BioSpace News Editor Greg Slabodkin gives his takeaways from this year’s J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference. After a challenging 2023, the biopharma industry appears to be turning a corner, with excitement about an improved outlook for the sector. Certain areas in particular stood out, including cell and gene therapy, artificial intelligence (AI), neuroscience and GLP1. At the same time, attendees acknowledged several challenges that lay ahead, including policy considerations such as the ramifications of the Inflation Reduction Act on drug development.
“It’s not all downhill from here—significant hurdles still face the biopharma industry—but the sector feels invigorated to take on the challenge,” Slabodkin wrote. “Let the journey begin!”
Takeda Touts Promise of Latest Narcolepsy Candidate
Saftey issues may have quashed the development of Takeda’s earlier orexin candidate, but Elena Koundourakis says the company “bounced back big time.” Koundourakis, who leads the company’s orexin franchise, told BioSpace that the company quickly shifted its focus from the previous orexin candidate, TAK-994, to its latest orexin product, TAK-816, and will soon have results to share from an ongoing Phase II trial. “It has the potential to serve [an] unmet need in several indications,” Koundourakis said.
