 helps cells restore production of UNC13A, a protein vital for communication between motor neurones and muscles. While it is not a cure, researchers hope it could slow disease progression and offer one of the most broadly applicable MND treatments developed in years.
Our take: Up until now, MND drug development has mostly focused on small genetic subgroups; tofersen, the first MND drug licensed in the UK in decades, works only for the roughly 2% of patients with SOD1 mutations. TRCN-1023, on the other hand, targets a protein shortfall found in 97% of cases, so it could impact far more people. However, the drug’s value will depend heavily on how early patients receive it, potentially adding pressure on diagnosis and testing, and making earlier detection as important as the treatment itself.
And finally…
💐 Deadly flowers may unlock the secret to synthesising potent new medicines (BioTechniques): Scientists have uncovered six enzymes that help two highly poisonous plants – wolfsbane and larkspur – produce atisinium, a complex alkaloid with potential applications in pain, malaria and cancer treatment. By recreating parts of the pathway in tobacco plants, the team has taken an important step towards producing these hard-to-make compounds more sustainably, turning nature’s chemical weapons into possible starting points for new medicines.
Our take: Atisinium belongs to the diterpenoid alkaloids, a family that has long interested drug developers but whose structural complexity has made the compounds very difficult to synthesise chemically. Rebuilding the pathway in tobacco turns the plants into a research platform where the six enzymes can be tested, tweaked and used to explore related compounds long before anyone attempts production at scale.
Tune in 🎧
🧠 Gain Therapeutics: a first-in-class, disease-modifying therapy for Parkinson’s: Gene Mack discusses his journey from biochemistry and Wall Street to biotech leadership.
🕵️ Nick Myerberg, partner and Head of AI at Braidwell on AI’s next era in drug discovery: The episode examines why AI has yet to deliver approved medicines, and what separates a durable platform from the hype.
💊 A rescue model for shelved drug candidates with Annette Bakker, PhD and Andrew Lo, PhD: The duo discuss how shelved medicines can be matched with new developers and funding, using Gomekli’s route from an abandoned Pfizer candidate to an approved NF1 therapy.
Apply ✍️
💬 Global Brand Communications, Astellas Pharma: Are you skilled at turning complex scientific, medical and business information into clear brand communications? This UK-based role will involve shaping global strategies and advising cross-functional brand teams.
🧑⚕️ Director of Statistical Science – Global Medical Affairs/Payer Biometrics, AstraZeneca: Do you know your way around oncology statistics, real-world evidence and payer strategies? This position will entail managing and developing a global team of statisticians, shaping study design and quantitative decision-making.
🧪 Senior Director, Biologics Platform Technologies Head, GSK: Experienced in industrialising biologics manufacturing technologies at scale? In this senior leadership role, you will shape global platform strategy and oversee technology transfers.
RSVP 📆
🧑🔬 10-13.08 | The Bioprocessing Summit 2026 | Boston, USA: A global meeting for bioprocessing scientists, engineers and industry leaders across biologics, cell and gene therapy, RNA and emerging modalities.
🧬 20-21.08 | 15th International Conference on Biotechnology | London, UK: Explore advances in genetic engineering, tissue engineering, microbial biotechnology, biofabrication, nanobiotechnology and pharmaceutical innovation.
💡 24.08 | BioTech Startups, Investors, Innovators & Professionals Networking Event | London, UK: An evening bringing together biotech founders, investors, researchers and industry professionals to build connections, share ideas and explore new opportunities for collaboration across biotechnology and life sciences.
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