Friday March 13th It’s Friday already and time for Gene and Tonic, our wrap of the week’s headlines. On Monday, Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, announced that the iWatch is indeed a reality. The iWatch has all the wearable techies and mobile health folks doing somersaults. But it was what happened afterward that was so interesting. Did you hear about this? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Mar 13, 2015•4 min
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) genetic testing has had a bumpy ride. Back in 2010, Pathway Genomics and Walgreens made a deal to sell DTC genetic tests in thousands of Walgreens drugstores. Within 48 hours of the deal being announced, it collapsed. The FDA sent a letter to Pathway basically asking them what the hell they were doing. Walgreens quickly elected to put the kibosh on the partnership. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episo...
Mar 12, 2015•16 min
Go about anywhere in the life science industry, and you’ll run into someone who once worked at Affymetrix. Since the founding of Affymetrix and the development of what’s come to be known simply as the Affy chip, the company’s history has been intertwined with that of biotech and the genomics revolution. But what has become of the company today? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Mar 10, 2015•23 min
Join Theral for a quick wrap-up of the week's biotech news: The biggest news this week has been the flow of stories coming from last week’s AGBT conference held in Florida. This is the annual all out party for the all out darling of our industry, the sequencing space. Like a debutante ball, it’s where anybody who’s anybody comes out and does their curtsy to society. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspo...
Mar 06, 2015•5 min
Keira Havens is the co-founder of Revolution Bioengineering, and this week the company launched a crowd funding campaign (see video below) to produce flowers that can change colors. And what is the revolution? “We want to change the world,” says Keira. “We really want to make a difference in the way people think about biotechnology. For a long time it’s been the realm of large companies and behind-the-scenes labs, and we want to make it a part of folks' everyday lives.” This is a public episode....
Mar 05, 2015•13 min
Today we bring you a story which you probably wouldn’t have heard at last week’s AGBT conference at Marcos Island. While PacBio and 10X Genomics were getting most of the buzz at the annual show on all things sequencing, it could be the new BGI/Complete Genomics platform that steals the show later this year, says David Smith, a cancer researcher at the Mayo Clinic. In his research, David uses sequencing to analyze the connection between the human papillomavirus (HPV) with oropharyngeall cancer. T...
Mar 03, 2015•25 min
For many years, the trend in biotech was for drug development companies to pursue one or maybe two drug candidates, or assets, as they’re called in industry parlance. Go lean and attract the attention of big pharma or investors in the late stage trials. But today’s guest says there is more innovation when the biotech organization invests in a technology platform that produces multiple drug candidates. Paul Hastings is the CEO of OncoMed, a company developing drugs that target cancer stem cells. ...
Feb 24, 2015•25 min
In today’s special studio interview, the health tech duo, David Shaywitz and Lisa Suennen, walk us through the changing paradigms around healthcare. They offer their thoughts on some of the new digital health and peer-to-peer social platforms which are becoming integrated in daily clinical care. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Feb 20, 2015•28 min
One of those attending the recent White House gathering where Obama announced the Precision Medicine Initiative was a woman who has worked tirelessly as a patient advocate for over twenty years. She’s an award winning scientist and the CEO of the Genetic Alliance: Sharon Terry joins us to kick off a new series, Personalized Medicine and the Consumerization of Healthcare. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mend...
Feb 17, 2015•16 min
Today we bring you a story which fits nicely in the vein of personalized medicine. But this time with a twist. We talk with the CEO of Protagen, a company that has developed a platform to find new biomarkers for disease, particularly autoimmune diseases such as SLE, or Systemic Lupus Erythematosus. But the platform is based on the hunt for genetic mutations. Rather the company is using antibodies, or proteins to better define disease and disease populations. The company is able to stratify auto-...
Feb 13, 2015•16 min
This past month one of the most successful genetic testing companies, Myriad Genetics, has been settling one gene patent case after another. Also, the FDA has been attempting to regulate some very complicated lab testing. So we figured we better talk to a lawyer about the devil in the details. We’ve chosen Antoinette Konski of the law firm, Foley and Lardner. Antoinette agrees that the Myriad settlements indicate the end of an era with gene patents. So how is she advising her life science client...
Feb 10, 2015•28 min
David Schwartz was focused on long read sequencing and the structural variations of the genome—the big picture—long before the current trend. His lab at the University of Wisconsin at Madison developed optical mapping and posted the first optical map of the human genome several years ago. And last year, they published the first optical map of a cancer genome. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/s...
Feb 06, 2015•30 min
Just less than a year ago, the national biotech editor at Xconomy, Luke Timmerman, left his post. Yeah, he just left it. Gone was the regular Monday column that helped us all absorb the newest trends in biotech. Gone were the lists of companies to watch out for that made sense even if we weren't up to date on Luke's sports analogies. One day the columns were here, then they were gone. Luke said he was busy with a biography of Lee Hood, the guy who brought us automated DNA sequencing. But we all ...
Feb 03, 2015•18 min
We’re very pleased to have Liz Mansfield of the FDA on the program to finish up our current Special Report on LDTs Series. Liz is part of the team at the FDA working on the new guidance for the regulation of LDTs, and she was at the recent meeting the FDA held to receive community feedback. Today we get into some of the details of that feedback. Did Liz and the FDA hear any new issues that they had not already considered? What about the BRAF testing that was mentioned in the meeting? Is there a ...
Jan 27, 2015•27 min
Amy Miller is the Executive Vice President for the Personalized Medicine Coalition (PMC) and joins us in our Special Report on LDTs Series. Though the PMC does not have a position on whether the FDA should regulate LDTs, Amy says that the stakes could not be higher. “We see the future of personalized medicine is at stake. We urge the FDA to get this right the first time so that personalized medicine can continue to improve the quality of care that patients currently have access to,” she says at ...
Jan 23, 2015•21 min
Guest: John LaMattina, Senior Partner, Pure Tech Ventures Bio and Contact Info Listen (6:27) Comparing drug approvals: 2014 with 1996 Listen (7:10) More rational drug development? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Jan 19, 2015•29 min
Guest: Paul Beresford, VP of Bus Dev, Biodesix Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:47) VeriStrat - a test for non-small cell lung cancer Listen (4:39) What do you anticipate on the regulatory front? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Jan 15, 2015•20 min
Guest: Elaine Lyon, Former President, AMP; Medical Director of Molecular Genetics, ARUP Laboratories Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:37) What is at stake here? Listen (6:16) Is your message being heard? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Jan 13, 2015•22 min
Guest: David Rimm, Professor of Pathology, Yale University School of Medicine Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:16) An unsexy science Listen (5:36) A lack of certifications This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Jan 08, 2015•28 min
Guest: Anna Barker, Co-Director, Complex Adaptive Systems Center, ASU Bio and Contact Info Listen (3:21) Andy's challenge Listen (4:39) The year of immunotherapy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Dec 30, 2014•33 min
Guest: Surbhi Sarna, Founder, CEO, nVision Medical Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:43) Filling a void in female health innovation Listen (4:31) Addressing the leading cause of infertility This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Dec 18, 2014•24 min
Guest: Carolyn Compton, Professor of Pathology, ASU Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:54) A historic new consensus Listen (6:33) CAP committed to enforcement This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Dec 16, 2014•34 min
Guest: Geoffrey Ginsburg, Director, Duke Center for Applied Genomics and Precision Medicine Bio and Contact Info Listen (6:58) Genomic medicine occuring across the lifespan This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Dec 09, 2014•31 min
Guest: Thomas Quertermous, Director of Research, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Stanford University Bio and Contact Info Listen (7:45) Close, but not quite there This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Dec 03, 2014•33 min
Guest: Kim Stanley Robinson, Sci-Fi Author Bio and Contact Info Listen (3:30) Creating plot when science wants to be boring Listen (3:22) Genetics and the distant past This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 25, 2014•38 min
Guest: Mara Aspinall, Founder, DxInsights Bio and Contact Info Listen (2:43) DxInsights and EPEMED Listen (3:53) Diagnostics 5.0 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 20, 2014•25 min
Guest: Diane C. Farhi,, MD, Senior Medical Director, Quintiles Laboratories Bio and Contact Info Listen (6:37) Tracking clinical samples around the world Listen (5:34) How to measure sample stability This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 18, 2014•27 min
Guest: Janet, Woodcock, MD, Director, CDER, FDA Bio and Contact Info Listen (4:41) No agency charged with better translational outcomes This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 13, 2014•28 min
Guest: Scott Jewell, Senior Scientific Investigator and Director of Program for Biospecimen Science, Van Andel Institute Bio and Contact Info Listen (3:30) Do you see more creativity in the sample consent area? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 11, 2014•35 min
Guest: Bonnie Anderson, CEO, Veracyte Bio and Contact Info Listen (5:58) What is the secret to your success? Listen (4:30) Building the case for reimbursement This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.mendelspod.com/subscribe...
Nov 03, 2014•32 min
