Discovery Life Sciences

September brought two significant FDA approvals targeting rare pediatric diseases: Ionis received FDA approval for ZANVASTRO™, the first-ever medicine for Alexander disease, an ultra-rare neurological disorder. The antisense oligonucleotide (an RNA-targeted therapy) directly targets and lowers the production of abnormal glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), stopping the harmful protein buildup that drives the disease's progression. Read more: https://lnkd.in/g6gNrxJE Ultragenyx received FDA approval for FAYUVI™ to treat children with mucopolysaccharidosis type IIIA (MPS IIIA), also known as Sanfilippo syndrome type A. The gene therapy delivers a functional copy of the SGSH gene, helping restore production of the sulfamidase enzyme needed to break down heparan sulfate and address the harmful buildup that damages brain cells. This also marks Ultragenyx’s second gene therapy approval, following August’s approval of GENGLYCOS™ for glycogen storage disease type Ia (GSDIa). Read more: https://lnkd.in/euQX49fX For children and families affected by rare diseases that have historically had few or no treatment options, these approvals offer new hope. Behind every breakthrough are dedicated researchers working to address unmet medical needs and bring meaningful advances to the patients who need them most.    #RareDiseases #FDAApprovals

Looking forward to attending PBSS Vancouver on Tuesday, October 20! I'll be representing Discovery Life Sciences, where we are excited to be a major sponsor of this year's event. I'm looking forward to connecting with colleagues, meeting new faces, and sharing how Discovery Life Sciences supports drug discovery and development! If you're attending, I'd love to connect! Stop by our table and say hello! #PBSS #DiscoveryLifeSciences #DrugDiscovery #DMPK #Vancouver #LifeSciencesBC

Heading to #ASHG26 in Montréal?  Join Dr. Nripesh Prasad, Ph.D., Discovery’s VP Scientific and Tech Development, at Covaris' Industry Education Session on October 21.  Nripesh will share how a unified, automated NGS workflow can support oncology research across plasma and FFPE specimens.  Additionally, be sure to stop by Nripesh’ poster presentation “Clinical Performance and Analytical Specificity of the Twist cfDNA Pan-Cancer Comprehensive Genomic Profiling Panel for Somatic Variant Detection in Cancer Patient Plasma and Healthy Donor Controls.”  See you there!

We have made it to San Francisco for ISSX North America 2026!  Join us on the floor at booth #407 throughout the week, enter to win Disco the Labubu, and let's discuss how our products and services can help advance your programs. And don't forget, we have a few presentations on the schedule this week:  ▪️ Featured Presentation  Monday, October 12 | 1:50- 2:05 p.m.  Do We Know Enough About Human Hepatocyte Lots for ADME?  Presented by Erik Willems, Director, Scientific Operations, Discovery Life Sciences ▪️ Sponsored Breakfast Symposium  Wednesday, October 14 | 7:15 – 8:15 a.m.  Accelerated CYP Inhibition and Reactivity Profiling to Generate Public ADMET Datasets of Unprecedented Scale  Presented by Lauren Orr, PhD, Analytical Scientist, Octant ▪️ Scientific Poster  Monday, October 12, 2026, 1:30 PM – 2:15 PM.  P7: A Hepatocyte-Only Spheroid Platform Enables Prolonged Culture and Assessment of Low-Clearance Drug Metabolism  Sweta Parikh, Sr Development Scientist, Discovery Life Sciences

Discovery is proud to welcome Lunit Oncology to our growing network of AI-pathology partners. Lunit's AI pathology platform, paired with Discoverys specialty lab services and diverse, global biospecimen bank, will deliver standardized, reproducible tissue data across biomarker and translational programs. This is a huge step in expanding the landscape of tissue insights for biomarker research and drug development.  You can read the full press release here: https://lnkd.in/eCAjPq2g If youre in the Bay Area and would like to learn more about whats next, join us at the B4 Tour October 14 in South San Francisco! Yoojoo Lim, Medical Director at Lunit Oncology, will join our panel AI in Biomarkers: What's Working, What's Next.   Register today: https://lnkd.in/euxqmdvj

We're heading to ESMO Congress in Madrid, 23-27 October, and our leaders and scientific experts are excited to discuss what's next in cancer research and development. At Discovery, we bring together biospecimen solutions, genomics, proteomics, molecular pathology, and companion diagnostics services to help researchers and therapeutic developers generate the insights needed to advance oncology programs with confidence.  Schedule a private meeting: https://lnkd.in/ez4V-dS7 Connect with our team today:  ▪️Greg Herrema, Chief Executive Officer  ▪️T. Scott Reid, VP & Global Head of Companion Diagnostics  ▪️Anna Juncker-Jensen, VP of Scientific Affairs  ▪️Preeti Panda, Business Development Director  ▪️Jon Beck, FRCPath, VP of Specialty Lab Services and Strategic Accounts  ▪️Gudrun Bänfer, Director of Post Approval Services  ▪️Grace Halliday, Business Development Director  ▪️Richard Hughes, Strategic Marketing Support  ▪️Oliver Lehner, Sr. Business Development Director

Are your clinical trial analytical workflows prepared for samples that don’t meet ideal quality specifications? Biospecimens are essential to clinical research, but samples collected from patients, often with advanced-stage disease, do not always arrive in optimal condition. Limited sample volume, low cell counts or viability, and protein degradation can all affect downstream analyses. Our new article explores how researchers can use disease-state biospecimens to build cohorts that reflect the intended clinical trial population to stress-test analytical workflows before a clinical trial begins. By accounting for real-world sample variability early, researchers can make every clinical trial sample count towards meaningful data.   #biospecimens #clinicaltrial #companiondiagnostic

This Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate the diverse people, cultures, and achievements of Hispanic and Latino communities whose contributions continue to strengthen our society and inspire innovation. From research and discovery to leadership and collaboration, Hispanic and Latino professionals play a vital role in life sciences. There is no scientific progress without diversity. Today and every day, we are proud to recognize and celebrate their contributions and lasting impact.