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profluent

Fortune: Biotech startup Profluent says it has discovered AI ‘scaling laws’ for AI models used in protein design

Profluent, a biotechnology company that is using AI to design proteins, says it has demonstrated “scaling laws” in the performance of AI models for biology that are similar to those AI researchers have previously claimed for AI models built to handle language. Read post
gigacrop

Forbes: A Possible Step-Change for Plant Growth By Upgrading Photosynthesis

GigaCrop was founded by CEO Chris Eiben in 2020 as part of a fellowship with the Berkeley Lab Cyclotron Road program in partnership with non-profit Activate funded by the U.S. DOE., and today (March 11th 2025) they announced $4.5 million of pre-seed round funding led by a venture capital group in California called Playground Global. Read post
pitchbook

PitchBook Report – Emerging Space Brief: Longevity Tech

Standout deals include NewLimit’s $72.3 million raise to advance epigenetic rejuvenation and Cyclarity Therapeutics’ $10.3 million round to push forward its senolytic platform. Despite regulatory gray areas and a long road to clinical validation, momentum is building as longevity biotech shifts from speculative science to a potential cornerstone of future healthcare. Read post
mother with her child in a farm

Verinomics Introduces Transgene-Free Gene Editing and Genomic-Driven Accelerated Breeding Platforms for Specialty Crops

Verinomics, a leader in agricultural genomics and gene editing, today unveiled two breakthrough platforms designed to accelerate specialty crop innovation: Genesis™, a transgene-free gene editing platform, primarily for vegetatively propagated crops and Genova™, a genomic-driven breeding acceleration platform for both seed and vegetatively propagated crops. Together, these technologies streamline trait discovery and product development, delivering high-value, market-ready crops faster than ever before. Read post
aikium

Breaking the ‘Undruggable’ Barrier with AI and Synthetic Biology: Eswar Iyer, CEO of Aikium

For decades, drug developers have struggled with so-called "undruggable" proteins—those regions of the proteome that evade traditional small molecules and antibodies. But Aikium, led by Eswar Iyer, could be changing the game. In today’s show, Iyer, a prolific scientist with over 100 patents and a background in George Church’s lab, shares how his company is tackling one of the toughest challenges in therapeutics. Read post

At Biotech’s Biggest Conference, UC Berkeley Shows Off Startups

In a way, biotech startup Editpep’s story is one faced by many new life sciences companies in a tough funding environment; in a way, too, it is so Berkeley. Co-founded by University of California, Berkeley postdoctoral researcher looking at ways to cure genetic diseases, an MBA student and a scientific disciple of CRISPR gene-editing technology pioneer Jennifer Doudna, Editpep last month secured an $8.4 million seed financing to take on pediatric brain cancer and other brain diseases. Read post
Depiction of atherosclerosis

Cyclarity Therapeutics Secures Approval for First-in-Human Clinical Trial

Cyclarity Therapeutics is pleased to announce regulatory approval to begin its first-in-human clinical trial. The trial will be conducted at CMAX, one of Australia’s leading clinical research centers, in partnership with Monash University. This effort will be led by Dr. Stephen Nicholls of the Victorian Heart Institute (VHI), a distinguished leader in cardiovascular medicine. In addition to a traditional SAD/MAD phase 1 trial, the authorization includes an allowance to enroll 12 patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) to assess the safety of UDP-003 in individuals with plaque buildup, as well as to explore anecdotal evidence of efficacy. This represents a critical first step in evaluating the potential impact of our therapy in a population with high unmet need. Read post
Clockwise from top left: Shakked Halperin, Tim Craven, the Profluent team, the Radar team, members of HOPO Therapeutics

Looking Forward to 2025 from Our Top Five Stories of 2024

Happy new year! At Bakar Labs we’re looking forward to a great 2025, starting of course with the JP Morgan Healthcare Conference in SF. Other highlights in the near future: the return of our JETRO entrepreneurs from Japan; the rollout of the Bakar Climate Labs pilot program (look for our web story on Futurebio, our first climate tech tenant); if you’re at the BIO International Convention in Boston, look for our team, we’ll be there. You can count on our September Showcase and our November anniversary party to be bangers. Community is our #1 asset. Thank you for being part of it! Read post

Startup ResVita Bio Targets Rare, Deadly Skin Disease With a Bacterial Factory

Amin Zargar literally put skin in his scientific game. Now he hopes to add a deeper layer of funding to his East Bay startup to boost its work on a treatment for a rare and deadly skin disease. Zargar as a postdoctoral fellow was on an academic track and looking for a job as he stress-tested an idea kicked around with mentor Jay Keasling, a pioneer in synthetic biology at UC Berkeley. What if, they thought, they could genetically engineer a bacteria to convert sugars in skin lotions into therapeutic proteins continuously pumped onto the skin's surface? In essence, the bacteria would become a 24/7 factory for producing healing proteins. Read post
Dart hits the bullseye

ARIZ One of “Eight Nanotechnology Companies to Watch Out for”

The company’s product is composed of a nanoparticle, which is customized based on the kind of cancer it is attacking, and has small interfering RNA (siRNA) that kill proteins that drive cancer without harming the neighboring healthy cells, cancer cell targeting peptides, as well as the chemotherapy drug – which is encapsulated within the nanoparticle. The nanoparticle is PEGylated, a process by which the polymer polyethylene glycol (PEG) is added to protect the drug. Read post
RVB cells delivering protein therapy continuously on skin

NIH Awards ResVita Bio a $2M Phase II SBIR Grant for Continuous Protein Therapy for Netherton Syndrome

ResVita Bio is pioneering continuous protein therapy, delivered through a genetically engineered probiotic platform that temporarily colonizes the skin and continuously releases therapeutic proteins, such as LEKTI, to inhibit protease activity. This continuous delivery method ensures high levels of the therapeutic agent at the site of damage, restoring the integrity of the skin barrier. This represents a significant shift from traditional therapies, which may not provide sustained treatment at the site of the disease. Read post