Base to Base Biotech

Jim Cornall
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  • Medicine
  • Updated weekly

The Base to Base Biotech podcast is a weekly look at what's happening in the world of biotech, with interviews with biotech leaders around the world. Whether it's a new drug, cutting-edge technology, product launches, new technology, major finding announcement or clinical trial results, Base to Base Biotech keeps you informed. The podcast is hosted by former biotech editor and broadcaster, the award-winning media veteran Jim Cornall. Base to Base is an Ayr Coastal Media Ltd production.

  1. Base to Base biotech podcast 65: Giving medicine a genetic camouflage

    2 days ago

    Base to Base biotech podcast 65: Giving medicine a genetic camouflage

    This week, we have a conversation with Houdini Bio CEO and co-founder Jonathan Cohen-Gold. Houdini Bio has announced its official launch, having raised approximately £1.5m in non-dilutive grant funding and capital from an oversubscribed pre-seed round. The funding enables Houdini Bio to validate its technology and achieve projected technical milestones in a third of the predicted time. The platform- a machine learning-guided DNA sequence design infrastructure- is engineered to overcome the biological barriers limiting genetic medicines. Positioned for rapid commercial scaling ahead of its next funding round, Houdini Bio provides the infrastructure required to make genetic medicines work durably, consistently and cost-efficiently at scale- transforming outcomes for patients suffering from blindness, cystic fibrosis, haemophilia, dementia, cancer and more. While gene and cell therapies are progressing rapidly, their real-world impact is held back by a fundamental biological hurdle: the human cell often mistakes therapeutic DNA for a viral invader. To protect itself, the cell triggers natural defences that 'silence' the medicine. This premature shutdown limits the treatment's long-term effectiveness, drives up manufacturing costs and demands high doses which can cause dangerous immune reactions in patients. Current industry attempts to keep these therapies active rely on trial-and-error experimentation, which is slow, costly and unreliable. Houdini Bio solves this problem at the level of the genetic code itself. By combining machine learning with a deep understanding of cellular defences- specifically a master silencing mechanism known as the human silencing hub (HUSH) complex - Houdini Bio has created a toolkit to re-engineer therapeutic DNA. This gives the medicine a genetic camouflage, preserving its medical purpose while making it invisible to the cell's defences. The platform uses advanced sequence design to reliably boost gene expression output by more than 10-fold compared to current state-of-the-art methods, ensuring therapies work more efficiently, at lower doses, for longer. The company's foundational science bridges academic discovery and industrial application. The HUSH complex was originally discovered by Paul Lehner at the University of Cambridge, who identified how the body silences foreign genetic material. Building on this breakthrough during his PhD in molecular genetics, Houdini Bio CEO and co-founder Jonathan Cohen-Gold discovered a novel set of molecular rules that allow certain DNA sequences to escape this cellular lock-down. Houdini Bio has accelerated these insights using AI, building an engineering platform that paves the way for more affordable, durable gene therapies and cell therapies like CAR-T. To drive its commercial strategy, Cohen-Gold is joined by co-founder and chief business officer Lee Dunham. Having worked with more than 100 cell and gene therapy companies over the past decade- including as a director of business development at Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult- Dunham has seen first-hand why promising therapies stall, founding Houdini Bio after recognising its unique ability to solve a huge industry challenge. With its platform fully validated ahead of schedule, the company will maintain momentum to expand its team and scale co-development partnerships with pharma companies, deep tech innovators and pioneering developers looking to integrate anti-silencing technology into next-generation drug pipelines. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    27 min
  2. Base to Base biotech podcast 64: Solving logistics challenges

    19 Jun

    Base to Base biotech podcast 64: Solving logistics challenges

    This week on Base to Base, we have a conversation with Bora Pharmaceuticals’ chief commercial officer Jean-Baptiste (JB) Agnus. Bora Pharmaceuticals Bora Pharmaceuticals is an international contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) specialising in formulation development, clinical and commercial manufacturing, and packaging of complex oral solid dose, liquid, semi-solid, biologics, and sterile injectable pharmaceutical products. With sites in North America and Asia, they deliver drug products to more than 100 markets around the world. In May, Bora Group announced the acquisition of MacroGenics’ GMP manufacturing operations for $122.5m. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    24 min
  3. Base to Base biotech podcast 63: Cell and gene therapy logistics, and turning back the Parkinson’s clock

    12 Jun

    Base to Base biotech podcast 63: Cell and gene therapy logistics, and turning back the Parkinson’s clock

    This week, we have a conversation with Mark Sawicki, president and CEO of Cryoport Systems, and we chat with Nick Manusos, CEO of Kenai Therapeutics. Times: 03:22 Cryoport Systems 22:24 Kenai Therapeutics Cryoport Systems Cryoport Systems provides temperature-controlled supply chain solutions for the life sciences industry. The company supports the transportation, storage and management of sensitive biological materials used in biopharma development, reproductive medicine and animal health. Its services are designed to protect products and materials that require tightly controlled environments, including cell and gene therapies, biologics and reproductive specimens. The company offers an integrated platform that combines specialised shipping systems, logistics and transportation services, cryopreservation, biostorage and bioservices capabilities, and consulting support. Its solutions cover a range of temperature requirements, from cryogenic conditions below -150°C to refrigerated and controlled room-temperature environments. Cryoport Systems also provides monitoring and traceability technologies intended to maintain the integrity of materials throughout the supply chain. Cryoport Systems is part of Cryoport, Inc., a publicly traded company headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. Founded in 1999, Cryoport, Inc. serves customers globally through a family of companies that includes Cryoport Systems, MVE Biological Solutions and CRYOGENE. The organisation supports clinical and commercial programmes worldwide, with a particular focus on the temperature-controlled supply chain requirements of advanced therapies. Kenai Therapeutics Kenai Therapeutics recently announced a major milestone with the dosing of the first patient in its phase 1 clinical trial of RNDP-001. This approach is fundamentally disease-modifying, moving beyond symptom control to address the root cause of Parkinson's disease, and has the potential to be manufactured in large batches and readily available for more patients across the globe. Current Parkinson’s treatments focus almost entirely on managing the symptoms caused by the loss of dopamine-producing neurons. RNDP-001 represents a significant shift by aiming to replace those lost neurons, repair damaged neural circuits, and potentially restore motor function. Unlike patient-specific (autologous) therapies, RNDP-001 is an allogeneic (donor-derived), cryopreserved product built on a proprietary iPSC platform. This is a critical practical advancement, allowing the product to be manufactured in large batches and readily available for more patients, which is essential for global access. The therapy has been granted Fast Track designation by the U.S. FDA, acknowledging the urgent need for new treatments and the potential of RNDP-001 to address a serious unmet medical need. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    49 min
  4. Base to Base biotech podcast 62: A new approach to strokes

    5 Jun

    Base to Base biotech podcast 62: A new approach to strokes

    This week, we have a conversation with Revalesio president Greg Archambeau about tackling strokes, and other conditions, with a novel method. Revalesio While the pharmaceutical industry often focuses on complex chemical compounds, Revalesio is pioneering a novel drug class rooted in a surprising field: fluid physics. Revalesio is also focusing on stroke, a condition in need of new therapies. Revalesio’s breakthrough therapy, RNS60, is unlike traditional treatments. It uses a proprietary process to create an oxygen-supersaturated saline that harnesses physical forces to fundamentally improve cellular health. By boosting mitochondrial biogenesis and ATP production, the therapy addresses the core of cellular decline. Revalesio is currently at the frontier of human health with a primary focus on ischemic stroke, where they have already demonstrated game-changing results, with their phase 2 clinical trials showing a 50% reduction in brain loss and a significant reduction in disability for stroke patients. With a yearly global economic burden of stroke estimated at $890bn, RNS60 has the potential to unlock a new standard of care and drastically reduce hospital stays (from 10.8 days to 6.0 days in high-dose groups). The platform technology is also being explored for traumatic brain injury (TBI), Alzheimer’s disease, and broader healthy aging and health-span applications. Led by an executive team with deep roots at Eli Lilly, AbbVie, and Amgen, Revalesio is now moving toward phase 3 trials. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    26 min
  5. Base to Base biotech podcast 61: Making tumours visible, and taking on tough challenges

    29 May

    Base to Base biotech podcast 61: Making tumours visible, and taking on tough challenges

    This week, we speak with John Friend, CEO of Kazia Therapeutics; and have a conversation with PureTech Health CEO Robert Lyne and Eric Elenko, president and co-founder of PureTech and acting CEO of Gallop Oncology. Times: 03:23 Kazia Therapeutics 31:56 PureTech Health PureTech Health PureTech Health plc is a hub-and-spoke biotherapeutics company dedicated to giving life to science and transforming innovation into value. The company recently announced positive topline data from its phase 1b clinical trial of LYT-200, a first-in-class, fully human anti-galectin-9 monoclonal antibody, in heavily pretreated patients with relapsed/refractory (R/R) high-risk (HR) myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and R/R acute myeloid leukaemia (AML). Based on the results, PureTech's founded entity, Gallop Oncology, has selected a recommended phase 2 dose (RP2D) and intends to engage with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to discuss the design of a subsequent trial that could potentially support registration of LYT-200 in R/R HR-MDS. PureTech’s strategy has produced dozens of therapeutic candidates, including three that have received U.S. FDA approval. Kazia Therapeutics About 1 in 8 women in the U.S. will develop breast cancer in their lifetime. While many patients benefit from advances in treatment, some of the most aggressive forms are still very difficult to treat and often stop responding to therapy. A growing focus in oncology is how to overcome that resistance by changing how tumours behave. Kazia Therapeutics is advancing a strategy centred on reprogramming cancer cells. Instead of just blocking growth, the goal is to make tumours less aggressive and more visible to the immune system. Their lead candidate, paxalisib, is an oral therapy currently being studied in advanced breast cancer. In metastatic triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most treatment-resistant tumour types, early data suggests that combining paxalisib with standard therapies may begin to address both immune resistance and metastatic drivers simultaneously. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    1hr 1min
  6. Base to Base biotech podcast 60: Delivery method reduces prostate cancer tumour size

    22 May

    Base to Base biotech podcast 60: Delivery method reduces prostate cancer tumour size

    This week, we have a conversation with the founder, director and chief scientific advisor of Alessa Therapeutics, Pamela Munster. Alessa Therapeutics Alessa Therapeutics recently announced positive preliminary phase 1 safety and efficacy data for its prostate cancer treatment Enolen. This was the first study to demonstrate that the FDA-approved prostate cancer compound enzalutamide can be safely and locally administered to the prostate via sustained drug eluting implants. Recent key data presented by researchers at the NCI at the European Association of Urology Congress in London included: All 20 patients enrolled in the initial cohort were successfully implanted. These implantations achieved very high intraprostatic enzalutamide levels with minimal systemic drug exposure and resulted in no delay to surgery. Pre-radical prostatectomy MRI’s conducted for 18/20 patients (2 pending) showed a reduction in tumour volume in 84% of the lesions over an average duration of 35 days. There were no reported effects on testosterone levels or negative effects on sexual function. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    25 min
  7. Base to Base biotech podcast 59: DIA helping biotech thrive, and Gorlin syndrome

    15 May

    Base to Base biotech podcast 59: DIA helping biotech thrive, and Gorlin syndrome

    This week, we have a conversation with DIA chief science and regulatory officer, Maria Vassileva, and Medicus Pharma CEO, Raza Bokhari. Times: 02:53 Medicus Pharma 29:13 DIA DIA DIA (Drug Information Association) is a global organisation that assists life science professionals from across all areas of expertise to engage with patients, peers and thought leaders in a neutral environment on the issues of today and the possibilities for tomorrow. Starting with the controversy over the drug Thalidomide, DIA’s founders - a group of 30 pharmaceutical professionals, medical writers, and academics - came together to create a platform for necessary global communication and collaboration to solve a healthcare threat to unborn children worldwide. Today, professionals from 80 countries engage with DIA through its membership network, educational offerings, and professional development opportunities. Medicus Pharma Medicus Pharma Ltd. has submitted an Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for SkinJect (D-MNA) for the treatment of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in patients with Gorlin syndrome, a rare genetic disorder characterised by the development of multiple, recurrent skin cancers. There are no FDA-approved therapies specifically for BCC in Gorlin Syndrome. The submission represents a strategic expansion of the SkinJect programme into a high unmet need orphan indication, where current treatment options are limited and often involve repeated surgical procedures associated with cumulative morbidity and disfigurement. Medicus believes SkinJect can address this through a localised, repeatable, non-surgical treatment approach. It is a doxorubicin-containing dissolvable microneedle array designed for direct intradermal delivery into BCC lesions. SkinJect has been evaluated in phase 1 and 2 clinical studies in patients with basal cell carcinoma. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    1hr 5min
  8. Base to Base biotech podcast 58: Congenital myotonic dystrophy

    8 May

    Base to Base biotech podcast 58: Congenital myotonic dystrophy

    This week, we have a conversation with congenital myotonic dystrophy patient advocacy consultant Lisa Harvey-Duren, who was the founding Myotonic Dystrophy Foundation executive director in 2008, and Michael Snape, CEO and CSO of AMO Pharma, which is developing a treatment for the disease. AMO Pharma AMO Pharma is a clinical-stage specialty biopharmaceutical company working to identify and advance promising therapies for the treatment of serious and debilitating diseases in patient populations with significant areas of unmet need, including rare and severe childhood onset neurogenetic disorders with limited or no treatment options. In addition to developing AMO-02 for congenital myotonic dystrophy, the company is also progressing AMO-02 as a clinical stage treatment for arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy. AMO-01 is being investigated for treatment of Phelan-McDermid syndrome and AMO-04 as a clinic-ready potential medicine for Rett syndrome and related disorders. To get in touch with guest suggestions, or to sponsor or advertise on the podcast, please email jim@deeptechdigest.com

    45 min
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About

The Base to Base Biotech podcast is a weekly look at what's happening in the world of biotech, with interviews with biotech leaders around the world. Whether it's a new drug, cutting-edge technology, product launches, new technology, major finding announcement or clinical trial results, Base to Base Biotech keeps you informed. The podcast is hosted by former biotech editor and broadcaster, the award-winning media veteran Jim Cornall. Base to Base is an Ayr Coastal Media Ltd production.

Information

  • Creator
    Jim Cornall
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    65
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Ayr Coastal Media Ltd 2025
  • Show Website
    Base to Base Biotech

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