Systems Biology Q&A
Monitoring Merrimack's Marathon Run
By John Russell

Merrimack Pharmaceuticals is frequently seen as a poster child for the systems biology approach to drug discovery. Founded in 2000, it has made few missteps. Last spring, Cambridge, Mass-based Merrimack had the good fortune to raise $65 million in a series F financing round before the economy soured. In July, the company's first compound developed using its systems biology approach, MM121 (oncology), entered Phase One.

Merrimack hit a minor speed bump near the end of 2008 when its most advanced compound, MM093 (rheumatoid arthritis), did not meet its Phase Two primary end-point and work on the program was suspended. But MM093 is an in-licensed compound, and not the product of its distinctive "network biology" approach which pairs experiments with heavy use of in silico modeling to derive detailed mechanistic understanding of pathways, targets, and compounds. Currently the company's focus is on biologics.

Clearer evidence for or against Merrimack's brand of systems biology is expected late this year when data from MM121's Phase One is released. The broad idea, of course, is that these systems approaches will reduce pipeline attrition and perhaps be more naturally suited for developing targeted therapies and companion diagnostics.

Last month, Merrimack elevated Ulrik Nielsen (above), a company founder, to SVP and Chief Science Officer, and Predictive Biomedicine editor John Russell took the opportunity to talk with Nielsen and Kathleen Petrozzelli, senior manager, corporate communications, about Merrimack's progress and course adjustments. One recent change: Merrimack is seeking a partner to help it bring MM121 to market, a departure from its past go-it-alone strategy. More...

Integrating Clinical and Genomics Data
By Alissa Poh

How does a physicist wind up at the vanguard of translational medicine, bridging genomics, bioinformatics, and IT in an effort to shed light on cancer biology? That's among the chief responsibilities of John Quackenbush, professor of  biostatistics and computational biology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) in Boston. An affable personality with slightly greying, shoulder-length hair, Quackenbush is a theoretical physicist by training. He rose to prominence during an eight-year stint at The Institute for Genomic Research (TIGR), founded by Craig Venter, developing and sharing a range of software tools and databases for microarray analysis. More...

Pfizer: Ted Slater's Semantic Technologies
By Kevin Davies and Phillips Kuhl

The theoretical benefits of the semantic web for life sciences have been debated for a few years now, but practical examples within pharma remain scarce. Pfizer's Ted Slater is an interesting exception. Slater heads a small group of four informatics scientists in St. Louis called the Indications and Pathways Center of Emphasis (IPCoE), which supports Pfizer research efforts in identifying and validating inflammation targets. More...

Top Story Last Issue
Novartis Savors Early Modeling Success
By John Russell

Modeling and Simulation (M&S) has a complex history in the life sciences. Big pharma and small biotechs alike have struggled with finding the right recipe. Like a good wine, having the right general ingredients--management buy-in, modeling talent, sufficient resources, suitable problems--is necessary but not enough for success. A certain amount of vintner's experiment and bottle aging has to occur and more than a few companies have gulped some awful tasting stuff along the way.

Pretty clearly there won't be a single best recipe, but Novartis has been demonstrating it has found one that works and works quite well. A bit more than three years ago, Donald Stanski, M.D. (above), during his recruitment process convinced Novartis that Modeling and Simulation would never reach its potential embedded in the biostatistics department. It needed to be its own department; organized in close alignment with Novartis' drug development therapeutic franchises; enjoy the right reporting structure; and have enough resources and time to prove itself. More...

Short News & Analysis

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Insight Pharma Reports

Direct-To-Consumer Genetic Testing: Business Prospects in the United States 
Author: Kathie L. Wrick, Ph.D 

Genetic testing has come a long way since the development of the first genetic test in 1963. According to NIH, almost 1,500 genetic tests are now in use. This report focuses on health-related decision making applications of DTC genetic tests and examines various components of this emerging business environment. Read more.

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